The Olympic high street makeover: Just in time for the Games round the corner, shops get a new look that's more Notting Hill than EastEnderswww3.tvboxnow.com, O0 ^! ` |. ~; u
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% t, T( A7 \, k; BA few months ago it was just an anonymous street of tatty shop fronts – a mishmash of broken signs, tasteless logos, peeling paint and grubby brickwork.TVBNOW 含有熱門話題,最新最快電視,軟體,遊戲,電影,動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。7 Q3 i! j( W% e. K( [
/ q3 a* s. F% a8 o4 c6 P: m7 j7 lwww3.tvboxnow.comBut Leyton High Road, just round the corner from the Olympic Park, has undergone a remarkable transformation.
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Instead of the broken windows and garish shopfronts is a parade more typical of Chelsea or Notting Hill than the East End of London.
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Tatty: This is what the shopfronts looked like before the makeover which was brought on by the upcoming Olympics 公仔箱論壇* {0 c+ o( z$ d+ N( w, C0 {5 l
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Passers-by admire the shopfronts of Leyton High Road after the makeover which will be completed within the next few weeks Each shop, restaurant or cafe has been repainted using a sophisticated palette of deep reds, pastel greens, purples and browns.
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3 N8 Z# J, m# q7 u1 @: YShop names in charmless neon or plastic have been replaced with hand-painted signs adorned with elegant calligraphy or old-fashioned metal lettering. + {" j5 m) i( y+ q
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Even the local KFC has had its ugly plastic fascia replaced with a sophisticated dark red paint job, a smaller, subtler logo, and a smart new awning.
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, Z5 g6 P5 w; [" q+ d! T/ w6 @TVBNOW 含有熱門話題,最新最快電視,軟體,遊戲,電影,動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。As part of the makeover, many businesses have had their frames, awnings, windows and doors replaced.
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8 x, |" N8 `( m; XMost have also been fitted with internal shutters – sitting just within the windows rather than outside them – so the shopfronts can stay lit up at night.
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The refurbishment was carried out as part of a half-a-million-pound project to spruce up businesses in the Leyton area before the Olympics.
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It is being funded by a £475,000 grant from the Government’s Working Neighbourhoods Fund as well as money from Waltham Forest Council.$ }9 \9 Z) m8 Q$ A& m
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( `$ S/ p5 S( a! |" L9 H8 PGrubby: Before the clean-up the street was lined with broken signs and dirty awnings - not the face of Britain officials would want to show the incoming touristswww3.tvboxnow.com, Z. |. B" B; o9 n& Y) T
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Clean: The shop facades on Leyton High Road have been much improved, but it came at a price. The re-decoration of the street cost £475,000www3.tvboxnow.com; H3 M' k( w! Z
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A plastic sign advertises sale prices at the women's fashion shop and the KFC branch has a standard full-glass front
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3 L8 U8 x$ f$ ]* Y: M: y2 sNo more plastic signs for the bridal shop, the pawnbrokers has been re-painted and and even the KFC is looking more high end than East End
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- m: w, [# I3 n$ \' Kwww3.tvboxnow.comLast night shopkeepers expressed their delight with the results. Panayiota Philippou, who manages Princess evening wear and bridal boutique with daughter Theodoula, said: ‘The street is much nicer now. tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb* n1 u1 M4 [1 Y8 Q5 H" s
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‘People can window shop and trade has picked up. 公仔箱論壇" a6 i$ J! l# J i
+ i' f; y" Q' Z# e/ F2 `/ G公仔箱論壇‘Having the shutter inside means people can see in the window all the time, which is like a 24/7 advert for us.’ $ q: }! ?3 }* J: ~+ \ T
) i ]% o) y0 t+ Ltvb now,tvbnow,bttvbShamima Bung, owner of Blackwell’s newsagents, was also pleased with the transformation.tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb* ^* c; ~0 }' N- n; h7 j4 C! J4 q
1 D) P$ U0 [ i1 cwww3.tvboxnow.com‘The area’s definitely gone up market. The high street looks a lot better...now it is a matter of keeping it this way.’www3.tvboxnow.com, d* b5 y6 H$ l8 d0 l/ O
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But Mrs Bung said she had been reluctant to replace her shutters.www3.tvboxnow.com8 \& {8 o* s4 J" u& i. K
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‘The inside shutters look nice but I do go home worrying if I’ll still have a window in the morning,’ she admitted. ‘After all this is East London, not Kensington.’ : P, R$ L! b, D- p/ ~6 y8 K* U" y
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/ _2 e7 W* h6 Y6 O' S3 a公仔箱論壇A hair salon, Pizza Hut and Blackwell's news agents are not looking particularly inviting before the transformationwww3.tvboxnow.com( J: d* d5 Z3 w) v3 X& ]5 ^
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Leyton High Road has been given a touch of Kensington with paint and new signs - even the bus stop commercial is more inviting than before0 `$ E0 D' [" Q) z0 ~* w+ O8 p
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The project has been funded by Government¿s Working Neighbourhoods Fund and Waltham Forest Council. Here is a green grocers on a corner of the High Road before...TVBNOW 含有熱門話題,最新最快電視,軟體,遊戲,電影,動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。/ b; J$ L% ?: _1 R8 L8 j/ e+ X) O
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2 I, z8 @5 Y- _! b$ hTVBNOW 含有熱門話題,最新最快電視,軟體,遊戲,電影,動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。... and after it has been given an Olympic makeover with many shops now sporting internal shutters so the shopfronts can stay lit up at night* K) X2 W' j; H `
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Leyton High Road will host the Olympic torch relay on July 21. + ?/ w/ o/ z# `8 ]0 K4 u
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Chris Robbins, leader of Waltham Forest Council, said: ‘This stretch of Leyton is a gateway to the Games. It will be on display to the world in July and we want our streets, homes and businesses to do us proud. This was a fantastic opportunity to smarten up Leyton.’
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And it is not just the shops which have had a makeover.
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( l2 \* @; k* D9 T( p5 Wtvb now,tvbnow,bttvbThe pavements have been cleaned, the street signs replaced with modern ones and the lamps given a contemporary update.
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The walls of the flats above the shops, which were a dirty brown, have been jet-washed back to their original sandy colour, with some painted in bright shades to complement the shopfronts below.TVBNOW 含有熱門話題,最新最快電視,軟體,遊戲,電影,動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。9 r& D3 t5 c3 V& |" k8 g j/ K0 U
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Unsightly satellite dishes have been moved, and the mass of burglar alarms and CCTV cameras on the walls above each shop has been tidied up. 公仔箱論壇$ j5 |& f5 P, ?& s% T
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Gordon Bennett, of Bennett Developers, one of four contractors on the project said: ‘We have up to 22 men working ten hours a day, including weekends, to get the work finished in time. The whole street looks cleaner.’
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