PLANS are afoot to restore one of Fleetwood’s most distinctive and much-loved shop fronts.
The Ye Olde Toffee & Bacca Shoppe mural has adorned the premises of the former Hearnshaws Electrical shop in Lord Street for decades.
With its black and white mock-Elizabethan facade, it harks back to old fashioned days of sweet shops with jars of boiled sweets and toffees, and specialist tobaccoes, when town centres were full of unique shops and had their own character.
The shop did indeed sell pipes, tobacco and sweets and before that, as far back as the late 1920s, it was called Ye Olde Cabinet Maker.
However, over the years the paint has faded and the mural is now a shadow of its former splendour.
Matters have not been helped by the long term closure of the electrical shop.
But this could be about to change.
A group of activists, nominally named the Olde Bacca Mural Group, has been formed to revive the mural.
Helping the group out is Wyre Borough and Fleetwood Town Council member, Coun Terry Rogers, who has offered to give them practical support.
He told the Weekly News: “This mural really is much-loved in Fleetwood. It is traditional and reminds people of the heyday of Lord Street, when it was a busy and thriving town centre.
“This isn’t just about living in the past, though – it is about improving the present day appearance of Lord Street, of sprucing the place up and making it more of an attraction to tourists. We have formed this group and people who think they can help out are welcome to join us.”
Coun Rogers said the group had the permission of the Hearnshaw estate to carry out the work, and they have scaffolding and paint ready.
Even better, the group has the services of an artist, Roy Owens, who will be able to replicate the original fine lettering of the mural.
The councillor is looking into whether the group will need planning permission to erect scaffolding for the work, but is confident the project will soon be able to go ahead.
He added: “Tourism is becoming increasingly important so we need to make our town centre brighter.”
The group is meeting up again this week to discuss the latest stage of the project.
Anyone interested in helping the group, or who has photographs of the mural, can contact Coun Rogers on (01253) 770369.