A Northumberland town council has hit back at claims it is a "ghost town" - saying there are plenty of positives.
Home Bargains closed its doors on Berwick's Marygate earlier this month ahead of moving to the Loaning Meadows Retail Park.
It was the latest business to shut up shop in the town centre, leaving another vacant unit in the heart of the market town.
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Residents said the town was like a 'ghost town' and it was sad to see so many units vacant.
But Gareth Davies, who is Berwick Town Council clerk, said retail is changing and the town has many things going for it.
He added: "Retail is changing, and that means high streets are changing, and we get that not everybody is happy about that. Out of town retail parks are a huge challenge, but the number of people shopping there suggests they're hugely popular too.
"Berwick has hundreds of listed buildings in its historic town centre; demolishing them to make way for modern retail units was never an option, and retailers tell us they want modern units big enough for their range of goods.
"That made the decisions very hard for Berwick, and we wouldn't be doing our job if we didn't point out that centrally appointed Planning Inspectors took away much of the control from local councils in cases like Berwick's Tesco development back in 2008."
Gareth said independent retailers are thriving in the town, with two independent shoe shops along with national retailer, Clarks, as examples.
He added: "The thriving independent traders in streets like Bridge Street and West Street in Berwick are shining examples of what could be done if we had the resources and the local control necessary to work with landlords who often want help to address the impact of the changes on their properties on our high streets."
Gareth said there needs to be a "frank debate" about business rates and how to balance the retail market in favour of high street businesses instead of out of town and online retail. But there are major projects taking shape that will improve the town in the coming years, which include revamping The Maltings and creating a town centre cinema.
He said: "Three major building projects either in progress or planned around the town centre mean it sometimes feels as if the town is holding its breath waiting for the diggers to start rolling.
"A new hospital to the north of the town centre, just outside the medieval walls, a new theatre and arts centre for the town centre, and the emerging plans to bring the wonderful Georgian Barracks back to life amount to a massive investment in our town's future."
One of the projects by the town council includes decorating the windows of shops that are empty, with the council keen to hear from landlords with empty shops.
Gareth said: "We're used to major projects like our new leisure centre (one year old this week) and our amazing new seaside play park in Spittal and we're eager for more. We think we've got a great story to tell before we even get to mention our wonderful beaches and astonishing coastline."
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