Advertisement
Eyesore... to eye-catching
Reporter: DAWN MARSDEN and ANDREW RUDKIN
Date online: 14 January 2013
£3.5m plan to boost town-centre tram route
HISTORICAL local figures, public art and urban gardens are the key features of a £3.5million plan to boost the new town-centre Metrolink route.
Councillors will discuss proposals for land around the line, due to open in 2014, at Monday’s Cabinet meeting.
Landscape Consultants were appointed by the council a year ago to develop a plan to enhance the Union Street corridor.
Plans could include erecting statues of famed Oldham industrialist John Platt and of Sir Winston Churchill, who started his political career in the borough.
Around £500,000 has been set aside to cover the installation of art and sculpture along the route to celebrate the borough’s past, present and future. Improvements will also be made to linking streets, Oldham War Memorial and the old town hall area.
Councillor Dave Hibbert, Cabinet member for housing, transport and regeneration, said: “These improvements are planned to create a lasting impression for anyone who visits Oldham.
The King Street stop, a main entry point to the town centre, will feature a raised plaza overlooking the tramline with a seating area adorned with plants and trees.
Union Street will be a pedestrian-only zone around the central stop and is predicted to be the main drop-off point for shoppers arriving by tram.
There are existing green areas at Gallery Oldham, Sainsbury’s and near George Street with more planned close to Waterloo Street and Bridge Street.
At Mumps, green areas will enhance one of the major gateways to the town centre. Trees and bulbs will be planted along Oldham Way to create a “boulevard” effect.
If plans are approved, Metrolink contractor MPT has confirmed it can incorporate the work without affecting its current schedule.
Comments
Sounds great, so let's hope that it comes off. Why not bring the statue of John Platt that was moved from the town centre many years ago, back to the town centre. I'm sure that it could be suitably included in this redevopment and it would be a great focal point, seen by many, rather than the current few by comparison.
Very nice!...A raised Plaza with seating area on King Street!.....And a great view looking at the dilapidated old Bailey's night club.
Instead of spending money putting Statues along Union Street, the money would surely be better spent on upgrading all the empty and the derelict appearance of properties all along Union St/Yorkshire Street....Typical of this Council!....they are unable to do anything properly.
£500,000 !!! Predictable against a borough riddled with potholes. 100 more priorities should come first although a photo opportunity awaits. The concept of people paying the crazy Metro prices to come shopping in Oldham "drop off point" really? Why would you? The Metro is a way out of town or past it at the prices, not to it, when will the penny drop. 200 spaces to park at Derker, No stop at George Street Shaw, Ice on the line unbelievable in Oldham in January as well?
A commitment was made by the Labour Group some time ago to relocate the statue of John Platt from its present location in Alexandra Park to outside the old Town Hall, it's original location. I trust this can be honoured.
I am dubious about a statue of Churchill. He represented Oldham for four years only before the local Tories dumped him. He never came back to Oldham to receive his Freeman of the Borough award immediately post war. He showed Oldham scant respect. The connection is tenuous.
Another ridiculous waste of the taxpayers cash. I honestly believed that Oldham Council were doing everything possible to cut out waste from the yearly budget. Evidently not.
This is just another hair-brained idea for throwing money away. Half a million quid spent on consultant Landscape Gardeners isn't chicken feed either. People travelling Oldham to Manchester do not need statues to line their way.
All well and good creating a lasting impression for anyone coming to Oldham. What are they going to go to Oldham for? No talk of investment from major retailers or long-term leasing of shops still empty in Spindles. What would anyone think coming into King Street and looking round and beyond what is there now?
£3.5 million is eye watering - & way over the top :
£500,000 of so-called art & sculpture should be cut out -
I studied A-level Art 50 years ago at Greenhill Grammar School since demolished by Oldham Council.
I also studied urban design at Oxford Brookes University - Union Street should be hard landscaped not greened.
The biggest mistake is the street lighting -
it should highlight the key buildings & be wall-mounted
not on poles.
This is another costly Oldham fiasco - shame.
"A raised plaza overlooking the tramline with a seating area adorned with plants and trees" with the Oldham climate..
As for statues, hope they dont forget such people as John Batyee & Teddy Hilton...
oh dear! as i've said before. union street was one of the main routes through town.
once gone oldham has no real through routes any longer.
many years ago there was four lanes main through routes through town.
union st, yorkshire st and 2 lanes of st marys way.
building spindles and pedestrianising the town centre got rid of one.
once union st gets cut in two that only leaves a single lane st marys way!
so any potential passing trade will just bypass the town completely.
progress eh!
Oldham Council have a great record in public art!....The Musical Charms that never worked, and cost hundreds of thousands of pounds...The clock in the ground that never worked!....The H2O drinking fountain that hardly ever worked! and many others!....hang on there's a theme here!....Oh Yes!....Nothing ever worked that the council did.....Never mind it's only another £3.5 million wasted,what with all the cuts on services!.....You couldn't make it up!...Priorities!...The Council is a shambles.
half a million pounds set aside to be wasted on 'art' when the borough is collapsing, you couldn't make it up, the way policitians waste money!
Why couldn't the Metrolink have been taken up the old Delph Donkey route to Grotton at least, and perhaps to Greenfield? This is one area where money would have been better spent and relieved congestion too.
Maybe a raised Pizza with seating adorned by kebabs with pie & chip wrappers?
does this mean that they are going to do up the fronts of every shop on union street there are only a few of them that look half decent now
Art is fine, statues are fine, eye-catching is fine - just as long as they're not "eye-catching" like the embarrassingly naff and banal sculptures that Tameside put up along Lord Sheldon Way. Please don't go that way, Oldham.
More waste of money! What planet do these people live on?
Oh and by the way, how are shoppers in cars cars expected to get into Oldham to shop when the only road in to these shops is pedestrianised? Use the bypass....but that will mean a helluva lot of cars all trying to use King St to get to Spindles car park. Or am I missing something ?
Does this have to cost so much in the light of cutting lollipop ladies? It seems
Oldham's priorities are about superficial effects and not looking at where cuts have affected those most in need..
Beggars belief that this work wasn't included in the horrendous price tag for this scheme.
This is on top of the £18m wasted on ripping up & re-laying the temporary line to Mumps.
Dave Hibbert is surely cringing inside at the utter drivel he puts out for public consumption.
If they move at the rate that they are laying that line on Union Street I`ll be dead by the time that it`s finished.
Now the High Street has lost another big chain, HMV the council should be looking to scale back the retail areas in the town centre and find other uses such as residential or leisure. Our council so stuck in their ways believe that they can continue on regardless of the changes imposed by the internet.
The glory days of the High Street have long gone, trying to carry on as if nothing has changed is like Knut challenging the tide, yet that is exactly what our council is doing.
Sadly, I don't know the origins of "lipstick on a pig", but it seems quite apt.There isn't even the excuse of it being the 1st of April.
Yep, another waste of our money - thanks Oldham Council! It's a shame some of these comments aren't acted on by our Council as they would then realise they have got it all wrong. This Metrolink has done nothing for the Town since the day it was dreamt up! Planned in a time before on-line shopping; the idea was probably sold to the Council as a great way to bring people to the Town again - but for what? There is NOTHING worth coming in for.
Have Your Say
The council can afford £3.5 million to create "a lasting impression and a boulevard effect" etc along the tramway but baulk at paying the comparative pittance it would cost to pay for the Borough's school crossing patrol wardens. shouldn't the word priorities be applied here?
By Geronimo @ 14/01/2013 13:23:05