[Margaret Pilkington]

Neil, the market is dire. Many stalls are empty. This means that the stalls that are being used are paying over the odds because folk don't come...so those who are occupying stalls get less footfall. There is certainly no longer any 'passing' trade.
It might not seem fair to have some stalls occupied by non payers, but at least it would generate some interest,by that token it would generate more trade for the current traders.

Whatever the cost of the town square, it will not create the environment to bring people into town...so if it was only costing half of that price it still would not be worth it.

As for the question of what does the town need to create improvement?
Well, it needs something that will bring people into town...whether that be for a shopping experience or something else. It appears that there is very little appetite to do anything other than this window dressing...a bit like putting pictures on the glass fronts of empty shops to make it look like they aren't empty...it is a futile exercise.
One which we will pay for in the long run.