Traders and residents fear rising rents and anti-social behaviour is putting off customers from visiting an out-of-town shopping centre.
Shop owners in New Ash Green claim a volatile group of youths who intimidate customers in the car park and hurl verbal abuse at them in the street are deterring visits.
Liz Boniface, who represents the New Ash Green Active Retirement Association, says residents at a nearby retirement home are too scared to do their shopping at the precinct as a result.
“They don’t want to come here. It shouldn’t be a no-go area,” she said.
“It didn’t used to be like this. People don’t want to come to an area that is known for its anti-social behaviour.”
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The 76-year-old says she has been intimated and physically targeted on numerous occasions by groups of youths near New Ash Green shopping centre.
On April 21 she said she was driving away from the craft fair she runs in the centre when eight boys on bikes surrounded her car.
“It was frightening,” she said, adding she knew if she was to accidentally “hit one of them I would be blamed” and it was “impossible to drive”.
“Plus I didn’t want them to damage my car,” she added.
Liz was forced to take a circuitous route home to avoid them finding out where she lived.
Now every time she hosts a craft fair she tries to alternate between her own and her husband’s car so she is not easily recognisable.
On another occasion, Liz, who has lived in the village for more than 30 years, was almost followed almost to her home by the same group of boys on foot and says they only stopped when she called the police.
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“Every time I see them they are verbally abusive and the language is awful,” she added. “They have followed me home twice.
“It takes a lot to scare me, but I was shaking when I got home. I was actually physically sick.
“To think I am being targeted. I’m not as agile as I used to be. How far would they have followed me?”
Resident Kate Stanford also agreed it is putting off shoppers.
“The group of kids doing this are a danger to themselves and others,” she said. “They regularly ride their bikes at cars causing damage and distress to those around them.
“I have nearly been knocked over several times by them on their bikes at the shops, not to mention the fact that my dog has nearly been hit while I walk him because they race each other up and down the shops.
“I know of older residents who won’t go to the shops without a chaperone because of the abuse and aggression from this group.
“God forbid one of them gets hit by a car, because not only will they be hurt but the distress and upset it will cause the driver is unthinkable.
“Their behaviour goes beyond kids just being kids.”
Fellow resident Diane Furlong added: “It seems to be a small group of teenagers who are making themselves a nuisance and disrespecting the people who live here and the shop owners.
“It’s not fair for the community to have to put up with it.
“The way they ride around the car park there is going to be an accident one day.”
Liz has been asked by management company KMP Solutions, to set up a market in the centre in a bid to attract more customers to the area but she said she is refusing too until the behaviour is addressed.
“When we do the craft fair we are in a building and there is only one way in and out but I would have no control outside if the teenagers came and started terrorising the traders,” she explained.
“I’m not going to do it until this issue is sorted.
“I don’t want my vendors or traders being intimated or terrorised with abusive language, being cycled at and having wheelies done in front of them.
Meanwhile, bakery owner Shani Manamperi says her business is being severely impacted by the behaviour.
“They may think it is just innocent but is has a huge impact,” said the businesswoman. “We have enough issues with the state of the place and lack of footfall without this also stopping people wanting to shop here. It’s not fair.
“It’s not a welcoming place anymore.”
Shani, who has owned the bakery for four years, says businesses are closing all around her.
“I don’t want to close but the landlords are increasing the rent and I’m not getting any more customers.
“We are really struggling with the cost of living crisis and we really need shoppers to want to come here, but it’s not a very welcoming place anymore.”
Recently she spoke to the group of boys who were throwing chips around outside her shop and squirting ketchup on the windows.
She said she asked them to stop but the next day, when she opened up, she found what looked like a stone had been thrown at her window.
The same thing happened a few days later and Shani said she cannot afford to replace the glass.
Last week social media was awash with reports the boys were spotted throwing flour around the centre.
Shani added: “The New Ash Green shopping centre was covered in flour, then these young kids spill water on it and the floor becomes slick and sticky.”
Traders say they would like to see more CCTV around the area, an increased police presence and are encouraging the parents to speak to their children.
They say there is plenty of provision in the area to entertain the youngsters, including the Pavilion with an outdoor gym and football fields, the sports centre, craft workshops, a repair shop and even a new internship programme encouraging them to start up their own businesses and make money.
Last month residents were furious after a large number of nitrous oxide gas canisters were found littered around the car park.
KMP Solutions, who purchased and took over management of the tired precinct near Longfield in July, addressed both the rent hikes and reports of anti-social behaviour in a statement.
A spokesman for the property management company said: “Similar to our commitment to rectify the previous lack of services, repairs and maintenance at this site, we are also bringing the rent levels up to where they should be in 2024.
“The historic rental levels left little room for the site to be improved. We recognise it may be a double-edged sword but in order to improve the site for retailers, customers, and local residents we are hesitantly and marginally proposing increases.
“In general, shop owners understand that rent levels can’t and won’t remain stagnant for decades and especially when there are so many improvements being carried out to the shopping centre.
“Indeed, even with proposed increases we were very happy to see that local businesses look positively towards the New Ash Shopping Centre, the proof of this being that we had three units let instantly within days of going to market.”
Wit regards to anti-social behaviour, they added: “We have not had any recent reports on this matter. Noting that as the summer weather improves perhaps such issues will arise and if necessary no doubt local law enforcement will increase their presence.”
Tackling anti-social behaviour and identifying those responsible remains at the core of keeping our communities safe
Meanwhile, police are encouraging residents to keep them abreast of any “persistent problems”.
Inspector Mark Stubberfield said: ‘We are aware of reports that during April 2024, a woman was verbally abused and harassed by a group of young people, in the shopping centre area for New Ash Green.
“These were investigated and whilst the available evidence was unfortunately insufficient to pursue the matter any further, details of these concerns were passed to local patrols.”
However, police also noted that since the end of April, they have not been made aware of any further reports of this nature.
Insp Stubberfield added: “We fully recognise, however, that even one distressing incident can have a profound impact upon victims and how safe they may feel in their neighbourhoods and it is encouraging that over the past year the New Ash Green area has seen a reduction in reports of anti-social behaviour by almost a third, from 69 to 47.
“During the same period, victim-based crime has also fallen from 344 to 300.
“Tackling anti-social behaviour and identifying those responsible remains at the core of keeping our communities safe, and we do this through visible and targeted patrols and through close work with our partners and businesses.
“This includes ensuring a beat officer for New Ash Green attends council meetings to gain a wider understanding of any concerns and issues.
“We also continue to urge residents and businesses to report any incidents to us. This is so important, as it helps build an accurate picture of where there may be persistent problems.”