by Richard Ellard, partner in the commercial property department of Thomson Snell and Passmore

Out of town shopping centres have been springing up for many years now.

A question, in an economic downturn, is: Are they any more sustainable than retail in a town centre?

Whether the development is created out of a previously unused site or is developed ad hoc from an existing site, such developments pose challenges for local councils.

How will the roads take additional traffic? Is there enough public transport? What about services and amenities? How do you prevent the town centre dying?

Locally we have seen the development of one such out of town centre.

Longfield Road in Tunbridge Wells was once a cut-through from High Brooms to the A21 and Pembury Hospital site with the odd DIY superstore and trade-only retailers.

Over the years it has developed into a shopping destination and Knights Park, an entertainment centre in its own right, has been added.

A number of well-known retailers have stores there and some of the original stores have been sub-divided, creating additional stores increasing the numbers of shoppers.

Traffic is an issue and is set to worsen with the expansion of Pembury Hospital and the additional retail outlets opening over the next 12 months.

Will the local council be able to resolve traffic issues by park-and-ride schemes, free public transport from the town or staggered opening hours for retailers?

Or will shoppers stand by what is almost a constitutional right and drive to the new shops and exacerbate traffic problems?

It is argued that additional out of town shops take business away from already struggling town centres.

Will this be the case in Tunbridge Wells?

The local retail offering is mixed, with a number of boutique retailers offering perhaps a different kind of shopping experience from the out of town shops.

There are, however, some retailers who will have offerings both in and out of the town. Does this mean that these retailers feel they can maintain both?

Or do these retailers see the future for them as being out of town and are getting established now?

Can the local council overcome the challenges and successfully allow a town and out of town centre to flourish without competing for the same market? Time will tell.