If you took yours fans hat off for a moment, and put yourself in the position of the Council would you immediately jump and move heaven and earth for this? Their obvious policy in recent years has been to expand living accommodation in the City Centre in the hope that drives locals spending in the City Centre. Does the Sports Village fit with that plan? I don’t know, but you’d need to consider it, especially as Hull City centre is already a bit split, hence the new footbridge trying to reconnect it. You’d also need to think about the Council’s income from the Fair, whether that would be the same (or more of course) if it was moved…then weigh that up against rate increases from the Village. That’s before you consider whether it is popular with the public you serve. I’m not saying they shouldn’t…I’m just saying it’s not as easy as just seeing the possibility for investment and assuming that is the option to push for without considering the much wider issues, and even whether there are preferable locations in Hull for the Village
The Liberal Democrats never wanted money to be spent on a new stadium 20 plus years ago although they still tried to take the credit for it when they briefly got in power. They won't want to show clear support for any Walton Street development now if it they think it will cost them votes especially with their majority being so slim and a third of the seats up in three months.
I walked over the bridge today into Princes Quay and thought that the dockside would be a good place for market stalls, not food ones, old fashioned stalls like they had years ago in Trinity Square, it’s wide enough for two rows of stalls, and the Hull City Centre must be one of a few town centres without a regular market.
Nope, the seating areas from McCoy's down just need upgrading, poor place for market stalls, is there really a demand for a market? If there is put it inside Zebedee's Yard, Whitefriargate might just feed off its footfall.
Zebedee's Yard is more profitable to the landlords as a car park. No staff required, easy money. Outdoor markets have been on the decline for years. Car boot sales didn't help them either. I was one of the original traders from week one on walton street. In those days you had to apply and prove you were a genuine market trader, pay three months in advance and it was a rigid rule of two traders per trade, ie; two tool stalls, two selling denim, etc etc. It was also set out in a circle and your pitch was designate to you. That quickly fell by the wayside, the guy next to me was a denim trader first week and on the second week he was selling sweeping brushes because he'd seen how many I sold on week one, and that's how it was, a race to the bottom. Poor management allowed it and of course it becomes dog eat dog. Beverley doesnt even have a Wednesday market anymore. I was the chairman of the local branch of the market traders federation at the time and I saw genuine market traders forced out of business, not just by poundshops but car booters who didn't legally exist. No check was ever kept on them and of course their numbers swelled. I knew two car booters who were classed as disabled for five days a week, couldn't get out of the house without a mobility scooter. but on a week end they were humping tea chests full of tools about from the back of a van. Anyone doing it for a living couldn't compete with someone with no overheads at all. Regular outdoor markets are a thing of the past. Just have a walk around Walton Street on market day and you can count the genuine market traders on the fingers of one hand.
As I thought Urika, old fashioned stalls are well in decline and a backwoods step for a city centre with the possible exception of Farmers Markets which continue to thrive out of town.
**** the seating areas, the place looks like a **** tip now, every City and town has a market except Hull seemingly, the Beverley one is well attended, if people are talking about putting a pikeys fair in the town, then a market could work if it was done properly.
I agree that traditional outdoor markets are a thing of the past. Shops like Primark & others have ended a need for cheap clothing. Other shops such as B&M, who sell most things cheaply have hammered what were other traditional stalls. I live in a “Market” town. The Thursday market has declined massively (I’d guess by 75%) in the last 20 years. Allowing a B&M to open didn’t help. The town has combatted the decline by introducing regular “Makers Markets” & Farmer’s Markets as well as moving the stalls, for all markets, into the High Street & Square rather than the main & largest car-park. For me a modern market shouldn’t step on the feet of local businesses but should attract extra footfall to an area that local businesses benefit from. Specialist markets mentioned above could well work in the City Centre.
Market stalls, small businesses will all be a thing of the past before long. You’ll be ordering your meat & veg off Amazon to be delivered by a flying robotic pig and paying for it in bitcoins. Who can be arsed to actually go to a shop these days? You don’t even go to the supermarket in person anymore, and in the rare occasion you do, you preorder whatever you want before leaving the house, pull up in the car park and someone puts it in your car for you. Can’t compete on price or convenience.
Car boot sales are the work of the devil, I hate them always have, but a properly run City Market should work, the indoor Trinity market seems to be getting a bit better, they are massively popular in Germany and Spain, the problem as others have stated is the internet is killing high street shopping, people know the price of everything and the value of nothing. I’m guilty of it, but you cannot beat actually walking into a shop, getting personal service, and walking out with a bag with whatever in it, rather than waiting in for some van coming down the street and chucking a bag at you, finding it doesn’t fit, then having a **** about sending it back.
Norwich has an outdoor market with 200 stalls six days a week. Been one there since when Hull was still Wyke. Brings lots of visitors in. Leeds still has a large indoor market but locals complain it isn’t as good as it was. Food markets in .Spain,Italy, France, Portugal are great, people taking care over selecting good produce to cook good meals instead of processed junk which take no effort.
A few nights ago was a program on the telly about deliveroo moving into the grocery delivering business. The test was a woman who ordered online a bottle of milk, delivered in 8 minutes and cost 5.50 something. Second part of the test she walked to the nearest shop selling milk, there and back in 11 minutes cost 1. 09. And still thought deliveroo was a good thing, ****ing idiot.
