Jonathan Reubin, manages vacant properties for Mountcrest Associates, including shops in Priory Walk, Colchester. Here he gives his views on how to solve the problems facing town centre.

"The main problem with this part of the town has been a stalled regeneration scheme and the council not amending their plans and activating them to correspond with demand and changing circumstances.

"The poor road infrastructure and the failure of Essex County Council to repair roads and pavements in keeping with conservation area standards has not helped.

"Further investment will be made in Priory Walk but clients need to know and have confidence in the Colchester and Essex Councils to carry out their plans and duties quickly to good standards.

"Lack of openness and communication from the councils are problems my clients have to deal with.

"Government rules and regulations introduced a short while ago make it virtually impossible to have rateable values reviewed.

"There has been a huge change in relationships between values in different parts of the town centre and this is not being reflected in rateable values.

"As a consequence businesses are getting a raw deal in terms of high taxation and benefits from this tax take.

"Policing and crime prevention appears to be almost non-existent, the state of the roads and pavements as already mentioned is appalling and the town just does not look cared for.

"My clients have offered competitive terms for incoming tenants so they have done what they can but there are many other matters affecting the town centre and Priory Walk which are out of their hands, so we have to rely mainly on our two councils to do something meaningful.

"There is now the planning application for the Queen Street redevelopment which is meant to sort out the east side of the town centre though according to the responses in the Gazette both printed and on line, it does not appear to meet with universal public approval.

"With the application for the old bus depot these two applications are meant to bring something like 550 students into the central area to live. Whether they will bring economic benefits to the town centre is still a debatable point as is the actual demand for this type of accommodation by genuine students.

"From what I have read and heard, the planning committee are going to probably approve these applications and I am sure council ownership of both these sites will not be an influence on the decisions they will take.

"The council has now carried out a deep clean of the pavements but failed to get Essex County Council to repair them so we have very clean trip hazards.

"The Colchester council issue is will they keep them clean or will it let them revert back to their previous filthy state.

"Colchester Council are funding some extra police cover for the town centre which eventually, after a training period, will help with town centre safety but I am not sure how this will help with the beggars and rough sleepers.

"The best thing for both the town and these people is for us not to give cash to them and let them seek help from official agencies and charities who can assist them to get back into suitable accommodation and sort out their anti social habits.

READ MORE: 'It will cost £200k to smarten up Colchester High Street pavements'

"I have had reported to me on a number of occasions locations just outside the central core of Colchester where drug dealing has been seen and this needs to be tackled. I have been informed by the council that the drugs supply and dealing issues follow the A12 out of London so Colchester is not the only town suffering from this evil business.

"Essex Police will somehow have to stem the flow of drugs."