HOW to get more people back into Ammanford?

Angela Phillips, secretary of Ammanford Chamber Of Trade, admits that is the “$64,000 question” facing anxious town traders going into the newyear.

“We want people to come into town, walk around and say ‘I never knew there was so much inAmmanford orwhat a nice place it is’,” she said.

“But how do we get that point across? That is the key question.

“Yes, there are empty shops in town, but no boarded-up ones.

“There are successful businesses here, despite the difficult times we live in.”

Ammanford-based county councillor Deian Harries feels the town has never recovered from losing its Woolworths store in January 2009.

“That was a huge body blow – and Woolies has never been replaced,” he told the Guardian.

Cllr Harries, who runs a shoe shop in College Street, says local traders are “under huge pressure”.

And he felt Carmarthenshire county council’s free Christmas Eve parking scheme had little impact.

“Christmas Eve was very, very quiet for us,” he said. “In fact, it was a disaster compared to the previous year.

“I know the council has to make cutbacks, but couldn’t they at least have given us free parking over Christmas week?

“All the investment goes to Carmarthen and Llanelli.”