There'll be nothing left open in 10 years if this continues.

I'll only really start to worry when Talibs closes down and I can't get my stone-wash jeans anymore

They're trying to stop people going to Horwich putting 3hrs, no return same day restrictions on the car parks.

 

Queuing out the door at the butchers when I went for my lunchtime treat of a plate steak and kidley pie today though.

Queuing out there every day. I've got my mother to go for me today

Look upward next time you're in town - quite a lot of shops are merely houses, dilapidated houses yes, but the structure is essentially a house. The ones that aren't, well some of them are quite remarkable in their stonework etc. the shop frontages turn them into carbuncles.

 

I think the age of a sprawling town centre is over, as is both broad and niche shopping I'm afraid - the internet has cut out the middleman, people will buy direct, there's no need for all these retail units.

 

The answer lies in residential and entertainment usage, they've got the Octagon for a start, the two casinos are also there and now the new swimming pool - all isn't necessarily lost. However people won't venture in for a drink or something to eat when it's in the current post-apocalyptic state. Fuck knows how they'd solve it, there's sixty odd of them on £50K + p.a. (repeating myself) - surely they've got the answer between 'em?

Oh aye, I genuinely think relatively small things like closing the Bradshawgate entrance to the Arndale really have an effect on trade, again, you'd think they'd be aware of stuff like this.

 

It'd be easy to right of the state of town as a general sign of the times, if Bury wasn't contrastingly 'healthier'...

 

What's Wigan town centre like these days?

 

What's Wigan town centre like these days?

 

Full of fat pie-eating fucktards with bad teeth, I imagine.

Oh aye, I genuinely think relatively small things like closing the Bradshawgate entrance to the Arndale really have an effect on trade

 

That's actually a very good point.

 

What a fucking stupid idea that was.

 

 

That's actually a very good point.

 

What a fucking stupid idea that was.

 

Primark were going to walk if the entrance wasn't closed.

Primark were going to walk if the entrance wasn't closed.

 

Primark out.

 

 

Primark out.

 

You will lose the shit clothes wearing vote doing that.

Fuck me, people shoplift from Primark? Jesus wept, if you're going to get a record at least make it worth your while.

 

Top tip - if you're planning pinching something just walk out with it in your hand, you can then argue there was no 'intent' and the security have less time to 'scramble' (which they do the moment you put something in your pocket/bag etc.)

Look upward next time you're in town - quite a lot of shops are merely houses, dilapidated houses yes, but the structure is essentially a house. The ones that aren't, well some of them are quite remarkable in their stonework etc. the shop frontages turn them into carbuncles.

 

I think the age of a sprawling town centre is over, as is both broad and niche shopping I'm afraid - the internet has cut out the middleman, people will buy direct, there's no need for all these retail units.

 

The answer lies in residential and entertainment usage, they've got the Octagon for a start, the two casinos are also there and now the new swimming pool - all isn't necessarily lost. However people won't venture in for a drink or something to eat when it's in the current post-apocalyptic state. Fuck knows how they'd solve it, there's sixty odd of them on £50K + p.a. (repeating myself) - surely they've got the answer between 'em?

 

yes the bolton one swimming pool all 25 meters of it!! woooooooooo, thats a fucking joke.

It's pretty good in my opinion, I especially like having a 2m depth constant (when the floor isn't raised - which is therefore always for me as I don't go when there's kids in) it discourages folk who are just pissing about, or if they do, they do their few lengths then piss off, rather than hang around, like budding Lens.

 

Why would they build owt but a 25m pool? The Aquatics Centre is down the road...A kids pool complex has already proved unprofitable to run, the Bolton One isn't too bad a result - given the strained finances of late. The staff however, well, I can only presume they've been shifted there on purpose out of the way - docile doesn't begin to describe them, I really think they're either on a purposeful 'go-slow' or are genuinely slow.

Edited May 3, 201313 yr by Youri McAnespie

It's pretty good in my opinion, I especially like having a 2m depth constant (when the floor isn't raised - which is therefore always for me as I don't go when there's kids in) it discourages folk who are just pissing about, or if they do, they do their few lengths then piss off, rather than hang around, like budding Lens.

 

Why would they build owt but a 25m pool? The Aquatics Centre is down the road...A kids pool complex has already proved unprofitable to run, the Bolton One isn't too bad a result - given the strained finances of late. The staff however, well, I can only presume they've been shifted there on purpose out of the way - docile doesn't begin to describe them, I really think they're either on a purposeful 'go-slow' or are genuinely slow.

 

What Aquatics Centre?

The one in Manny.

 

Edit: Speaking of which, I've just read there's a second 50m pool there - in the basement, how's that work then?

Edited May 3, 201313 yr by Youri McAnespie

Horwich isn't really a town centre is it? Is it really comparable?

 

Bit like saying the shops in Little Lever are busy on a weekend.

 

 

Its not comparable but the principles are.

 

Good safe environment, free parking, a good range of different and independant shops. It's quite a simple business model really.

 

Not a wailing romanian peasant, albanian pickpocket, abusive drunken layabout, parkingnazi, or muslamic raygun in sight.

 

Bolton town centre attracts them like flies to shit, folk go elsewhere, shops shut, and before long it looks like Kabul.

What Aquatics Centre?

 

The one at the bottom of Tonge Moor Rd with the meerkats in the entrance.

I don't go when there's kids in)

 

Known to our legal friends as the Fairclough defence.

Well you're wrong there, I unfortunately was born without thumbs as a result of my Mam smoking B&H lungbleeders and drinking heavily throughout her pregnancy with me.

Not a wailing romanian peasant, albanian pickpocket, abusive drunken layabout, parkingnazi, or muslamic raygun in sight.

 

Is it not just a matter of time though? - they've started to let Leythers in, surely that's just the thin end of the wedge

Well you're wrong there, I unfortunately was born without thumbs as a result of my Mam smoking B&H lungbleeders and drinking heavily throughout her pregnancy with me.

 

Known to our legal friends as the Beadle defence.

OK, you've got me, I'm actually writing a book on swimming pools and I just wanted to see how near I could get to poolside if I gave my credit card details to the girl at the front desk - I wasn't going to jump in the pool though!

No one would make something like that up, case dismissed.

Is it not just a matter of time though? - they've started to let Leythers in, surely that's just the thin end of the wedge

 

Not at all. We are improving the gene pool

 

Given NB indirectly controls the rental market thus a large %age of the populus, it might as well be 'invitation' only.

 

 

Primark were going to walk if the entrance wasn't closed.

 

Which shows what a state we are in when Primark gets to call the shots over wider planning policy.

 

Bolton is architecturally superb in places, but due to the economy, is in danger of being ripped apart by the chancers, loan sharks, bookies and student accommodation brigade. In turn, that dissuades more valuable higher end investment coming in, which kickstarts a spiral for the town.

 

You can't really blame to council (althought I'd love to) because of the way business rates are set and the fact that most of the property is in the private sector. It's a buyer's market. But it does mean Bolton centre slides while the privately controlled out of town shopping areas are protected from the low end traders. It'll get worse before it ges better. If it ever does.