DISCUSSIONS on re-locating market traders from Welshpool Town Hall have gone down like a lead balloon.

Traders based at the Town Hall have started a petition to Save Welshpool Indoor Market.

But Welshpool Town Council says that this is premature, as a consultation is due to start on a possible re-location of traders to the Church Street car park

Paul Bunce, whose wife runs a fruit and veg stall at the market, said: “Basically they want to relocate the indoor market from the hall down to a car park near Tesco were they’ll put up purpose built stalls.

“Our main concern is that it will draw trade away from the town centre.

“We’ve only just set up here, if we knew this was the plan we would have had second thoughts.

“This has been done elsewhere and the markets have died.”

Welshpool Town Council clerk, Robert Robinson, said: “I’m not sure why they’ve set up a petition as we’re not closing it down.

“A public consultation will start in the next week to 10 days to find out what people think of a plan to move the market to bespoke units in the Church street car park.

“I must stress no final decision has been taken.”

“We’ll see what the survey will bring first.”

Traders believe that there is a charter that says that a market has to be run at the hall.

However Welshpool Mayor Cllr Stephen Kaye believes the charter means that the Town Council needs to provide an area for a market somewhere within the town.

Cllr Kaye said: “We have to look at trying to take the market forward.

“It’s very weak and you only need a couple of traders to leave and we’d be making a loss.

“We have a huge rates bill and it doesn’t make much sense to heat the building if there are only a couple of stalls in there.

“I know there are mixed feelings and you have a petition going around but we need to test the water for alternatives as it’s not making money anymore.”