Town Centre Masterplan - Page 2

SPUGGIE J · 19-09-2007, 19:06

Its the slow percolating that is the problem. They will then claim them as their own even if the public has been shouting about it for years. It will all happen when we have a LibDem PM and William as king. That is the amount of faith I have in it happening.

katex · 19-09-2007, 19:45

Well done A-B on finding that link .. I do have a small article with URBED's general comments on the 15th June in 'Planning' but afraid did not scan well and unreadably for attaching. Seems there will be some formal public consultation likely in the Autumn. The finishing comment by URBED was: "There seems to be a flicker of optimism so we want to provide a framework to deliver it" ... let's all have this shall we ?

WillowTheWhisp · 19-09-2007, 19:57

Hmm they have noticed that we have "grotty shops" - is that a technical term?

SPUGGIE J · 19-09-2007, 20:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by WillowTheWhisp

Hmm they have noticed that we have "grotty shops" - is that a technical term?

Either that or they are being honest. What ever they do they need to be sure these shops are sorted as well.

WillowTheWhisp · 19-09-2007, 22:33

I see they mention 'wildlife' in the Grange area being 'due to the river' and love the bit which says "the river in the Grange area is attractive and should be enhanced"

Woohoo! I've been saying that for years. Do you think there might be a chance it could happen at last?

Tealeaf · 20-09-2007, 12:15

There is nowt in this document that has not already been aired in some form or other on here. It's just common sense. What it does fail to address is exactly from where the money will come to pay for all these improvements. Still, I suppose that that is not it's primary purpose.

One thing I noticed has been missed - and I suppose this is typical of Accy - and that is any mention of Cycle Lanes into and around the town centre. I have no idea why this is so, but it is a serious omission. A good cycle network is the sort of thing that attracts the trendy middle classes who in turn demand trendy shops and restaurants.

WillowTheWhisp · 20-09-2007, 16:50

That's an excellent point TeaLeaf.

Cyclepaths and pedestrianisation are both good ways of keeping the pollution down too.

BERNADETTE · 20-09-2007, 17:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by WillowTheWhisp

That's an excellent point TeaLeaf.

Cyclepaths and pedestrianisation are both good ways of keeping the pollution down too.

The few parts that are supposed to be just for pedestrians now are like Brands Hatch half of the time. If we are to have pedestrianised areas they need to be monitored to stop traffic using them as a short cut.

katex · 20-09-2007, 18:15

Don't forget that this was an URBED facilitated stakeholder workshop. This means they invited key people from the Hyndburn area - councillors, local business owners, etc., to offer their opinions on the town in a controlled and managed session. This allows them to engage, at an early stage of the project, diffuse any potential issues/arguments and show some immediate progress. i.e. there is SOMETHING happening.It's a smart tactic. In all fairness to URBED, they seem to have a good grasp of the issues and drawn out some key comments.

As an afterthought, the one thing that I feel they may have missed is
how people access this information. If they had/have done any census
data analysis then they will know that the educational attainment levels
in the hyndburn district are relatively low (comparatively). They
should also know that the area has a high BME (ethnic) population.
Incomes are also relatively low with a high proportion of workers being
employed in manual skilled and/or semi-skilled occupations.

This all means that people need help in accessing information about
proposed developments - simply putting the results on the website does
not help people understand either the process and/or developments. Low
incomes generally mean lower levels of access to the internet too.
Although expensive, a simple A5 flyer to all homes detailing progress
would have been useful and shown they had gone the extra mile to engage
people who might feel excluded. Currently, it is only those with higher
levels of educational attainment that are influencing the decision
making process. Those without the educational means to communicate
their views still have a right to an opinion and every effort should be
made to ensure they are given a chance to express it. Unfortunately,
sometimes having a lower level of education can lead to 'educational
exclusion' and these might be the people who are most in need of the
benefits regeneration should be delivering.

We should not forget the voiceless majority...

Hope you all haven't snoozed off at this point ...

Not my comments by the way .. a close contact .. hope you enjoyed them.

BERNADETTE · 20-09-2007, 18:25

The points you have raised are all good and valid ones Kate, after all the cost of producing and delivering a flyer would be worth paying to ensure that everyone knows what is being proposed and voices their objections if they have any.

WillowTheWhisp · 21-09-2007, 09:36

Some good points there Katex.

You also get those who are just basically apathetic. The reaction of someone I know is along the lines of "So what? They'll just do what they want anyway what doe sit matter what we think?" Such a shame that people feel that way.

BERNADETTE · 02-10-2007, 17:25

The latest on the bus station according to tonights Telegraph is that it could be sited next to the revamped train station. A little far for the elderly to walk IMO but it is only at the planning stage at the moment so anything could happen.

Acrylic-bob · 02-10-2007, 17:39

Well of course it would have to be there, I'm sure Tesco would insist. I find it disturbing that they seem to have more clout with HBC than we mere mortals do. I guess our part of democracy is the right to pay the bills.

BERNADETTE · 02-10-2007, 17:43

As I said it is only in the planning stages at the moment, it hasn't been said that it will go there.