Sex Shops in Holyhead

Passions are running high over a sex shop application in the centre of an Anglesey town.

Ex-launderette owner David McCullum wants to move from cleaning clothes to selling adult goods with a sex shop in Holyhead.

But traders next to the proposed site on Williams Street are hot under the collar over the plans and have organised a petition against the adult store.

McCullum applied to Anglesey County Council for permission more than 18 months ago and now councillors want to set up a special committee to consider the license for the Sex Establishment in January.

Nutter MP Albert Owen, who has his constituency office on the same street as the proposed site, said: This is the wrong type of development for a popular street like this which has had a lot of investment by traders in the past few years. This shop would negate all the good work that has been done on this street.This is not something that is wanted in this town.

Hairdresser Linda Rowlands, whose shop Clippers is two doors down from the site, said: We are totally opposed to this, it is disgusting. We have kids and families coming to our shop every day and we don't want this type of shop just two doors away. We just don't want it here, it is not good for Holyhead.

McCullum said the shop window would be made appropriate for the street: The shop will be on the lines of an Ann Summers store and not a seedy place. I believe we have the support of the silent majority in the town and that we will prove popular.

The Anglesey council planning committee will now consider this proposal in the next meeting on January 7.

Nutters in Holyhead are fuming after councillors gave the go-ahead for a sex shop.

At a licensing meeting, seven councillors voted in favour of the adults only outlet.

The proprietor David McCullum applied to the council in 2007 to open the shop near the town centre in William Street.

Nutter traders next to the proposed site had organised a petition against it but councillor Richard L Owen from Beaumaris said there were no grounds
to refuse a licence for the shop: It was just a straight forward licensing committee and If we had refused it it would have gone before a magistrate. There's no grounds to refuse it, the only thing that we were able to do is give him the amount of hours that he can open. We have to try and be fair with people. It was quite unanimous and all the councillors were very specific that there was no legality issues and we could not refuse it.

McCullum is believed to be modelling the shop which will be allowed to open between 5pm and 10pm in the more up-market tradition used by the Ann Summers chain.

The council also imposed a bi-lingual signs clause, which could translate his Good Vibrations shop name to Dirgryniadau Da.

Hugh Gray Morris opposite the new shop and raised a petition against the new establishment: I think they are allowed to open from 5pm but all our receptionists who have children feel uncomfortable and are worried about the undesirables. To be fair he has built the front of the shop quite well but it's what goes inside that concerns us.

A Holyhead sex shop is to be replaced by a takeaway.

The Good Vibrations sex shop on Williams Street suffered from a lack of business as prospective customers were too embarrassed to visit, said owner David McCallum.

McCallum said: People were embarrassed to visit the shop, as everybody knows everybody in Holyhead. Also, people can buy that gear over the internet now, without having to come to the shop.

Things were better to begin with, but I think that was curiosity more than anything. Some people didn't care and would still visit the shop, but I wasn't getting enough customers.

Albert Owen MP, who has long opposed the shop on Williams Street, said he was glad it would become a takeaway.