Letter - Time to sort out ABC
The announcement that the restoration of the Grade II-listed building, the Kirkgate Railway Station is to go ahead must be music to the ears of the people of Wakefield, especially the commuters who have to use the station, and also the people who live close by.
The same old people are claiming credit for it, but let’s be honest, the building has been falling into disrepair for over 20 years. But until three years ago when a young lady was brutally attacked nobody gave a damn. Why does it always take a lifetime or a serious incident like this to happen to someone before anything’s done?
Now, what about that other carbuncle on the face of Kirkgate, the ABC cinema? When is something going to be done about this? It’s been falling apart for over 30 years and now strapped up with safety netting. Will we be hearing the dulcet tones of Mary Creagh ringing out in the halls of Westminster championing the cause, and will Coun Box be channelling his legal threats towards the owner of the building, or will it take another serious incident like debris falling through the safety netting and injuring a pedestrian before they get the wake up call?
Why has a building of this size that has been derelict and in disrepair for over 30 years and in a prominent position been allowed to get into this state?
Brian Scriven
Charles Avenue
Agbrigg
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Wakefield
Wednesday 23 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 13 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 11 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North east
Comments
There are 1 comments to this article
Page 1 of 1
ManicManiac
Thursday, February 23, 2012 at 12:19 PMUnfortunately the whole of the Kirkgate area is slowly decaying away. Yes the council may have relaid the road surface, installed new crossings, updated the pavements and imposed bans on certain types of vehicle progressing beyond the ABC, but this does nothing to rectify what is already there. In fact it was only yesterday that a retail analyst who foretold the damage that Meadowhall would inflict on Sheffield, spoke out about how to spot decaying areas of town and city centres when discussing York and the proposed Monks Cross development. He said that research almost conclusively proved that areas of cities which were highly populated by vacant units, charity shops, pound shops, and quick-loan pawn brokers were areas that were already heavily in decline and require immediate attention before they descend beyond the point of no return. This just about mirrors Kirkgate 100%, especially when you add on the sudden appearance of eastern european food stores which have popped up from nowhere.
Page 1 of 1
Your view
Please sign in to be able to comment on this story.