what would you do ...

[Margaret Pilkington]

Originally Posted by Retlaw

You've got the right idea Eric, Margaret takes things too seriously.
Just one thing thgough, most Borough Corps do overspend on consultants, meeks one wonder what sort of staff they employ if they need to consult.

what makes you think that I take things too seriously?
And should the future of the town be left to those who do not take things seriously?
Decisions about the town have long term consequences as we have seen by what has been done over the years.....much of it to the detriment of the town.

Jen much as I love the sculpture of the Kelpies, they are in the right spot......and I'm not sure something like that would make Accrington a tourist attraction.......bu then what do I know?

[MrPastry]

I'll stick up fer me steam trains with countersunk lines obviously to please the health and safety folk.

[shillelagh]

the kelpies are a leisure park .. hows about a miniature steam railway .. you can ride on around the park .. taking in different places .. do a boating lake .. nature reserve ... im not saying a sculpture of kelpies in accy .. wouldn't suit .. but what about a sculpture of a spinning jenny ...

[Eric]

Originally Posted by Retlaw

You've got the right idea Eric, Margaret takes things too seriously.
Just one thing thgough, most Borough Corps do overspend on consultants, meeks one wonder what sort of staff they employ if they need to consult.

Definitely agree on the overspending. In Kingston, our council is spending megabucks studying whether or not we need a third crossing over the Cataraqui River in order to get traffic moving efficiently between the old city and all the new development in Kingston East. It's a no-brainer, particularly for those commuters who are stuck in traffic during the morning and evening rush. A few thousand bucks and some common sense ... something which seems to get less "common" every year ... would generate the correct answer. The money wasted on bs consulting firms should go to the actual construction of the goddam thing. Even the siting of the bridge is obvious to anyone who cares to take a glance at a two dollar map!

This seems to be turning into a rant Money should not be wasted on hot air and thousands of pages of beautifully illustrated expensive horse manure, whatever the project, in whatever communitiy.

[Margaret Pilkington]

No Jen, I didn't mean that a sculpture of Kelpies wouldn't work.....I meant that any sculpture would not be a draw...... Or at least, I don't think it would.
Certainly not the way the Kelpies and the Helix is a draw.....wasn't there once a Zeri plan to make the site of the power station at Huncoat a racetrack, and a leisure park.....it didn't happen.....why?
Might it have been that it wasn't deemed viable?

I'm not sure what would do it for Accrington......the market used to be a good draw, but not any longer.

[MrPastry]

Miniature steam railway would be nice and I like the ride around to see different things as well especially to entertain and educate the youngsters. Workings of steam, local history etc.

[shillelagh]

Originally Posted by Margaret Pilkington

No Jen, I didn't mean that a sculpture of Kelpies wouldn't work.....I meant that any sculpture would not be a draw...... Or at least, I don't think it would.
Certainly not the way the Kelpies and the Helix is a draw.....wasn't there once a Zeri plan to make the site of the power station at Huncoat a racetrack, and a leisure park.....it didn't happen.....why?
Might it have been that it wasn't deemed viable?

I'm not sure what would do it for Accrington......the market used to be a good draw, but not any longer.

why not? people travel to see the angel of the north .. mount rushmore in America ... the one in rio de janiero .. nelsons column in London .. eros in piccadilly circus in London .. sir matt busby at old Trafford .. sir tom finney at preston north end ... greyfriars bobby in Edinburgh .. the duke of wellington statue with the cone on his head in Glasgow .. Eric Morecambe statue in Morecambe .. andy gormleys statues on Crosby beach ..

[Margaret Pilkington]

Yes they may go to those places, but Jen, most of those places have more than one thing in their favour.
They are multidimensional.
So they build some sort of edifice on top of ......well let's say the Coppice.
There isn't much else to keep them here.
Tom Finney and Preston.....a city, shops, a market.
Nelson's column....is in the capital city.....so lots of other tourist attractions. Good restaurants, pubs, historical buildings.....river cruises.
Likewise for Edinburgh.....lots of lovely places to eat, architecture.
Old Trafford.....well to some that is a shrine to football.
I haven't heard of many people going to Morecambe just to see the Eric Morecambe statue.
Crosby is on route to another city with lots of history and culture.

I may be wrong but I really don't think it fits into the category of the places you have cited Jen.
A statue here would probably be scrawled with graffiti in no time at all.......now maybe that sounds very negative, but I see it as being realistic.
Sorry, but that is just how it seems....unless there is more than that then we would just be throwing the money away....if we had the 75 million that is.

[Gordon Booth]

£75 million doesn't go far but- the Coppice?
It's got to earn its keep, make a profit even. Pull people in from a distance.

An adventure park? Cable car to the top, lots of frightening ways of getting down again, slides, those pulleys on ropes you hang on to and scream, one of those army style training courses, scaled down for children, paint balling in the woods, build a water world into the slopes with heated pool, surf rider.
Glass the quarries over to make an even bigger Eden Project, attract the Greens and tree huggers, a wheel like the London Eye, so you can see Pendle, the Ribble Valley, Accrington and if you're the right age just ignore the views and sit and cuddle in privacy for a half hour. Lit up at night, visible all over Hyndburn, discos for young teens and older ones in the Eden replicas so the place hums even at night, a tropical holiday night club(not much for them to do in Accrington at night?). Lots of car parking.
Most of all keep the Council out of it, leave it to local enthusiasts and franchised companies to steam it up.
I think I may have just spent £750,000,000 but Hell, think big!

[Eric]

Originally Posted by MrPastry

Miniature steam railway would be nice and I like the ride around to see different things as well especially to entertain and educate the youngsters. Workings of steam, local history etc.

I'm a steam freak myself.

[accyman]

Originally Posted by Gordon Booth

£75 million doesn't go far but- the Coppice?
It's got to earn its keep, make a profit even. Pull people in from a distance.

An adventure park? Cable car to the top, lots of frightening ways of getting down again, slides, those pulleys on ropes you hang on to and scream, one of those army style training courses, scaled down for children, paint balling in the woods, build a water world into the slopes with heated pool, surf rider.
Glass the quarries over to make an even bigger Eden Project, attract the Greens and tree huggers, a wheel like the London Eye, so you can see Pendle, the Ribble Valley, Accrington and if you're the right age just ignore the views and sit and cuddle in privacy for a half hour. Lit up at night, visible all over Hyndburn, discos for young teens and older ones in the Eden replicas so the place hums even at night, a tropical holiday night club(not much for them to do in Accrington at night?). Lots of car parking.
Most of all keep the Council out of it, leave it to local enthusiasts and franchised companies to steam it up.
I think I may have just spent £750,000,000 but Hell, think big!

i think the best thing that could be done with the coppice is leave it alone.There used to be a very distinctive spread eagle pattern visible for miles then some idiot messed it up by planting loads of trees all over the gaff.You dont need fancy stuff to make use of the coppice anyone who grew up around here will have fond memories up the coppice as a small child or even as a hormonal teenager