Dudley loses out on Portas Pilot bid (From Dudley News)
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Dudley loses out on Portas Pilot bid
10:30am Monday 28th May 2012 in Local
DUDLEY has lost out on its bid to become a Portas Pilot town centre.
Local Government Minister Grant Shapps announced his 12 chosen towns at the weekend, which will each receive a slice of £1.2 million and a tailored package of support from both the Minister and Queen of Shops retail guru Mary Portas.
Towns chosen as pilot projects include Wolverhampton, Liskeard, Stockton on Tees, Croydon and Margate.
The news comes as a bitter blow to Dudley campaigners, which included Dudley North MP Ian Austin, traders, residents and council officers, who recently met with the Minister in London to put their case forward for a rejuvenation of the town and also follows the disappointment of the not securing city status.
However due to the high demand from town centre applications a second round of pilot towns will be announced by the end of July.
A further 15 town centres will be chosen from the entries already submitted.
