The Peel House Lane Surgery extentions are going swimmingly:

Here's what it use to look like:

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/artdeco.jpg

A nice Art deco Cinema converted into a Doctors surgery

During:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0503.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0502.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0504.jpg

And today, 25 Dec 2006

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000045.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000043.jpg

Forgot what's this devlopments called, I'll try to find out:



but what it use to looked like
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/crane.jpg
then
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0513.jpg

and now
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000057.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000059.jpg

What's this doing outside the Liverpool Metro Area forum? :ohno:

Because I made an executive decision not to put it there. There is no exciting Widnes Thread in there, although there is a Runcorn (Not Halton) one, had they're of been a Widnes/Halton thread I would have put these there.

I based my decision on the following points:

a: Differnet accent
b: Different County
c: Different Game accociated with town: Rugby League not Soccer
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0505.jpg
d: That time I heard a new boss from Wigan call the Widnes staff in the office "Scousers", and their response.
e: And having a thread Called "The Official Widnes Devolpment thread" in the UK Projects forum, along with places like NewCastle, Coventry, and Cardiff, well it ticked my funny bone!

edited to add found the before Picture, shame it's not very good:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0057.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000052.jpg

Not that it looks like a new build does it?

The top of the "stone" bit looks a bit odd

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000054.jpg
Maybe they'll finish it off to be as traditional as the rest?

But there's a lot of heritage stuff going up, take these new shops:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0510.jpg

In keeping or just bland?

Talking about which, this is about 6 years old:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/newish.jpg

and what's next to it is about 2 years old:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/newish2.jpg

Talking about recent buildings, this at least has a artdecoish (very ish) white section
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000061.jpg

They've spent a lot of money in Victoria Park (re)creating the lake, and I espically like little pointless bridge which they've painted the same colour as the Runcorn-Widnes Bridge (correction! The Silver Jubilee Bridge http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runcorn_Bridge )

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/lake.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/lake3.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/lake2.jpg

In summer it's full of kids jumping off it, and swimming around in the dirty unsitable for swimming water!

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/lake4.jpg

The recreated Bandstand looks good:

Last summer:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0531.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0532.jpg

And now:

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000048.jpg


Not too sure about the Cafe they've built though...

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/bunker2.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/bunker.jpg

But I know what you're all thinking, where's the culture?

Well, err.. dunno about that, but they have painted the Top of the Town Niteclub!

before:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/sodom.jpg
After:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000102.jpg

You know those maps you get of town centres? Well the Widnes one has this Pub signposted ON IT!

And it's been painted too:

Before:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/artdeco2.jpg
after:
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000100.jpg

LAst one for now.
This Church is apparently a possibilty for demolition:

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000091.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000097.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000093.jpg

Great work here. These timestamped images are becoming your own little trademark.

Well, you'll deserve the complete lack of interest that the thread will gather here in the national forum, compared to what it might in its own city region forum.

Some points, however. Accent, debatable, Widnes folk sound more scousers than St Heleners for example. County, Widnes is historically Lancs, like Liverpool, and is no longer is part of Cheshire from a local government point of view. Nowadays Halton council associates itself with the rest of the city region (gaze at its tourist site - a minisite of visitliverpool.com - that invites visitors to "explore Halton and the Liverpool City Region": www.visithalton.com), also, Halton is a member of the Mersey Partnership - the city region's inward investment and tourist agency.

Your argument that there is a Runcorn thread on the Liverpool subforum is especially specious - clearly the lack of a Widnes forum in that case invites you to start one up - after all, Widnes is closer to the centre of its city region than Runcorn. They play Rugby in St Helens also.

Widnes types aren't Scousers, nor are St Heleners, Sandgrounders or, technically, Wirralians - if you are seriously trying to suggest that most of these places aren't part of the Liverpool City Region, then I give up.


Widnes not part of the Liverpool City Region - for fuck's sake, it's five miles by road from Liverpool Airport; you've got an Liverpool telephone number! :ohno:

Merry Christmas.

Not anymore, that camera broke! Got a new one for my Birthday, which was just before Chrimbo.

Not much seems to happening to the Cornerhouse Building
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/corner.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000072.jpg

Which is a shame as it's part of the "posh bit of town" being part of the same Square as the Town Hall (1887)

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/council.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000084.jpg

and the Public Library (1887)
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000077.jpg

St Paul's Church(1894)
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000079.jpg

Well, you'll deserve the complete lack of interest that the thread will gather here in the national forum, compared to what it might in its own city region forum.

Some points, however. Accent, debatable, Widnes folk sound more scousers than St Heleners for example. County, Widnes is historically Lancs, like Liverpool, and is no longer is part of Cheshire from a local government point of view. Nowadays Halton council associates itself with the rest of the city region (gaze at its tourist site - a minisite of visitliverpool.com - that invites visitors to "explore Halton and the Liverpool City Region": www.visithalton.com), also, Halton is a member of the Mersey Partnership - the city region's inward investment and tourist agency.

Your argument that there is a Runcorn thread on the Liverpool subforum is especially specious - clearly the lack of a Widnes forum in that case invites you to start one up - after all, Widnes is closer to the centre of its city region than Runcorn. They play Rugby in St Helens also.

Widnes types aren't Scousers, nor are St Heleners, Sandgrounders or, technically, Wirralians - if you are seriously trying to suggest that most of these places aren't part of the Liverpool City Region, you're more of a blockheaded anti-Liverpool gimp than some of our have already gotten the impression you are.

Widnes not part of the Liverpool City Region - for fuck's sake, it's five miles by road from Liverpool Airport; you've got an Liverpool telephone number! :ohno:

Merry Christmas.

For god sake, Grow up man.

Well, you'll deserve the complete lack of interest that the thread will gather here in the national forum, compared to what it might in its own city region forum.

Some points, however. Accent, debatable, Widnes folk sound more scousers than St Heleners for example. County, Widnes is historically Lancs, like Liverpool, and is no longer is part of Cheshire from a local government point of view. Nowadays Halton council associates itself with the rest of the city region (gaze at its tourist site - a minisite of visitliverpool.com - that invites visitors to "explore Halton and the Liverpool City Region": www.visithalton.com), also, Halton is a member of the Mersey Partnership - the city region's inward investment and tourist agency.

Your argument that there is a Runcorn thread on the Liverpool subforum is especially specious - clearly the lack of a Widnes forum in that case invites you to start one up - after all, Widnes is closer to the centre of its city region than Runcorn. They play Rugby in St Helens also.

Widnes types aren't Scousers, nor are St Heleners, Sandgrounders or, technically, Wirralians - if you are seriously trying to suggest that most of these places aren't part of the Liverpool City Region, you're more of a blockheaded anti-Liverpool gimp than some of our have already gotten the impression you are.

Widnes not part of the Liverpool City Region - for fuck's sake, it's five miles by road from Liverpool Airport; you've got an Liverpool telephone number! :ohno:

Merry Christmas.

I agree with what you've said. And despite what this thread starter seems to claim, Widnes does have a noticeable Liverpool connection. In fact, I'd say Widnes and St Helens are practically identical (both shit holes, although Widnes is a bit worse IMO). They both have strong rugby backgrounds and both have roughy equal proportions of people who have either a Lancastrian brogue or a scouse accent. This used to be the case with Runcorn also, although the scouse accent has grown to be the more sporadic there now.

As it happens I am very familiar with all 3 towns, and Liverpool, due to work and family connections.

I think Stephen Robinson has moved to Widnes from outside the city region and doesn't fully understand the things he speaks with confidence about, possibly because he has only narrow social connections within Widnes. As a point in case, whenever somebody utetrs something negative about the smelly and rotting carcus that is Widnes he immediately says "oh, you must mean Runcorn!", and this is telling. Runcorn may have issues, but it at least has lots of forests and greenery, and lacks that feeling of industrial decay that Widnes has. The only people in this world who would claim that Widnes is superior are a hand full of old-style Widnesians (usually in bred and don't leave the place very often), and this only indicates the sorts of people influencing the young and naive Stephen Robinson. Such people are also likely to be gritty old Lancastrians ambivalent towards the Liverpool connection, and this is again very telling.

And you aren't the only person who has detected ill informed vitriol in his posts. He doesn't know the region at all, and I for one have no idea where he is actually from, so I wouldn't be too worried about his posts. I do have the impression that he has a slack-jawed brummy connection.

My personal opinion is that most of Widnes is vile and his photos only reaffirm this, and I personally don't want it associated with Liverpool. Liverpool is definitely better off without it (rather than vice versa). I would take Cronton which isn't bad, although the people there always get upset when you say they're from Widnes. :lol:

Look guys, I'm trying to make a nice little quiet thread about the developments in a small town. Maybe I should have put it into the Liverpool Region, maybe not.

But it's done now, perhaps I made a mistake, but I did not intend to insult the Liverpool or anywhere else to be honest.

And to have people come in, (on Christmas day!) and throw personal abuse at me, well it's not very positive is it? It's not going to encourage me to do something similar for Runcorn for example is it?

Why should we encourage you? Even if you did produce a thread about Runcorn, or any other place that isn't Widnes, you would only visit a small proportion of that place anyway (probably the worst parts) and take your low quality photos so we all get to see how great Widnes is. :ohno:

At the back of this one

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000077.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0067.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0072.jpg
they've built an extention, and made the Library much bigger etc,

and it looks like
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/HPIM0076.jpg

Again, not making bold statments there!

It's a shame the regeneration failed in that area, although they have done a good job of tidying it up a bit. Those little, red civic buildings are literally all Widnes has.

Alright Stevo, sorry for the sharp words. I'll stand by my opinion that this is in the wrong place, however.

Not too sure what they're doing on the old Pub/Hotel at the side of the Old Town Hall. Suspect it may be offices, which is what the old Town hall is now they've moved up the road a bit.

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000075.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000064.jpg

That'll do for today, I'll try and get more details of the large Windmill Shopping centre extention which looks intresting, as it's a bit of a dive now.

And whatever it is that happening down by the River, a shamefully under used part of the town, and maybe what's happening with the much needed new Bridge.

and maybe If the weathers nice and I'm free some pics of what's left of the Chemical Industry

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000042.jpg

Widnes aparently had "The first covered top double deck buses in England "probably the world". They had to be covered top due to the corrosive atmosphere and acid rain in Widnes associated with the chemical factories."

http://www.holmesy.com/

That is one hugely depressing place. Do people really live there?

That's the good bits!

That's the good bits!


Makes me glad to be living in Coventry!:)

Let's not go too far! :)

Hmm, I made a thread about regeneration in Corby Town Centre (which includes a 50m Pool, Civic Hub/Arts Centre and £35m for Phase 1 of the retail redevelopment) and only received a handful of replies.

This thread seems to be centred around various small-scale redevelopment sites, some non-descript buildings and its had more replies already!

When it comes to small towns thinking big, I can't think of another place that has an Olympic pool, Norman Foster-designed Academy, new town centre and 16,800 new homes on the way. Except Corby. Look here:

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=10351553#post10351553
http://www.moreincorby.co.uk

And just for the record - Widnes doesn't look any worse than any other similarly sized town i've been too so please dont take this post as a dig at the place.

Definitely some intriguing asfalt design there.

where are all the people, i didnt see a single human being in any of those pictures. its like a ghost town where all the buildings are red!lol

Ste, Some great pics - keep em coming! You actually beat me to it as I had started compiling a few "before" shots as Widnes is without a doubt up and coming and full of investment potential. True, it will never have a big city feel about it as it isnt a big city and hence no skyscrapers and even very unlikely to have any buildings that will have a national impact. The changes are there though for all to see, even in 12 months. With the new residential developments going on including the much hyped urban splash ones by the riverside as well as new leisure facilities with the announcement of the new ice rink and cinema it will be a very different place to live in the next 2-3 years.

However, as a former resident of Widnes I am glad I no longer live there (although the missus does want to move back for ease of work! The fool!) as it does stink! Especially in the morning on a cold day if the wind was blowing towards you, nothing takes your breath away and wants to make you vomit more than the smell of rotting carcasses / sulphur / rotten eggs (delete as appropriate). :lol:

Lets see if we can get Beetham intrested! Imagine a 50 storey 'scraper by the Bridge......

Stephen, thanks for posting those pics, yes Widnes is part of the Liverpool City Region, but me for one ,no very little about the town, so cheers for the tour

nice to see widnes getting some new development..i have family that live there..it is quite a depressing and unremittingly dull place:nuts:

I LOVE THIS THREAD!

Looks like widnes is the new Shanghai

SSC waits with baited breath for those promised pics of the windmill shopping centre extension Stephen...

Hmm..!

Suppose I should go round the old Windmill Shopping center taking pictures, but I'd be too likey to kill myself.

Anyway, that Church I mentioned above has been given Grade II Listed status, so it won't be knocked down! Hurrah!

Did I mention it was desgined by Pugin? well, it was!

I've been too busy to anything recently, but I did have a look at the old Windmill centre, and it's truly terrible and need blowing up, err sorry, sensative redevolpment.

from http://iccheshireonline.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/runcornandwidnesweeklynews/tm_headline=all-change-at-windmill-centre&method=full&objectid=18184625&siteid=50020-name_page.html

Runcorn & Widnes Weekly News
All change at Windmill centre
Nov 30 2006

EXCLUSIVE by Adrian Short, Widnes Weekly News

MAJOR plans to transform Widnes's run-down Windmill centre into a shopper's paradise are being considered by Halton planning chiefs.
*
An estimated 500 retail-related jobs could be created at the new-look site in three years time, when it is hoped the development will be up and running.
*
The developer, Stadium Widnes, has been in negotiations with Halton Borough Council and notified existing retailers including Halfords, Wilkinsons and KFC of its intentions, earlier this month.
*
The development will involve bulldozing most of the existing shops and building 12 new retail units, each with an
average size of 940 sq m.
*
Stadium is aiming to attract major high street retailers to the town in a bid to widen shoppers' choice and provide an attractive entrance to the Widnes town centre area. It believes shoppers will flock to the centre from Runcorn as well as Widnes.
*
A key feature of the proposed scheme is*a 706-space car park built on two levels, making use of natural changes in height of the site.
*
A spokesman for Stadium (Widnes) Ltd, told the Weekly News: 'This represents a big investment in Widnes and Stadium is looking forward to building a high quality, premium shopping development for Widnes and the wider Halton area. We expect it to be open in 2009.'
*
Cllr Rob Polhill, executive board member for planning and regeneration, said:
*
'At this early stage, it is clear that the scheme, which features a very high quality design, will add significantly to the range of shopping opportunities available to local people.'



Although not everyone is happy with this
http://iccheshireonline.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/messageboard/

and I quote

" IT WILL BE ANOTHER PLACE FOR ALL THE LOCAL SMACKHEADS AND SCUMBAG SHOPLIFTERS TO HANG AROUND AND ROB PEOPLE"

From Neil Davis of Halton.

And while I rememberi'll post this link to the rather important new Mersey Crossing website:

http://www.merseygateway.co.uk/

http://www.merseygateway.co.uk/html/images/mersey%20aerialnew.jpg

Proposed one at top, old one at bottom of picture.

And as I'm been too lazy/busy to take photo's heres a nice one of the Catalyst "science discovery centre"

http://www.catalyst.org.uk/graphics/jpegs/bldg%20&%20boats.jpg

Little update for you all:

before

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000072.jpg

After:

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1010183.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1000075.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a366/robinsonworld/Widnes/P1010181.jpg