Topic: Come get yer shiiiite, three for a paaaaaaand!

[Mart]

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and you left Dorking Surrey off the list Mart!

That's slanderous that is.

Mind you.

The council has just turfed the library out of it's lovely old manor house home. Most users felt strangely unconsulted and are truly shocked, but not shocked, if you know what I mean to learn that despite the council having no idea what do with it 'conversion to flats' keeps popping out of their mouths. Furthermore the hoofing great repair bill that made it untenable for the library to remain in situ is made up .........

of what nobody quite knows.

The other hot rumour is that the developer will in due course find structural defects that will force, nay compel, demolition and the erection of something properly visionary in it's place.

Consultation was of course rampant. Apparently.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-11162724

http://www.thisissurreytoday.co.uk/Dorking-Library-close-despite-efforts-campaigners/story-14302946-detail/story.html

The interesting added insult is that the library is being shoved into a unit in St Martins Walk (I was christened at St Martins). Now St Martins Walk is a twee little development of shopping units that replaced the old very well attended and popular market site, which when not being a market provided parking right in the town centre and had public toilets and a funny old auction house. The auction house was a hangover from the cattle markets but also flogged off any old gubbins people wanted to buy. All gone.

So vibrant and visionary was this development it has been largely empty since it was built with a mahoosive and swift turnover of shops in the units when it is occupied. With one notable exception. Marks and Spencers run the equivalent of a corner shop, the rumours are that the rent is such that it is a handy place for them to store things for shops that actually do some business. So it sort of limps on as a handy short cut to the car park.

Then in an added layer of intrigue the town is at the centre of a tug of love between Waitrose, Sainsbury and Tesco. Waitrose recently expanded into what was Waterstones and now Sainsbury is going effing bonkers because their plans keep getting knocked back. Course, that's nothing to do with them trashing a Youth club, sheltered housing and most of the recreation ground to squeeze the bugger in, nor of course is it the Council playing silly buggers and extracting ever more rash promises from them and Tesco as they jockey for position.

http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/s/2108260_dorking_youngsters_take_on_sainsburys
 
and there's the Johnny Come Lately's

http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/s/2108175_lidl_called_on_to_listen_to_neighbours_concerns

http://www.dorkingsos.org.uk/home.shtml

Something strangely deja vu all over again about this......

Here's the High Street is, the minging fecking mess to the right is the present Sainsbury's, can't imagine why we'd worry what they'll get up to elsewhere.

As I say, oddly familiar all this ain't it?

Still, no Poundshops.

[Muggins]

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"why not instead celebrate Swindon's most meaningful bit of heritage and create a small line of track carrying a steam locomotive which could carry fair paying passengers between Steam, The Outlet Village and the town centre?"

And this is not the first time this has been suggested - without the rails though.

Not rose coloured Tobes, realistic, and I do actually like living in Swindon and have a repect for most of it's population -and those who want to shop in town. 

The sooner we get that all important art gallery in the middle of town, the sooner people will be coming to Swindoin to have a look at it. 

Whether or not they buy anything whilst here or not will be QED, come to think of it, if it is such a viable proposition, why is some arty entrepreneur not thought of investing some of his hard earned cash into making it happen?

[Mart]

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entrepreneur not thought of investing some of his hard earned cash into making it happen

That's not the sort of entrepeneur our current Visionaries typically attract is it?

As a latter day arrival I have always thought Swindon has several centres that urban sprawl has sort of gobbled up. I do wonder, to no useful effect, whether a blooming great once size fits all is the proper way to go anyway.

Rodbourne is distinct from Gorse Hill which is different to Old Town which is nothing like Coleview and so on.

I'm aware I could be wrong but it seems to me that pouring all available cash into a single block paved thing may be a bit shortsighted.

Whatever, I'm still not going into the town centre.

[Tobes]

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_9548000/9548615.stm

The Today programme is investigating the fate of the UK's high streets, and we asked for your help.
It has been a difficult time for the shops in Britain's city centres. Not only has the ease of online shopping persuaded people to stay at home, but the recession and stagnation of the UK economy has left people with less money to spend when they do hit the shops.

Woolworths was one of the first casualties of the recession when it went bust in 2008. Since then, a steady stream of store stalwarts have vanished from our town centres. Zavvi and Borders have gone, HMV is shrinking and Habitat are closing all of their shops outside of London.

The government is also worried, and has commissioned Mary Portas to undertake an independent review to see what can be done. She told the Today programme in May that the loss of shops was creating "practical ghost towns" in town centres. So why is the high street in such a mess? Is the British high street worth saving? Have our shopping habits changed so dramatically that the high street is now obsolete?

We asked you to fill out a questionnaire letting us know how much you used your local high street and what could be done to make it thrive, and have used your answers to inform today's programme.

Many of you recommended we look at Gloucester Road in Bristol as an example of a high street which was thriving despite tough economic times, so we sent reporter Nicola Stanbridge to find out its secret of success.

One resounding message from those who answered the questionnaire was that the high street was still very important in people's lives, with many of you reporting visiting your local shops on a daily basis.
Locally sourced produce and independent, specialised shops - bakers, butchers, and hardware shops - ranked highly in your wish lists. Also important were shops with character - selling antiques, mementoes, second hand books, as well as concerns over increasing numbers of pound shops and charity shops.

[Muggins]

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Maybe the answer to our prayers:

Swindon and Wiltshire LEP appoints Chairman
 

The new Chair for the Swindon & Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership has been confirmed, he will lead the partnership’s work to support local businesses, attract investment and move the economy forward.

Paul Johnson, who recently stepped down from the position of Chairman of Knorr-Bremse (UK) Limited, has been appointed as the new Chair of the Swindon & Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership Board. Paul’s appointment was ratified by an independent panel, drawn from the local business community, chaired by the High Sherriff of Wiltshire – Robert Hiscox. Paul will lead a Board of thirteen people, of which nine will have business backgrounds. His first task will be to lead the recruitment of the Board members.

When confirming his acceptance Paul said: "I’m delighted to have the opportunity to put something back into our community and use the expertise I have gained over my time in industry to support the growth and development of Swindon & Wiltshire’s economies in these challenging and turbulent times. Although I have spent much of my career in Wiltshire, I was born and raised in Swindon so feel I know both parts of our Partnership very well. My first job is to lead the recruitment of the Board so that we can quickly get into our stride – identifying the opportunities, constraints and priorities to move our economy forward – supporting the creation of wealth, jobs and new business opportunities for the benefit of all those who live and work in Swindon & Wiltshire".

[Geoff Reid]

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If £ shops put off investors/developers I wonder what empty shop units and low footfall would do?

The same - but its a false parallel.

We've just endured/'benefitted' from a regeneration, which as James has pointed out, singularly failed to provide a USP draw.

Instead of the canal (who needs a canal when everyone else has one, when it wouldn't be historically accurate, would be dead-ended and would create massive disruption) - why not instead celebrate Swindon's most meaningful bit of heritage and create a small line of track carrying a steam locomotive which could carry fair paying passengers between Steam, The Outlet Village and the town centre? Gotta be a lot cheaper to lay some track than to dig a whacking big trench...

Too imaginative?

Well, what about redeveloping the Woolworths site to provide a proper purpose build gallery to actually display Swindon's art collection (much of which is in storage due to space constraints) . The collection of 20th century art is widely regarded as one of the best outside of London - and yet its housed in a tiny building at the wrong end of town... This museum would actually provide a proper draw for people from across the country.

I like both of those ideas Tobes- they make so much more sense and they have integrity- reflecting the real cultural heritage of the place. That really would make Swindon attractive and a magnet to a diverse range of visitors.

Readers may find these youtube videos interesting.....



<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/_kIghAuARNs?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/_kIghAuARNs?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB</a>  <a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/5fgAYqxFHYs?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/5fgAYqxFHYs?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB</a>  <a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/OiH75T3UlD8?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/OiH75T3UlD8?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB</a>

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/iLBPjHXP-ak?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/iLBPjHXP-ak?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB</a>  <a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/nGh8F0hUI9w?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/nGh8F0hUI9w?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB</a>  <a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/kwNyxtdFDSk?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/kwNyxtdFDSk?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB</a>

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/oabGyJWUn1Y?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/oabGyJWUn1Y?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB</a>  <a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/zpEAR_lyzBo?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/zpEAR_lyzBo?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB</a>  <a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/lv17bJGQH7Y?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/lv17bJGQH7Y?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_GB</a>


.....and, once you've viewed those videos maybe you'd read the following Adver letter by Bob Wright: Tuesday 31st January 2012

I am sure many of your readers must wonder if they are on the same planet as Rod Bluh, the leader of the council.

Instead of using his newspaper column to provide inspiring leadership, he uses it to spin the first phase of his administration’s regeneration plan.

Clearly his delight at delivering this mediocrity reveals the limits of his ambitions for Swindon. At last week’s planning meeting I opposed his administration’s plan for failing to deliver a development that will regenerate Swindon. It does not back Swindon’s ambitions, it delivers ordinariness, it fails to inspire and is an inappropriate fit for the location.

Did the council really knock down a building of distinction to spend over £15m of residents’ money on a car park and an assisted elderly people’s home? A home originally planned to be twice the size and sited at the rear of the development.

The administration’s failure to attract interest in this prime site says it all, however it cannot be an excuse for ordinariness and mediocrity. Not only is this elderly people’s dwelling an inappropriate fit for a major noisy road junction it will be built before the next stage next door. Surely we can plan to build in the right order so elderly residents are not disturbed by Rod’s cranes and pile drivers.

Whilst I support regeneration as much as the next person we should not lower standards. I am backing Swindon by asking for better. I do not welcome this capitulation to ordinariness, however I have also been stopped by people who cannot believe this is happening. Whilst residents were given no choice of where to spend £15m of their money the prospect of this administration priority for another unnecessary car park causes disbelief.

On more than one occasion at the planning meeting I heard councillors state we need this development to go ahead to kick start the next phase of the development. This is not a planning consideration and should have been dismissed. The Labour Group has asked for a new Master Plan to deliver what Swindon needs and aspires to; this is going ahead shortly and will give residents a voice in the matter.

Perhaps now the administration will get the message that we need developments to be proud of. The current thinking is simply not good enough. Come on Rod. Back Swindon and give us a development to be proud of.

Bob Wright Councillor for Central Ward

I haven't discussed the following with Bob, but I'm told that not long after this letter was published Bob received a bizarre and angry text on his mobile phone.   Anyone care to have a guess at who might have sent the alleged text message and what it may have said?

[Tobes]

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As regular TS readers will know, I don't give praise to Labour councillors lightly or regularly - but I very much approve of just about everything Bob and Steve say in their videos. Their view meshes almost entirely with what I think ought to be being done with the town and what remains of its heritage - well done to them both for articulating those views and for putting them into the public arena in a way which was completely denied the populace by the current 'visionary' administration.

Bob and Steve - i LOVE the idea for a working foundry at STEAM. As you know, I have both something of an interest and MANY MANY contacts which I would love to put you in touch with to make such a thing possible - its certainly something I would bend over backwards to help you achieve. (In all seriousness, if I can help in anyway, drop me a PM)

[Richard Beale]

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Nice to know volunteer gardeners are still at it in Faringdon Road Park.

Also good to see some of the planting I designed foor there are maturing nicely. Never did get to sort out the tangled mess of that Photinia, by the Bristol Street end.

Great Idea about a public art park

[bobwright]

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Geoff - You might want to point out the videos are over a year old and we are content to work cross party, cross borough etc. We also recognise that many others and councillors are not a million miles away from some of our thinking. The core strategy recognises this. My only concern with the UTC (proposed college) is that we do not lose out on other uses of the site.  I suspect some will not want a canal as they see it as a money pit, also it is a suggested cycle route.

I do feel we could improve on the videos and everyone can see we did it without a script.

Regarding any communication with me if it is confidential the content will stay so.

[bobwright]

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Richard - you and your department were ahead of the curve. I am not sure how much you were valued by others but as a professional you were superb in working with the community.

Similar ways of working are now being explored by the council however you proved it could be done. I must not leave out the locals/gardeners who make it happen.

[Geoff Reid]

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Geoff - You might want to point out the videos are over a year old and we are content to work cross party, cross borough etc. We also recognise that many others and councillors are not a million miles away from some of our thinking. The core strategy recognises this. My only concern with the UTC (proposed college) is that we do not lose out on other uses of the site.  I suspect some will not want a canal as they see it as a money pit, also it is a suggested cycle route.

Hey, I just held the camera, the ideas will sell themselves without me needing to point anything out

Unless, of course, you mean that one-year on enthusiasm for the ideas expressed in the videos has waned?

[concerned_of_Old_Town]

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Only watched the first video.


However this seems to be exactly the sort of strategy/vision which we should be telling the New/Forward Swindon company to implement for us  rather than them telling us that we want more hotels, half complete housing developments, car parks and pound shops.




PS Bob regarding your letter what was the building of distinction which you are referring to?

[Muggins]

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I see that over night this thread has changed tack a bit, and this 'tack' is a lot more interesting, however in the Adver today there is a full page advertisement for the new shop in woolies.  It's not just a pound shop, it appears that two shops must be sharing - one a pound shop, the other a discount store and if their advertised products are anything to go by, a pretty useful one too. 

Back to Art:  when a lage store like Woolies becomes vacant, as anyone considered  renitng it as an whole, but inside setting square footage for sub-let, so that local artist can show and sell their wares, and maybe even display some of the public art?

A shop on the corner of the junction in Lechlade does this for antiques and books. 

[Tobes]

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Back to Art:  when a lage store like Woolies becomes vacant, as anyone considered  renitng it as an whole, but inside setting square footage for sub-let, so that local artist can show and sell their wares, and maybe even display some of the public art?

Whats being discussed in this thread seems to fit the bill: http://www.talkswindon.org/index.php/topic,8349.0.html

[the gorgon]

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Tobes, I like some of your ideas. Personally I'd have put either the art gallery or museum in the old railway museum (not both as otherwise you risk harming Old Town) instead of having the yoof centre or whatever it is.

Gloucester Road, that is a very unusual case, if I'm correct that is the area where there were riots caused by the opening of a Tesco.   I've got some familiarity with the area and I see it as a good model for what Old Town (and even Gorse Hill) should be as opposed to the 'town centre'.  Mind you there are areas like Havelock Street in town that have that sort character and to a lesser degree Commercial Road (it's gone downhill over the past 20-30 years).

[Muggins]

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We once visited Reading, me, a few more local bods and SBC officers, one or two car loads I think it was, it was during the 'Agenda 21' days, when Reading had joined in a project called GLOBE - Go Local On a Better Environment, where they had worked with a whole street near to their Civic offices, it was very simliar to Crickalde Road, Gorse Hill but placed say in the Grounwell Road area of Swindon.  I suppose our equivalent would be Victoria Hill.

Together, shops keepers, bigger businesses, householders and their Borough Council had gone about upgrading and it worked well for them, finding uses for empty buildings, doing up shabby ones, negotiating for funds with the bigger businesses etc. Nothing major, but it made adifference, I wonder how it's getting on now?

[the gorgon]

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Looks like things aren't that great down the M4 in Bristol.

If you don't read the whole story you'd think a major top-quality store is opening in the Galleries shopping centre http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/Work-begins-pound-2m-revamp-Galleries-shopping/story-15977326-detail/story.html

It's actually a 99p store (first mention of which is made half way down the page  ).