WELL, as is often the case, my jottings about the grim reality of 'regeneration' in Merseyside (as opposed to the sad fantasies pedalled by PR people and councils) have set the indignant cat among the rancid old pigeons.
As someone who has known New Brighton since the age of three, I KNOW the decline in the resort's fortunes has been simply astounding, and it is clear that Wirral Council has been a big fat failure on this issue time and time and time again.
For instance, as almost everyone knows, the resentment among local people about that stupid pierrott clown sculpture on the coast road is so very hot and bitter even after all these years.
How dare municipal mediocrites insult the memory of a place as fundamentally good and beautiful and unusual in character as New Brighton!
Now, one of my fiercest critics, and seeming lover of the 'Death Star' that is Wirral Council, is a man called Andy, who writes: "What planet do you and (Barman) Burly inhabit? Annette is right; instead of sitting there on you a**** and pontificating get out and do something about it.
"As for people talking about New Brighton for the first time in a year through your blog, come on, I know you are a newcomer but that takes the biscuit.
"You can't have helped to notice that after six years with the Neptune scheme, public questionnaires by nearly everyone, exhibitions, presentations and a public enquiry for two weeks that was never out of the papers, that people were doing just that - TALKING.
"That’s the trouble to many people like you and your mates who just want to talk and criticise every time anyone does anything.
"The time for talking has gone and we will shortly see the new Floral Pavilion Theatre, Conference Centre and the Town Square developments go up shortly alongside the new £3 million Chelsea Plaza which will start the process at long last of bringing much needed investment and local jobs into the town.
"Oh, and I forgot £4 billion pounds of investment by Peel Holdings for the Wirral's Dockland area all initiated by Wirral Council, not bad hey!"
IN REPLY to Andy I first of all must answer his initial question as to my home planet.
I come from the planet Zog, Andy, and that exotic background gives me the insight to see past council and PR propoganda and tell the story of New Brighton's miserable decline and neglect as it really is.
Chelsea Plaza, eh? Yuppie flats, in other words... where once was a licensed premises that so many New Brighton people have happy memories about.
How many times must we tell the 'Death Star' wallies? We do NOT want more flats in New Brighton.
We want shops, bars, nightclubs, facilities... like we used to have.
And maybe an open air swimming baths once more, plus how about a new tower and the return of the ferries? Well, why the hell not?
Better to spend on that sort of stuff than on a fantasy of turning the dirty old docks around Four Bridges into some soulless wilderness inhabited by pretend companies (funded by the taxpayer), branch offices of the monstrously bloated Wirral Council and yuppie flats that will never be rented out because no-one will ever want to live there.
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Mick wrote...
More nonsense from Mr Doom and Gloom who, of course, has great experience of business - far more than companies like Neptune Developments and Peel Holdings. Er...
I can just see local residents reaction to bars and nightclubs opening in New Brighton - they'll be throwing in objections left, right and centre. Unfortunately, I don't think quite a few people in New Brighton want change. They don't want more people coming in. The congestion, the noise and so on. An element of the local population are equally culpable in holding it back.
And you complain about "yuppie flats" conveniently ignoring the fact that the other thriving urban centres that you talk of as success stories (Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham) all have apartments aplenty. You criticise Liverpool's regeneration for being built on shops, but a large part of the regeneration of other cities is built on retail. The Bullring, the new Arndale, the Beetham Tower in Manchester.
Fact is, you're happy as a pig in sh*t when you are commentating and criticising. It's no wonder Radio Miseryside have signed you up for a slot on their breakfast programme!
*** Thanks for your kind words, Mick. STEVE.
Posted by: Mick | February 14, 2007 8:49 AM