Glasgow | East End | News & Developments

[Gap74]

Well this report of a dangerous building being torn down there at the moment says it's owned by the Council (not the same one as the unsafe Bridgeton tenement) - not sure who owns the actual market halls, is it still the McIver family in some way?

http://news.stv.tv/scotland/west-cen...ket-demolished

[Squirrelking]

Originally Posted by Glasgow 2097

I don't know who owns and operates the markets these days. In recent years, I got the feeling from speaking to folk down there that many traders really didn't give much of a toss any more, and were just waiting for The End.

Pretty sad really, The Barras could be Glasgows answer to Camden Locks if someone just put the necessary investment in.

[Glasgow 2097]

Normally I hate the "Glasgow's answer to..." talk, but I think this is genuinely a case where we need to look to other cities with much better markets and see what we can do to emulate their success.

As the continuing emptiness of Shipbank Lane shows, the Council's original plans to sweep the traditional traders into the Clyde and create nice, touristy markets more in keeping with the "new" Glasgow are a bridge too far. I'm just wondering what the latest regeneration plans are - if any exist at all.

[Sweet Zombie Jesus]

I reckon any regeneration of the markets themselves would have to go hand in hand with development of the surrounding area, in particular a higher density of residents, and growth of the arts and creative industries. Although the latter are doing well at opening new studio spaces in the nearby south-east of the Merchant City, the Barras still sits next to waste ground, and largely underused land. The housing to the east of Bain Street is pretty much suburban! The nearby community have little use for the market as it is (and even less so in the future I reckon with Morrisons opening nearby) and despite the wierd fascination I have for the place as it is, it's in dire need of a change of direction. Embrace/encourage high density development all around the market, and within the Barras set up more studios, offices and workshops. Creative types to make shit, and inner-city dwellers to buy that shit, keeps the place going at least at a basic level and from there you can build up something more fantastic people will be willing to travel to in due time

[RapidTaco]

Originally Posted by Sweet Zombie Jesus

I reckon any regeneration of the markets themselves would have to go hand in hand with development of the surrounding area, in particular a higher density of residents, and growth of the arts and creative industries. Although the latter are doing well at opening new studio spaces in the nearby south-east of the Merchant City, the Barras still sits next to waste ground, and largely underused land. The housing to the east of Bain Street is pretty much suburban! The nearby community have little use for the market as it is (and even less so in the future I reckon with Morrisons opening nearby) and despite the wierd fascination I have for the place as it is, it's in dire need of a change of direction. Embrace/encourage high density development all around the market, and within the Barras set up more studios, offices and workshops. Creative types to make shit, and inner-city dwellers to buy that shit, keeps the place going at least at a basic level and from there you can build up something more fantastic people will be willing to travel to in due time

Apparently a load of traders now prefer The Forge Market out at Parkhead. It certainly is warmer and cleaner than The Barras and I'm guessing that The Forge Shopping Centre / Retail Park will attract the East End crowd to that area moreso than The Barras will nowadays? I've only been to the Forge Market once but it was very busy. Tesco's is also out there now so unless a change of direction happens at The Barras, I'm not sure what the score will be.

[gmacruyff]

The journey along London road,from the high street,towards the Green,has the potential to be one of the most spectacular walks in Glasgow.
Glasgow green(eyecatching views across to the Gorbals),Peoples Palace,the fountain,the fantastic templeton building,the River Clyde,luxury flats etc.
If you demolish all the "scabby wee shoaps"in the area,leave the cathedral.demolish the barras etc,then the whole area will look a lot better.
I think the "Barras" just puts people off and i would be delighted to see the back of it.

[Ultima]

Originally Posted by gmacruyff

The journey along London road,from the high street,towards the Green,has the potential to be one of the most spectacular walks in Glasgow.
Glasgow green(eyecatching views across to the Gorbals),Peoples Palace,the fountain,the fantastic templeton building,the River Clyde,luxury flats etc.
If you demolish all the "scabby wee shoaps"in the area,leave the cathedral.demolish the barras etc,then the whole area will look a lot better.
I think the "Barras" just puts people off and i would be delighted to see the back of it.

Yeah, I agree completely. A lot of shite here which would need demolished to make the area walkable to most people. Saying that, you would be tearing away peoples local pubs and shops. Surely hard to justify? I wouldn't shed a tear for the Barras, it's been worthless for almost a decade. I haven't been back in 5 years when my friend was shockingly racially abused there. The place is an embarrassment.

[gmacruyff]

Ultima!.The bit around Greendyke street and Monteith row,is another mismanaged shambles.People use it as a car park and the Billboard advertising and unmaintained bushes,long grass a daft wee building with a wall round it(anybody know what this is).
Open up this garbadge and build a boulevard from the green to London road and you have a tourist hotspot.!

p.s.In tonights evening times,you see the improvement in the area-(south block complex and the Briggit) etc,so a bit of work is being done in the area,but it could be a lot better(look at the transformation on the south side of Glasgow green,with the new road coming off the M74 and the demolition of Dalmarnock etc)

[RapidTaco]

Originally Posted by gmacruyff

Ultima!.The bit around Greendyke street and Monteith row,is another mismanaged shambles.People use it as a car park and the Billboard advertising and unmaintained bushes,long grass a daft wee building with a wall round it(anybody know what this is).
Open up this garbadge and build a boulevard from the green to London road and you have a tourist hotspot.!

p.s.In tonights evening times,you see the improvement in the area-(south block complex and the Briggit) etc,so a bit of work is being done in the area,but it could be a lot better(look at the transformation on the south side of Glasgow green,with the new road coming off the M74 and the demolition of Dalmarnock etc)

I think we'll see some movement in the area you talk of soon. Its en route for the CG areas and I've noted that a couple of scabby wee derelict buildings have bitten the dust on London Road opposite the church of late. We might even see some fires

[Glasgow 2097]

Originally Posted by RapidTaco

I think we'll see some movement in the area you talk of soon. Its en route for the CG areas and I've noted that a couple of scabby wee derelict buildings have bitten the dust on London Road opposite the church of late. We might even see some fires

Hopefully this Bain Street beauty doesn't suffer a "mysterious fire".

http://www.buildingsatrisk.org.uk/BA...age=4&NumImg=5

Have a look at the south/east elevations photo from October 2010, and imagine how dramatic that entrance would be if the markets were actually worth visiting.

[gmacruyff]

Rapidtaco.!Thanks for that positive feedback.The quicker,they change things,the better.!

[Due East]

This is a good discussion!

There is enormous potential down here and a lot of buildings (like the one Glasgow 2097 pointed out) that are real diamonds in the rough.

Ultima, i agree the Barras is finished in its current incarnation. The people there now are not the mostly good people who were there 10/15 years ago. There is no excusing the criminality that goes on there and my last trip hunting for records and old instruments was spent dodging zombified junkies and neds. Any sentimentality i had for it as a piece of Glasgow history has evaporated.

My suggestion, clear the place out, refurbish it and designate it a special enterprise zone that allows the creative industries to cluster and operate. For example fashion, music, film, art, design, literature would all have retail space for whatever they offer - throw in Scottish produce too (farmers market type idea) and you have a MAJOR retail draw that adds to the increasingly homogenous Glasgow retail offering. The benefit of this, it allows all of these sectors to thrive without the prohibitive costs of trading found all across the city and the best, most innovative ideas will grow into bigger businesses and employers. Fopp started off as a market stall after all!

Think of all the jobs and practical experience young entrepreneurs would be able get. They would also spruce the place up and it would start looking like Camden Market or Kensington Market in Toronto.

Perhaps this is unfair on the people who are already there, but, lets face it they are dying a slow death. Better to pull the plaster off fast and start the recovery.

[Due East]

Incidentally, I heard off someone recently that Che Camille (who had great plans for the Barras - and who was more capable of most than pulling them off) had to pull out because of a lack of support from GCC or any of the other applicable bodies.

They either have an agenda or they are incompetent.

Probably the latter.

[gmacruyff]

The only thing i like about the area is the big overhead structures that say "The Barras".Keep this for nostalga reasons and the tourist side of things.Why not put up a similar structure saying "Glasgow Green" at the entrance walk.(It will make the public take notice that there is a fantastic park,5 mins from the Merchant city).

[gme]

Originally Posted by gmacruyff

Ultima!.The bit around Greendyke street and Monteith row,is another mismanaged shambles.People use it as a car park and the Billboard advertising and unmaintained bushes,long grass a daft wee building with a wall round it(anybody know what this is).
Open up this garbadge and build a boulevard from the green to London road and you have a tourist hotspot.!

I'd never really thought about it before, but you're on to something there. The wee patch of land/car park bounded by Greendyke Street and Charlotte Street could be a fantastic public space and a centrepiece to a revamped Barras area if redeveloped well. Stick in some nice paving, some trees and grass, maybe an iconic bit of large-scale art and it wouldn't all feel so disjointed and 'wasteland' ish.

[Glasgow 2097]

Originally Posted by Due East

Incidentally, I heard off someone recently that Che Camille (who had great plans for the Barras - and who was more capable of most than pulling them off) had to pull out because of a lack of support from GCC or any of the other applicable bodies.

They either have an agenda or they are incompetent.

Probably the latter.

Many Barras traders think that the Council's agenda is to sit back and watch the criminals take over, then use the rising crime rate as a pretext to pull the plug entirely. The closure of Paddy's Market was seen, rightly or wrongly, as the trial run of that strategy. In the wake of the Paddy's closure there was a mini-exodus of Barras traders to The Forge, as has been mentioned, but also to Blochairn.

Other information emanating from the Council over the years suggests that they have long sought to gentrify The Barras rather than shut it down. If that's the case, Che Camille should have been given all the support they needed. It's baffling that they were left dangling on the vine when they're exactly the sort of people the Council have indicated they want to take the market forward.

With London Road and the Gallowgate likely to be key pedestrian routes for the Commonwealth Games, a prime opportunity was there to regenerate the Barras as part of the Games Legacy. That would have been something that even the most hardened opponent of the Games would have bought into readily. Realistically, though, if that opportunity was going to be seized then plans needed to be on the table several years ago.

[Glasgow 2097]

I've just found what might be the official website of The Barras, as it's far more up-to-date than the other one that doesn't appear to have been updated since the early days of FrontPage Express. The Noticeboard contains some recent regeneration tit-bits.

http://www.theglasgowbarras.com/

[Ultima]

Originally Posted by Glasgow 2097

I've just found what might be the official website of The Barras, as it's far more up-to-date than the other one that doesn't appear to have been updated since the early days of FrontPage Express. The Noticeboard contains some recent regeneration tit-bits.

http://www.theglasgowbarras.com/

That's cool someone is updating it to this day. I concur with the general sentiment that the Barras is definitely going to go soon. It doesn't fit in with the current vision. It's also rife with criminality but as he been suggested, what better way to get rid of it? This general area has a lot of potential but its so run down at the moment. I know south of the river is the general area of focus for GCC at the moment but this place needs something done to it before the games in 2014.

[marzepans]

That tenement block on London Road just West of Bridgeton cross is a cert for demolition. I passed the other day and the diagonal cracks through the sandstone blocks on the first floor are huge. Some of the stone work looks to have settled more than 20 degrees.

[gmacruyff]

Has anybody any info on a demolition in front of the high rise flats(Camlachie).Is the old building being demolished.?