Vacant building by Rhyl railway station to be a flower shop
She started her business in Rhuddlan, where she opened a shop in late 2019, before having to close and become a home-based enterprise as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The unit in question was previously used as a busman's restroom, and as a kiosk for rail passengers.
'I've got the keys, but there's still a lot of work to do,' Jacqui said.
'I've been negotiating for three-and-a-half years to get this place. I've always loved the railway station; I love listed buildings.
'I've always thought it would make a great place for a flower shop. I want to be open as soon as possible – it's been empty for years, and I don't think it's been in retail use since the 1970s.'
Jacqui's business is named in the Good Florist Guide, which lists the best florists in the UK and Ireland.
She sells flowers suitable as gifts and for all sorts of special occasions, and has been a florist for about 30 years.
In her successful planning application for a change of use of the unit, she wrote that she aims to give the unit a 'more attractive appearance'.
Jacqui added in her planning application: 'The building has been vacant for a number of years, making the station look unloved to both locals and visitors, not making a positive and welcoming impact on arrivals.
'Flower shops are traditional to railway stations, and would be in keeping with the beauty of the listed building and conservation area.'
Jacqui said: 'I just think it's going to help 'pretty up' the town.
'It's a beautiful building that's going to be used again, and used in a nice way.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
7 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
State pension age review moves forward after discussion of increase to 69
The state pension age is already set to increase again from next year The possibility of the state pension age rising to 69 has edged closer as Labour announces another review of the state pension age. Legislation is already in place for the access age to gradually increase from the current 66 up to 67, between 2026 and 2028. Labour has now declared that there will be another review of where the state pension age should be set. The last review was conducted by Baroness Neville-Rolfe in 2022. Mark Pemberthy, benefits consulting leader at consultancy group Gallagher, highlighted that this past review made reference to the potential for further increases to the state pension age. He said: "The previous review of the state pension age in 2022 recommended that, on average, people should expect to receive the state pension for 31% of their adult life, and that the total cost of state pension related expenditure should be limited to 6% of GDP. "This review also anticipated a need to increase state pension age to 69 from 2046, although this has not yet been legislated for." The Government has outlined the key factors that the review will consider, which will include the idea of linking the state pension age to life expectancy and the role of the state pension age in keeping the state pension affordable and sustainable. However, Mr Pemberthy expressed doubt that there will be significant changes announced around these issues. He explained: "Life expectancy is a complex issue. For decades, life expectancy rose consistently. "This trend was halted by the COVID-19 pandemic and has stayed lower since – with 2024 life expectancy still lower than in 2019. But the average masks some wide variances based on occupation, gender, geography, and socioeconomics. "There is significant concern that further increases in state pension age could mean that some population groups do not get much opportunity to enjoy their state pension." He pointed out some of the issues around attempting to restrict spending on the state pension relative to GDP. The expert said: "Limiting the cost of state pension as a percentage of GDP is complex and will be dependent on a number of variables including how successful our economy is in the future and also how fast the state pension is increased each year. Currently this is the higher of inflation, earnings or 2.5% [under the triple lock policy] - all of which are significantly higher than our forecast GDP growth over the next few years. ""The triple lock will not be part of the state pension age review, but must be a consideration in the wider pension review if pensions are going to be sustainable for future generations." The full new state pension is now worth £230.25 a week, after payment rates rose 4.1 percent in April in line with the triple lock.
Leader Live
9 hours ago
- Leader Live
Wrexham: The Drunk Monk celebrates its fourth birthday
The Drunk Monk is tucked away in Overton Arcade on Wrexham High Street. Run by Kieran Irwin, his fiancée Dannii Rathbone and Kieran's brother Sean, the idea of starting the business was first discussed during the Covid-19 pandemic. By now, it has grown to the point where it regularly offers over 100 beers, showcasing the best from across Wales and England and also the rest of the world. The Drunk Monk just recently scooped the 'Best Pub' prize at the Best of North Wales Business Awards. And, this weekend (July 26/27), the business is celebrating its fourth year of existence. The Leader paid them a visit earlier this week to speak to Kieran about its growth, the impact of Wrexham AFC's takeover and what's in store for the future. Kieran, who moved to Wrexham from Handsworth in the West Midlands a decade ago, told us: "It all started out as a lockdown hobby idea for me and my brother (Sean). He initially came up with the idea of opening our own microbrewery. "But, after we looked into it more, we said 'why don't we open a bar?' and that conversation led to us finding a premises. "To begin with, it was only the small room with the bar in but, after a year of being open, we knocked through into the old salon next door. We now have a pool table upstairs and a darts board up there and it's a room we use for parties." (Image: Wrexham) From the start Kieran - who also works at Wrexham University as the venue manager for the Students Union Bar - has set out with the goal of promoting the best of local Welsh beers. He said: "People talk about Belgium, Germany and places like that having the best beers, but they also don't realise how many breweries we have in Wales and the UK, where there are some quality beers on offer. "We do get our beers from across the world, including German beers in for OktoberFest. But, we also promote Tiny Rebel who are based down South, as well as the likes of Magic Dragon who are based here in Wrexham. "We try to always get the North Wales beers in and then we continuously have four different beers every week on draught. We have our set house beers of Snowdon (Colwyn Bay), Wrexham Lager and Clwb Tropica (Newport) and then four new beers which we change around and they could be from anywhere including Scotland and Plymouth. "We typically have anywhere between 80 to over 100 different beers at any one time, we just try to keep it constantly changing." Asked about which beers prove most popular, Kieran added: "Without a shadow of a doubt, it's Clwb Tropica at the moment. Then it's a toss up for second place between Snowdon and Wrexham Lager. Snowdon is very popular, it flies out." Kieran says that when he initially suggested the idea to people, they advised against it. But, he and partner Dannii - who are getting married in November - pushed on with the project. He said: "People said to us; 'don't do it, Wrexham is not a craft beer town, it's a lager town', but we wanted to prove people wrong. And it turns out it was worth it. "We have now taken on the bar at Ty Pawb market, and we have a Beer Festival coming up in November, with local breweries in Wales and the UK coming in for that. "Dannii is my co-owner in all of this, she is the real 'hands on' one." The upstairs function room at The Drunk Monk which features a pool table and a darts board. (Image: Newsquest) It's no secret that the takeover of Wrexham AFC by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney back in 2021 has had boosted the city's economy greatly. That takeover took place at around the same time The Drunk Monk was established. Talking about that, Kieran said: "It's been massive, it's brilliant on matchdays, we are packed before the match and after the game, especially if Wrexham win. "Even now, during the summer, we get Americans, Canadians, Germans and Dutch people coming in. The football has massively impacted not just us, but bars all across the town. "Especially with the promotions, it's like Christmas in May, so hopefully they can do it again." As mentioned, The Drunk Monk was recently awarded a 'Best Pub' in North Wales prize. And the night of the ceremony is one Kieran will not forget anytime soon - as he sadly wasn't there. He said: "A few customers nominated us for the prize, but we didn't think we had a chance, because we're still one of the smallest pubs around. READ MORE "So, we went on holiday and we missed the actual event, but watched the ceremony online. We were shocked to win, it was frustrating not being there, but awesome at same time." The Drunk Monk team now has its own OktoberFest event, as well as the 'A Brewed Awakening' beer festival on November 28 to look forward to later this year. Speaking about his longer term plans, Kieran said: "Long term, I want to open another bar, maybe not in Wrexham but within an hour radius. Then, in a year or two, we want to go back to the microbrewery, where the conversations started. We're not experts still but that would be our dream."
The Herald Scotland
10 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
Billionaire brothers say Scottish bus firm ‘in good shape'
However, McGill's Buses, the firm owned by former Rangers directors Sandy and James Easdale, raised concerns over plans to introduce a new bus franchising model. While the aim is to improve services, the firm said larger companies could win routes with "slick" bids without necessarily offering a better service. The firm has just released its latest accounts. (Image: McGill's) It comes after we exclusively reported the company's latest annual results, which showed turnover increased from £57.6 million to £91.2m. Operating profit rose from £720,000 to £1.88m. Ralph Roberts, McGill's chairman, told this column: "The publication this week of McGill's 2023 accounts told a story of a business that had weathered the Covid pandemic and through tight fiscal controls was in good shape. "Fast forwarding to 2025 the story is much the same – fiscal control, investment, consistency of service delivery and the Easdale brothers' belief that buses have a critical role to play in our economy. "That is only part of the story though." He said the firm responded to 2021 calls for firms to opt for zero emission vehicles at a time "when the path out of Covid was unclear". Mr Roberts said: "The McGill's fleet was relatively young and there was no need to heavily invest but we knew that we had to lead by example and decarbonise if we were ever going to convince people that travelling by bus was a righteous choice. Financially, it was a tightrope. "The government gave grant funding for a small percentage of the capital amount, intended to narrow the gap between the price of a new diesel bus and a new EV bus. There were still a lot of unknowns though and it was a huge leap of faith." READ MORE: "All of this came at significant investment from Sandy and James. Under normal circumstances, that is a good news story. "Owners believing in their business, putting their hand deep into their pockets during troubled times and hopefully reaping the rewards for years to come with a strong business to pass onto future generations. "After all of the investment to build a very strong and stable business, the owners of McGill's now face the very real prospect of large multi-nationals coming in with slick seasoned bid teams and winning all the contracts." Transport Scotland, the government agency, said: 'Secondary legislation to enable bus franchising came into force on December 4, 2023. 'This enables local transport authorities to begin developing their preferred options for improving their local bus services. "Since then, we have laid all the regulations required to bring the franchising powers into full effect. This enables local transport authorities to develop local services franchises, where they consider it appropriate, to improve bus services in their local areas."
