It was intended to deliver festive cheer in Ellesmere Port , but the town's Christmas Village has come in for plenty of criticism since it opened earlier this month.
The attraction has been branded ‘shocking’ and ‘terrible’, forcing the organisers to publicly explain the difficulties behind running such a venture.
Second Skin Events, the company behind the project, said they are disappointed their plans to bring something 'very special' to Ellesmere Port have not been universally well received, and say the village will only thrive if people from the town support it.
The village, in the civic square, opened on November 30 and is due to run until December 22.
In advance of it opening, organisers promised there would be '44 chalets across the square' with ‘retailers of the finest quality and aromas of roasted hog and mulled wines filling the air’.
The village would be a 'festive, joyous place with delights that would appeal to all ages and all walks of life', according to Second Skin’s website.
However, a visit by the Pioneer shortly after it opened found only a dozen huts and very few visitors.
The village has come in for criticism on the Pride in the Port Facebook group, with many people expressing their disappointment with the small number of stalls and lack of other attractions.
Others were more supportive, saying the first-time, free attraction was a welcome attempt to bring something festive to the town.
"At least someone has tried to organise something," wrote one Portite. "Why don’t people try to help instead of just putting it down?”
Stephanie Hughes of Second Skin Events felt compelled to write on the Pride in the Port group to outline some of the issues faced.
"Plans for this year had been much bigger than what you see sat on the civic way," wrote Stephanie.
"After a very late planning permission grant, followed by several large companies pulling out of trading at the Port, we decided the event should still go ahead for the town's folk to enjoy.
"At this stage costs for traders were cut to reflect what would be happening on the square.
"This has not been a profit-making scheme, but a very costly and time consuming project to bring Ellesmere Port the start of something that could be very special.
"As business owners in Ellesmere Port we were passionate enough to start something off quite simply because the town needs it."
Stephanie added: "The event will only remain if you guys are behind it. We have a committee being put in place for 2017. You the people of Ellesmere Port can either see this grow and work to keep it, or let things go back to nothing."
Mayor of Ellesmere Port Peter Rooney added: “This market is not run by the council, it is a private venture and will hopefully improve as time goes by.
“It is still very early in the Christmas season and the promoters hope to attract more stalls.
“It is very new and is a work in progress, we do learn from experience.
“Please give it a chance to get established.”
