A LONG established shop in the heart of Kendal will today cease to operate and trade as a retail outlet on the town's main street.

The Westmorland Gazette shop on Stricklandgate is to continue to run as a reception area for advertising, editorial and all other customer inquiries.

Negotiations between the newspaper and Maple Grove Developments over whether the land behind the Gazette offices should be released for the creation of a new E.H Booth supermarket, incorporating underground and surface car parking, retail units and flats are still continuing.

But, assuming a deal is struck early in the New Year, a temporary reception building will be set up for Gazette customers on the Entry Lane car park on January 18. It will continue to be sited there for up to nine months or the time it will take to build new purpose-built offices for the Gazette. The public will be able to gain access via the yard to Daniel Grays.

A new shop unit will be incorporated within the development in an enhanced shopping mall in the yard that currently runs alongside the newspaper offices.

"This is an exciting development for The Westmorland Gazette and a considerable investment in its future in the heart of Kendal," said the paper's editor Mike Glover.

The changes also spell the end of an era for shop manager Keith Armstrong, who has been the public face of The Westmorland Gazette for the past 34 years. He leaves today.

Mr Armstrong, 58, joined the paper as shop manager in October 1969, when the outlet was a third of its present size. The shop was enlarged in the early 1980s and, at one time, eight people were employed in the outlet with four tills operating over the Christmas period.

"People have tended to come to the Gazette shop for things that they could not get elsewhere," said Mr Armstrong, who is married to Peggy and lives at Archers Meadow, Kendal. "It has always been part of my philosophy to provide a service to the community."

At one time the shop had 42 feet of greeting card display and had a large household stationery section selling anything from serviettes to cake decorations. In later years the shop has had "an excellent" association with Made in Cumbria and was "Superplan" agent for Ordnance Survey for 12 years.

Mr Armstrong remembers one of the busiest times as being when every farmer in the country was required to have a large scale plan of his land and holdings to allow them to apply for IACS (Integrated Administrative and Control System) subsidies. At that time Mr Armstrong worked from 7am to 10pm and queues of farmers stretched from the reception desk at the back of the shop on to Stricklandgate.

"It was a most amazing time. I think I lost about two stone in eight weeks," said Mr Armstrong, who is a keen birdwatcher and who is training to be a deacon within the Catholic church. "At one point the farmers got to fighting on the doorstep when one of them tried to jump the queue."

Mr Armstrong said he would be sorry to leave a job he has loved. "I was very proud of the shop it was part of the newspaper," he said. "I am going to miss the public and the buzz when the shop got busy. But most of all I am going to miss the people I work with throughout the building. I have a lot of good friends here and it's going to be very emotional to part company with them."

Also leaving are shop staff Miriam Bescoby and Barrie Macfarlane.

January 3, 2003 12:00