Minutes:
Simon Walters, Director of Communities and Environment provided a presentation to the Committee on how the City of Lincoln Council mitigated the impact of COVID-19 on local businesses. He explained the following:
· Groups such as the City Centre Management Group, City Centre Tasking Group and City Centre and Uphill Recovery group were set up to help combat the impact of COVID-19
· The strategy for lifting lockdown was to:
- Ensure that the city was made safe and felt welcoming to people, residents and employee’s
- Developing a programme (events & activities) to bring people back into the city in a safe
- Managing a sensitive marketing campaign which encouraged people back into the city
- Promoting key messages that included 'shop local, buy local' so the Lincoln business community was supported
- Offering tailored support to Lincoln businesses re COVID-19
· Referred to Phase 1 (Retail), Phase 2 (hospitality) and Phase 3 (student return)
· Highlighted the feedback that was received from residents on how they would feel safe in the city. The majority of residents were happy with the work the Council was doing to help control the impacts of COVID-19 and felt there was no further action required by the Council
· Laid out the plans for Lockdown 2 which were as follows:
- Additional funding was received
- Further communication and online digital campaigns
- Improving the local environment by carrying out maintenance work to make the City centre more attractive
- Managing activities with the help of Covid ambassadors and the Police
· Advised what would need to happen next to create a more cultural, unique experience when visiting the city, this involved:
- Cultural programmes
- Lincoln BIG programme of activity
- Developing an Events and Festivals Strategy
Question: Were there any links with the University in relation to any art projects?
Response: There had been constant liaison between the City of Lincoln Council and Lincoln University. £120,000 had been allocated for the cultural element of the Heritage Action Zone and the University would be one of the partners involved in how the money would be spent.
Question: Would there be more scope in relation to toilets/changing facilities for babies to encourage more families to visit the city centre?
Response: Grant funding and working in partnership with other organisations who also provide such facilities would help enhance the city and make it more attractive to tourists.
Question: How severe was homelessness on the streets currently?
Response: It had been mixed. Some areas had dropped, whereas others have increased, activity was more visible in the City centre due to there being less people around. But the Intervention Team and Rough Sleeper teams were engaging with rough sleepers to help them into support.
Question: How could the congregation of people outside pubs and taxi ranks be prevented?
Response: Once the COVID Marshall Scheme was underway and with the extension of opening hours and students returning home it was felt there would be less issues with regards to queueing/people congregating in the streets.</AI7>
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