The Latest On The Town Changes...

Firstly, I have been looking over some of the entries from months ago and found that a few people have kindly left some comments. I have tried to pop back and leave some kind of response not knowing if they will be read or I'll be thought of as a so and so for not answering, if that is the case I am sorry.

If Gildersleeve is reading(yes, I have a real namesake)as opposed to my alter ego, I have mentioned that I am happy that you are well. In relation to your mentioning of Lyme's Disease I do believe that it has a connection to being bitten by ticks. If treated early enough and correctly it can cause little or no symptoms/complications but that due to climate change it is seemingly becoming much more common in the UK and that was reported only today in a National daily newspaper.

Damien, I too have seen your quote regarding the song that was sung in the television ads for March the Tailor, that sounds about right ;-)

Mentioning shops is rather appropriate as I once again return to the subject of "My" town centre.

I am sure that behind the scenes there are a lot of negotiations taking place over the changes.

Still, the shops that were due for demolition as part of the next phase of the redevelopment has not taken place yet. The larger retailers have been frantic looking for new units to move into and again the older part of the town seems once again to be suffering because even my own bank appears to be moving into the new units that were built next to Tesco's. I could be wrong but I believe that there are only three units still available there.

So far the retail units are occupied by an optician, a solicitor and the job centre(who relocated for at least the third time) Argos and Tesco's were the new retailers. So if Lloyd's TSB Bank take one of the empty retail units and the final one being considered turns into either an amusement arcade or bookies, what will the final unit contain?

Now, with a lick of paint and a few repairs and careful management the older part of town which must be 50 years old could look quite good, with the right mixture of shops we could probably hold our own and survive but when you do not have a decent shoe shop or even a shoe repairer on the town(which is pretty basic stuff)its no wonder people shop in neighbouring towns and what ever the Government says about global warming and using cars less and public transport more, I cannot blame them if they have transport doing so.

And unfortunately more and more locally owned shops continue to close, though even retailers that have outlets around the UK are deciding to leave for many reasons that have to include a reduced margin of profit in relation to the running costs.

The older part of town is in better shape and more pleasant in its appearance than the newer part. I'll try and make that statement more clearer. Phase One was two lines of shops with a small road down the middle.

Phase Two the road was closed and became a pedestrian precinct and one side of the existing shops had a an upper floor added to give more choice.

In a previous entry you saw a picture of the following from behind, this time you see the front of the health centre that serves this town. Thankfully, when the demolition takes place these buildings will also come down and be rebuilt brand spankingly new as will the town library.

Then, as part of this phase a new block in very dark brick and concrete and in a strange design that looked more like a prison some more retail outlets were built. But again, shops in this block have never stayed long and for some years few if any have even wanted to fill up the empty units that were available. Some essential businesses had they stayed there could've probably helped this part of town survive and keep business flourishing for passing trade but as the local council moved its rent office to its own leisure centre foyer, that space became empty, then the post office went into partnership with a local newsagent so again there was an unused space and then the job centre moved out so it killed off part of the existing older part of town still further.

Phase Three is now where Tesco's(see a previous entry)and the other shops have relocated is now affecting even the part of town that has survived the longest.

I have heard of various attempts to get more visitors here in recent years and all have fallen through.

I found out recently in the running for the Durham County Cricket Club to build its ground here but it ended up in Chester Le Street.

Then there was talk of building a cinema or even an ice rink, again...these plans all have come to nothing...

And you do wonder how may stories are genuine or true.

On the other hand a neighbouring town is revamping the whole of its town centre and is spending millions on bringing in more shops and some that are more special than we've had before and also a big cinema amongst other things so again as that is only 6-7 miles away its a fair bet that people will go off town for their entertainment and shopping needs.

And then, when they finally knock down some of phase two here and replace it I have seen no plans to give me an idea whether the area stays open or new retail units are to be built and if built, I do hope that the design fits in the area and please no more of these dark, dismal buildings. Lets get some light into the area and use materials that will last and not again fall into disrepute as easily.

I want to be proud of the town and it has so much going for it, it is quite green and open and close to countryside and historic locations.

And to try and show that we are surrounded by quite a lot of green stuff, here's an aerial shot of my town...the clues are out there but I try to keep a little anonymity as many towns in the UK are small and not everyone is in a city the size of London or New York or somewhere...



Obviously I cannot take credit for the picture and nor am I attempting to breach anyone's copyright so more pictures of the North East are available via this site...

Dave Robinson's Photos

Late News: Since the above entry was written I have discovered that in the next few days that Tesco's is having a refit(nothing much in that)except that I have been told today that this also includes an upstairs department being added which will turn it into an "Extra" store and that though even I have to say will mean bargains in electrical goods...probably with an eye on Christmas sales...I can only see it doing further harm to the town centre that is already struggling and many residents are less than happy with the design that Tesco's were allowed to build in the first place which was supposed to fit into what is a focal point of the town and to not be such an eyesore for people living in houses that face onto this retail area as it does look very functional(not unlike a tin shed)much of it is made out of corrugated steel sheeting. If my source is incorrect I will happily correct the mis-information...

5th September 2006