A DEATH knell sounded for St Annes when councillors decided against selling part of Ashton Gardens to Safeway.

So say traders who would have been directly affected by the proposed development - as well as the supermarket chain itself which is now considering pulling out of St Annes entirely.

Some say it paves the way for out-of-town developments, others want a referendum, but all agree it is vital for Fylde Borough Council to take positive action and spend money on revitalising the town.

Councillors meeting at Lytham's Lowther Pavilion last Thursday (May 21) voted 23-21 against the sale, with three absent and two declaring an interest.

The decision was met with delight by the Save Ashton Gardens group, but traders are far from happy.

Jonathan Taylor, from JR Taylor in St Annes Square, fumed: "The council has down nothing for St Annes since the war and it's a pity we now haven't got the money Safeway was offering.

"It's also a pity for Ashton Gardens which, at present, is a drugs haven and desperately needs improving.

"The important thing now is to make sure everyone in the town encourages Safeway to expand here in some other form."

Across the road in Garden Street, a spokesman for menswear shop Gilbert Taylor attacked the council's way of thinking, explaining: "Not a single councillor has been around the shops to ask what we think.

"Those who voted against it are not interested in the town.

"It's ludicrous - Safeway wouldn't have made the town fantastic, but it would have been a start, encouraging other shops to come here.

"They're bound to look to an out-of-town development now."

Neighbour Jayne Brandon, manager of Kari Original, added: "There should have been a referendum and we should have been allowed to speak.

"It's all healthy competition and would have brought more trade into the town."

Safeway itself tagged the council's decision "a bad day for the residents, the retailers and certainly Ashton Gardens," with spokesman Peter Sitch saying: "The decision also throws the future of our present store back into the melting pot.

"It will continue as long as it remains viable, but the store underperforms by a high margin compared to others."

One person who is certainly delighted is Barbara Pagett, founder of SAG, who commented: "It was a close finish but the result was right.

"We see it as a chance for Safeway to go back to the drawing board and come back with something more suitable for the people of St Annes.

"We are not against the regeneration of the town and we certainly did not use mob rule to get the result as some have claimed."

But Councillor Alfred Jealous, who voted against the sale, says the council was looking at ways of improving the town before Safeway submitted its plan.

"We had to wait and see what the outcome of its proposal was before we could continue with ours," he said.

"The way forward is with the bus money which we have been sitting on for two years.

"We have £500,000 and it is important to hold on to it to apply for lottery grants.

"We must have something to attract visitors to the town and that is the way to get traders back.

"What we don't want is a large, rectangular building which could turn into a white elephant.

"Justice was done and it was the right decision.

"The park was given to the people in 1914 and for the life of me I can't see why anyone would want to see a car park full of pollution and noise at its heart."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.