AFTER a recent visit home to see his parents in Ilfracombe, graphic designer Lee Newham was so shocked at the state of empty shops in the High Street he accepted a

Journal

challenge to tidy them up.

The idea was to give the shop-fronts a "virtual redesign", to show owners, potential new businesses and the public just how good they could look — on paper at least — with a little help.

Lee and his wife, Ariana, had done a similar exercise in their spare time, as a pet project at Sydenham, in the London Borough of Lewisham, which is where Lee now lives.

The results were displayed online and when we saw the project called "What If Sydenham", we asked him if he would be prepared to try the same thing for Ilfracombe.

The

Journal

sent him photographs of empty shops in Ilfracombe High Street and his transformations have resulted in "What If Ilfracombe".

Our before and Lee's after shots tell the whole story.

Lee's family once owned the Carlton Hotel and he said: "I hadn't been back for a year and was shocked at the state of the High Street.

"Ilfracombe looked shabby to say the least, but it does have many fine examples of original shop fronts. Ilfracombe could be beautiful," he said.

"Every time I go home to my parents it amazes me, as it looks worse and worse every time I come back. Empty shops should not be left boarded up and left to crumble, it drags the whole town down. Investment should be encouraged."

He said: "The thing that amazed me about the shots the

Journal

sent me was that the buildings are in such poor condition. It took ages to retouch them and repair the brickwork. Lots of them had to be redrawn.

"It really needs someone to oversee a complete High Street regeneration strategy. Someone needs to sort out what Ilfracombe wants to be."

He added: "The 'What If Sydenham' project amassed lots of interest where I live, as it has a similar problem.

"If people could see the potential in the shops it might spark some interest in reviving the fortunes of the town centre. It just takes a bit of imagination."

Ariana saw how the dilapidated old Garden Shop could come to life — quite literally — with a green roof.

Lee, who is design director at Davies Hall Design Consultants in London, said: "We believe that estate agents signs should be banned and the shops should be done up to look more attractive."

His designs often cleverly incorporate the contact details of estate agents for interested parties.

"In Sydenham, the council has started charging rates on empty properties to encourage them to rent them out, rather than holding out for larger rents," he said.

"There is also a rate holiday for empty shops that are used for community purposes or art displays."

Robert McFarlane, chairman of Ilfracombe's High Street Traders, said: "I particularly like the example at Gems and Steel, where the windows are used to advertise the shop, but in a smart way.

"We are working with staff and students at Ilfracombe Arts College on ways we can use the windows of empty shops for displays, so this might be something we can take to them. Of course, anyone leasing a shop would expect the landlord to paint the building and it's not a five-minute job, as many would need scaffolding, but an online virtual tour of the High Street could show business people from all over the country, the potential we have here."