IVYBRIDGE councillors will seek a meeting with the district council's parking team in a bid to give businesses in the town a boost.

Speaking at a meeting of the full town council last week, South Hams councillor Mike Saltern urged town ­representatives to seek a meeting to 'explore any potential for the revision of parking arrangements in Ivybridge'.

A previous experiment in Modbury, where short-stay parking was reduced, was cited as one possible way forward.

Councillors felt it had been successful, with Cllr Saltern saying it had involved an adjustment in the timing of parking charges without a big impact on revenue and so might be achievable.

Discussing the difficulties involved in addressing the issue of parking, Cllr Saltern pointed out that, even though South Hams Council had frozen parking charges at the Glanvilles Mill shopping centre in the town for four years, parking costs were still cited as an issue by business owners.

He said parking remained a 'substantial income' for the district council and that the three town car parks generated revenue equivalent to a 2.5 per cent increase in council tax.

Town councillor Ray Wilson said paying for parking did put people off coming to Ivybridge to shop. He said the town is 'doing well for estate agents and charity shops', but what are needed are people 'brave enough' to start new shops.

Cllr Stephen Fourte said what is lacking is a reason for people to come to Ivybridge. The town cannot compete with Plymouth and Exeter in terms of shopping, so people need to work together to create other reasons to come.

He said he hopes the ­redevelopment of Stowford Mill might eventually provide such a reason.

Cllr Tom Bowden said a business owner had told him that events such as the Christmas lights switch-on make a big difference. But he added that people's perception is that the shops in Ivybridge do not meet their needs.

Cllr Sylvia Rutley felt that a proper redevelopment of

the leisure centre, with an improved pool, would increase footfall.

She also attended a site visit to Endsleigh Garden Centre with members of South Hams Council's development management committee, which decided against permitting a planning application relating to the business.

The application was seeking to increase an area of the ­centre devoted to the sale of 'certain types of goods', which amounts to a variation of a planning condition originally imposed to stop Endsleigh posing too much competition to town centre businesses.

Cllr Rutley said her take on the plans was that Endsleigh wanted 'people to come in a coach, spend lots of money and then leave again'.

The town council had ­previously objected to the application due to its effect on the vitality of the town centre, among other concerns.