Yep, the stadium we're playing in was blocked, the Deep was blocked, City of Culture was blocked, Siemens was blocked along with the new 300 jobs announced just recently, the refurbished light ship and Artic Corsair with the new visitor attraction the Corsair will go in was blocked. No ambition shown whatsoever with any of those things. Abridged version, shurrup daft git.
If you think the council show an ounce of ambition you're deluded. 2 of those achievements were 20 years ago. Hull's falling further and further behind other UK cities. Why is it that you walk round the city centre and see empty shop after empty shop yet you go to Leeds, York and Sheffield and there's barely a shop to be had. How many jobs have been lost by crippling Princes Quay/Whitefriargate? And now they keep blocking major investment because of a weeks fair
Sheffield is absolutely awash with empty shops. York is a tourist/Prosecco destination, not a town centre. Stop making stuff up.
I’ve still not seen a word posted on this thread that tackles the most important issue about relocating the Fair - who in the city, or in the East Riding, would want the one week a year fair moved to near their home or workplace?
The council have not blocked this investment yet. If it comes to that Acun may have repeated David Lloyd's mistake in not doing his homework prior to buying us.
The noises coming out from the councillors give little to no hope. I'd have thought they'd be moving heaven and earth to make an investment of this magnitude happen, there just seems no desire on their part
In fairness every city centre is absolutely dead especially high streets. Only ones that aren't are the ones that have adapted into bar/night culture. Otherwise I agree with you
Re Sheffield yes centre run down in parts. However there is loads of development going on but it’s going to take time. Not a massive fan of Hull Council in the past and Hull really needs massive investment from somewhere but has very low rateable value. This is where the “ levelling “ up should have provided funding. I know we have the Maritime quarter under development which will link up with the old town which is a genuine impressive one but the new town is in poor state. Ps Sheffield has no old town to talk of and it’s quite bizarrely designed.
That's nonsense, there's lots of empty shops in every town and city in the country. Leeds has become a destination shopping location and is fairing much better than most, but Coney Street in York is their own Whitefriargate, it used to be the most desirable retailing location in the city, now it's half empty. Historically, Hull City Council have been fairly hopeless, but things have improved significantly over recent years.
Even here in Sydney there's plenty of empty shops in the city. With working from home so prevalent all city centres are no doubt struggling.
That also is nonsense. Coney Street is absolutely nothing like (in the state of) Whitefriargate!! I was there last week. The odd shop empty or at least being used as a pop-up, but that's all. They haven't managed to fill the old Sports Direct (which moved a few hundred yards to an even bigger building) and Debenhams buildings on Davygate; quite understandable. However, I do agree that HCC aren't totally hopeless, there have been some successes, but they surely should be doing everything they can, within reason, to support the development of the Stadium area and Walton St, not holding back what is a grim, desolate, underdeveloped area due to a once a year fair and a few car boots.
People need to want to invest in Hull. Although not everyone’s cup of tea how many top restaurant chains are in Hull. For the size of the city we have next to none. People like Acun come around very rarely and should be encouraged and a way found to allow them to invest. Our waterfront should be our greatest. It has taken way too long to fully use it.
Coney Street used to be the premier location in York, now it's a dump, full of phone repair shops and pound shops on temporary lets. Even the big units like the Burtons/Dorothy Perkins unit is just being used as temporary art gallery just so it's not left empty. When I was trading bricks and mortar retail over decade ago, I went to view a unit on Coney Street, the rent was £140k a year. Late last year, I went to view that very same unit as I mulled over having another go and the asking rent was £67k a year and I could have got at least a years rent free on a five year lease. I've got the details for a dozen units down there and they don't include any of the big ones.
Yes, it's the way of the world that we have the odd phone repair shop and poundland, even on streets like Coney Street. And the gallery pop up is the same one I was alluding to. Coney Street is still relatively thriving, with plenty of big & small name retailers, restaurants, coffee shops, etc. It's also typically rammed with people. To compare it as their version of Whitefriargate is nonsense. Whitefriargate has been absolutely on it's knees (and that's being kind) for a decade or more. As Cityzen asks, would be interesting to know how rents compare.
Hull's very cheap in national terms, but sadly not a place I'd look to open as things stand currently. One of the big problems with Whitefriargate, is that the rents have fallen massively, but the rates have stayed the same (the issues down there were primarily not caused by the Council either, they were caused by Trinity House).
