NOTTINGHAM | Full Summary of Projects

[ranny fash]

Originally Posted by sherwood199

The police are planning a new station in the city...

http://www.thisisnottingham.co.uk/No...ail/story.html

If they stay on the present site perhaps they will build something to compliment the new Eon building, maybe like the new LAPD (lol)...

image hosted on flickr

You mean to complement the Royal Centre?.....yeah that looks cool, and somewhat familiar.

Tbh the current building is faceless, intimidating and generally pretty '1984' imo. If it's unfit for purpose then I guess options have to be considered. Quite poor that such a solid-looking building should be deemed unfit for purpose just 70 years after being built.....perhaps it was just never a great design practically or maybe things have moved on so far since the 1930s that a building that WAS a great design then, really is not fit for it's current use in 2012. Interesting, and a bit sad. I wonder if that's genuinely a reason why so many buildings are now built with shorter lifespans in mind what with the pace of change in society. Food for thought.

[ranny fash]

Originally Posted by Leeds No.1

So I went to Nottingham yesterday to meet up with a friend. Surprisingly good weather as BBC said it was going to rain all day!

Got off the train and I have to say the station is a little underwhelming. Also it doesn't really make sense that there's ticket barriers at the main entrance but not at the side entrance.

Anyway, I soon left the station and headed into town, which was really nice. I had no idea Nottingham was like that- reminded me somewhat of Brighton or perhaps York in a few places- but less twee. I knew Nottingham was a historic city, but I'd just assumed this had largely been forgotten or swept away. Instead I found the street pattern still intact and very nice buildings. The vast range of architecture adds to the city I think.

I think it's potentially the most 'European' feeling city I've been to in the UK. Not just the trams, but the architecture, layout of the city, Market Square- even that the traffic lights don't have those pointless white borders you get everywhere else bar London.

It seems Nottingham has really paid attention to making sure its public realm is in top condition. The Market Square is great- I love the fountains. We have some in Leeds that you can paddle in, but they never seem to be switched on.

The City Centre is all much better preserved than I'd ever imagined. The shopping centres bring it down a bit though. The Victoria Centre already seems big enough- does it really need expanding? Or at least if it is expanded, could it not be through new streets rather than an even bigger shopping centre? The redevelopment of Broadmarsh is long overdue too. I hope that gets off the ground as soon as it can.

I went down to an area that I don't really know what it is... Bound by Huntingdon Street and Southwell Road? I think near Sneinton Market Square? What happens there? It could be used a lot better.

The Lace Market is a nice area. I also had never heard of Nottingham Caves. I'd had gone earlier to go to them if I'd had known! Went to the Nottingham Contemporary- good building, and great that Nottingham has a modern art gallery, albeit small. Another tram stop near here between Lace Market and the station wouldn't go amiss!

I saw from the train a Science/Innovation(?) Park- I think part of the University? It seemed to have some interesting architecture from what I could see.

It was nice to visit a city that had a dense and well fabricated core, that didn't soon fizzle out into inner city industrial estates as you get in cities with inner ring roads. I know this happens a little bit, but nowhere near the level it does in Leeds.

I have to say, and I know you all know this already, that I feel very sorry for you all having to live on the Midland Mainline. The inefficiency of that line is shocking, and I can't believe the first station out of Nottingham (towards Leeds) is Langley Mill. Then again, I suppose you're getting two new tram lines so public transport is definitely on the up in Notts! Is it quicker to get to London via Newark? All of the East Midlands will benefit hugely from HS2 I think.

My conclusions were that Nottingham is brilliant, and should be a much bigger tourist city than it is- but it's underselling itself. I don't think it knows how much it has to offer!

Thanks yoof (Nottingham term of affection)

a)The station's a shithole, and long due a serious upgrade/electrification/increase in platforms/etc etc. A whole world of subject matter there pal! Some nice old buildings around it though, some cool little galleries and stuff, suits me as I love graf, art, and places like that. The area between the station and Broadmarsh is an entire website of discussion in itself also!

b)Well done on noticing the traffic lights! Agreed, less street clutter. Our street pattern is alright yeah, with the exception of sections decimated by Maid Marian Way and Broadmarsh. Broadmarsh doesn't need an upgrade mate, it needs blowing up and replacing with a proper old street pattern and some green spaces, and a good boulevard or 2 to incorporate through traffic and link up with the station. The station, castle, and market square areas need properly linking and all 3 need to be proper destinations in their own right. Hence Broadmarsh needs firing into the sun. Which I'm convinced will happen eventually.

c)Lace Market is great, brilliant buildings and one or 2 truly horrible 1980s ones. Too many empty units though, sad times. to have kept the old street patterns here is a victory

d)Nottingham's public realm/spaces are getting better, Market square is excellent, the new Sneinton market square is great, and I *think* there has been talk of creating another similar space somewhere around the station in fact as part of the meadows gateway development, hopefully part of the process of linking different parts of the city centre and inner city and making them much more pleasant places to be and to travel between. Firing Broadmarsh and vic centre into space imo would be a big step towards achieving this also despite that I really like Vic centre's ridiculous tower.

e)''My conclusions were that Nottingham is brilliant, and should be a much bigger tourist city than it is- but it's underselling itself. I don't think it knows how much it has to offer!''

Ha! Try telling that to people who seem obsessed by the idea of 'increasing Nottingham's retail capacity'. It's clear to anyone with functioning senses and a brain that we don't need more retail at the moment! What we need are jobs, enterprises, innovative....er..ness(can't quite figure out how to word it), and ways of making the city an even more pleasant place to live in. That way when the market for retail returns (of IF it does, what with world finances), there will actually be pleasant places for it to manifest itself in, people will WANT to open a shop in a good area of town.

My point here is Nottingham has long sold itself as a 'retail destination' above anything else, which is a flaky strategy at best. What does that say about Nottingham? That we can offer nothing but shops? That is actually what it says to visitors even if it isn't what was meant. Anyway we're in a bloody financial mess in general so promoting more retail when nobody has money seems alarmingly stupid. We need to encourage graduates to STAY in Notts once they graduate by giving them opportunities, and to get local people more ambitious and educated. This is the ultimate folly of how Nottingham has promoted itself over the years...local people are encouraged to be proud of little other than offering retail to each other and going shopping. Thus enterprise and ambition are stunted.

I'm lucky to be involved in the local music/clubbing/art scene, all of which are fantastic and full of obsessed passionate people, mostly with no money at all. This is one area Nottingham could really excel at and sell itself on. The science park you mentioned is one step in the right direction, but a lot of the units are empty...i suspect because of the aforementioned apathy among many locals to such things and the unwillingness of most graduates to stay.

F) Funny you should mention Sneinton Market/Huntingdon St/Southwell Rd. I volunteer at an art gallery in that area and the only reason the building we occupy is still standing is that the council haven't got the money to knock it down and redevelop yet. In fact the only reason we can afford the place is the rent is so cheap because it's definitely gonna be knocked down at some point so the council are happy to rent it out to whoever for the time being.

Basically the whole area is and has been part of a huge redevelopment plan (Eastside) for a very long time. Sneinton Market Square, the arena, and some massive blocks of flats and student halls have been the sum of work done there thus far. But most of that large area is for the chop including our block. I seriously hope this will involve some intelligent realignment of streets, particularly London Road, Canal St, and how they interact with other main thoroughfares.

g) You may or may not have noticed we have 2 big cliffs in the city centre! Of course over time idiotic developments have hidden them from the public's view and considerably drabbed down (real word?) the public realm of the city in doing so. Broadmarsh is the principal villain here as it is built over one. Our castle is on a cracking cliff, which has had a shoddy excuse for a college building plonked in front of it when it should be a large public space that draws people in and helps provide reference and interconnection in the city centre. But the Canal St area could be so much better if further developments and planning acknowledged the cliff beside it! It should be beautiful and should bring a real interesting quality to the city and neighbourhood.

h) Transport. Rail connections here are extensive but slow. It sometimes takes 3(!) hours to get to Manchester, although usually more like 2, which is still absurd. We don't have enough suburban rail stations....I've heard mentions of possibly using tram/trains which utilise mainlines and also newly built suburban light rail sections, these would serve suburban/commuter areas a good distance out of town such as Ilkeston and Bingham and improve interconnection. Sounds good in principal. The 2 new tram lines will improve travel in cetain areas of town dramatically, and I say this through gritted teeth as my parents' house (where I lodge for the time being as I am poor like everyone else I know) has had a massive chunk of back yard hacked off to make way. Far from being a nimby I approve of the network strongly but this was actually heartbraking and those who can't see it from this point of view are lucky.

Financial issues aside, I can see numerous further lines being built as there are many areas of town which suffer from dreadful traffic, the city is well known for bad traffic hence maybe why it got more support for the trams than Leeds did.

It is sometimes quicker to get to London by crossing to Grantham and getting the ECML to King's Cross.

Buses are great here! 24 hour buses. Spot on!

[Leeds No.1]

I don't see retail as necessarily a bad thing- some cities do it well and should continue to do that, like Leeds.

Firstly, I didn't get the impression that retail in Nottingham was particularly bad. Some improvements would be welcome as always, but it seemed to offer everything you'd want on an average shopping day out. I suppose if you wanted a big shopping day out it's not too far to Birmingham?

However, Nottingham reminded me more of York than Leeds. A city that should be trying to do something else rather than dominate retail. Nottingham could be a great tourist city. It has the landmark buildings, the quaint street patterns and market squares, as well as unique attractions like the Caves. I had no idea these existed until I saw signs for them in Broadmarsh! It's also got the Robin Hood reputation to play on- look how much Liverpool milks The Beatles to attract people! Like it or not, the first reaction I get when I say to people up here that 'I went to Nottingham' is 'Shottingham?'.

Of course that's not fair, but equally the city leaders in Nottingham probably need to be doing a bit more proactively to change the perception of the city.

[ranny fash]

Hey man, I edited my post a lot while you were writing that!

And people still say Shottingham? LOL!

[ranny fash]

Retail isn't a bad thing, it's just lunacy to overpromote it in such a shallow manner and then continue to argue we need MORE when nothing could be more inappropriate, as explained previously!

To be fair, I honestly think that the image of the place to outsiders is a lower priority than simply making the place better for us who live here or study here right now. The council and any other authorities, don't have the money for that kind of thing. Make a place function properly and help people work, contribute, and smile, and the image of the place will improve regardless. Sincerity.

[Ranwolf]

I'm really surprised how little Nottingham makes of all the former stately homes in or just outside the city. Surely a tourist draw if people knew about them and marketed them correctly. I'm not a Nottingham native and nor are many of my friends who have moved here from abroad but many of us are amazed by places like Wollaton, Newstead, and even the castle for all the stick it gets, its really impressive and the caves there are great even if its not what people are expecting. Other than that, it has a good street pattern, a few nice buildings, 2 cliffs, and a couple of rivers too.

Away from architecture and geography, the city has many film links, and an even better literary history to draw upon if sold correctly. You'd think theres something marketable in all this?

Another thing my friends have enjoyed is the local film, arts, music, and party scene heh.

[Skipping_Pig]

I think it's obvious that Nottingham is pretty bad when it comes to offering tourists things to do. We aren't bad at doing the one-off events in the square etc. but the day-to-day offering is somewhat lacking.

Say what you like about 'The Tails of Robin Hood' but I think the city centre really needs an attraction like this - it's expected. I'm sure most tourists are surprised when they find virtually no reference to the legend when they visit. Call me old fashioned, but when on holiday I like to do something more edifying than trundle around shops. Our attitude seems to be; 'There's the number 9 bus to Sherwood Forest, there's a visitors centre or something there - good luck.'

I'm sure most cities would die to have such a marketable asset - but the powers that be here seem to think we're so great that we don't need it. I don't see why it has to be an 'either/or' situation. Could you imagine visiting Stratford to be greeted by a single statue of Shakespeare and a few pigeon-crap stained information panels?

[RedArmy]

I think the Council's argument is that the Tales of Robin Hood was losing money at a rapid pace of knots, so whilst everyone agrees that optimising the RH Legend is an absolute neccessity no-one can quite agree on how to use it in a profitable (and that's key) and productive fashion.

Tales of Robin Hood was horribly dated by the time the plug was pulled and, as far as I'm aware, visitor numbers were not high so simply slapping 'Robin Hood' on a tourist attraction isn't the answer - when entertainment standards have risen so high, whatever is put in place needs to be genuinely exciting and be capable of attracting visitors on its own merit.

[Ranwolf]

To be fair it's not that there arnt things to see, it's that visitors are given no push in any direction of what there is or why something would be enjoyable or significant, and when you do visit, many of the attractions don't have the facilities expected. Of course a real tourist trap style attraction is needed in addition to real historic sites too.

I am a little surprised more isn't made of the literary links with Byron, Sillitoe, J. M. Barrie, Lawrence, Robert Harris, and more. Surely other cities would milk it for all its worth?

On a similiar subject, I assume everyone is aware of the new BBC2 drama Murder directed by Killing Director Birger Larsen. Its filmed here, though whether something called Murder can help our tourism I'm not sure haha.

Here is the original interview http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/ju...rime-thrillers
However I see most other papers have just reprinted the line about Nottingham having an air of hostility, and the Sun is particularly keen the stoke the flames of apparent fury we all feel.

[Leeds No.1]

A modern Robin Hood attraction should be built in Nottingham. Capitalise on it- there's nothing to lose!

It's just a case of selling what you already have better. As I said, I had never heard of Nottingham Caves before, but how many more tourists could that attract if publicised better?!

Originally Posted by ranny fash

To be fair, I honestly think that the image of the place to outsiders is a lower priority than simply making the place better for us who live here or study here right now. The council and any other authorities, don't have the money for that kind of thing. Make a place function properly and help people work, contribute, and smile, and the image of the place will improve regardless. Sincerity.

I think you need a balance. For most of the boom, Leeds was concerned with making it a good city to live and work in- and it did this very successfully. But while a functional city, it lacked the soul and culture that on paper isn't important, but in our everyday lives as interesting humans, is crucial! A routine of work, sleep, work, sleep just isn't enough to satisfy us. And so now Leeds is building the Arena and starting to get the cultural scene sorted again.

If there's a vibrant cultural scene, it will not just attract in tourists and thus business, but it will help the residents of the city feel more engaged with the city as a community rather than just a machine for shopping and working.

[ranny fash]

Originally Posted by Leeds No.1

A modern Robin Hood attraction should be built in Nottingham. Capitalise on it- there's nothing to lose!

It's just a case of selling what you already have better. As I said, I had never heard of Nottingham Caves before, but how many more tourists could that attract if publicised better?!




I think you need a balance. For most of the boom, Leeds was concerned with making it a good city to live and work in- and it did this very successfully. But while a functional city, it lacked the soul and culture that on paper isn't important, but in our everyday lives as interesting humans, is crucial! A routine of work, sleep, work, sleep just isn't enough to satisfy us. And so now Leeds is building the Arena and starting to get the cultural scene sorted again.

If there's a vibrant cultural scene, it will not just attract in tourists and thus business, but it will help the residents of the city feel more engaged with the city as a community rather than just a machine for shopping and working.

Fair enough, yeah you need to balance these things. I don't think Nottingham lacks culture in certain areas (although it's not London), but yeah there certainly isn't much to instantly grab tourists....you have to be here a while to get a sense of the music and art scene I think. But beyond music, clubbing etc which we are an a real localised boom of right now, I agree, we have maybe less here than say Sheffield or Bristol.

To be fair, i've never been in the caves! Yes we should make more of Robin Hood but how? That's the question...we don't want to do something tacky and crap while we're waiting for a large area of urban redevelopment to be done, when we could wait and then incorporate some quality new feature into an improved urban fabric, so to speak. But then, that could take forever...especially when as I previously mentioned, the biggest redevelopment of all has had to be put on hold indefinitely because nobody has the money right now.

We could definitely do with more tourists, no question though.. both national and international...we do seem to limit ourselves here to just catering for the rich students from down south! We need to offer more than that!

[Karate_Kev]

interesting reading. I always thought Leeds and Notts were pretty similar cities really.

the area between Broadmarsh and the station (with the exception of the lovely Canal area) is a fooking disgrace!

Someone mentioned being innovative. This is a really important point. I went on a visit to Birmingham recently, and it really is light years ahead of Notts. The market is fantastic, both for food and goods. In the bullring, it's got the usual drab chain stores but it also has hundreds of little business's setting up everywhere selling niche products. This is the future I'd like to see in Notts. We are light years behind at the moment.

If often wonder what impression sporting visitors get when they come to Notts. The transit between the station and Trent bridge is pretty ugly. There also needs to be a NET extension to Trent Bridge and the City ground, preferrably via Meadow lane. It's a disgrace in my view that our sporting facilities are not connected to the railway station by metro. It wouldn't be difficult to do either.

[iamtheSTIG]

Nottingham appears to be on the banner at the top!

[Stefan88]

Market Square riviera was absolutely packed last week. I had a pretty good vantage point. Click to view video.

[sherwood199]

Good news, a building of this quality deserves to be fully let...

http://www.thisisnottingham.co.uk/TD...ail/story.html

[sheffy84]

Has anyone else spotted these plans for Beeston town centre? Not sure how old they are...

http://www.thesquare-beeston.co.uk/

[sherwood199]

first time I've seen these, quite impressed and good to see a Costa in Beeston.

[sparkrs]

There was a Job advertised not long ago about a Costa opening in Ilkeston. Does anyone know anymore?

[Skipping_Pig]

Ooh good. Another chain coffee shop - just what the world needs.

[Trent Student]

Originally Posted by sheffy84

Has anyone else spotted these plans for Beeston town centre? Not sure how old they are...

http://www.thesquare-beeston.co.uk/

Good find, I for one have certainly not come across this before.