£9m Leicester market upgrade based on Covent Garden

[Bayfox]

 

Can't polish a turd.

No point putting up something like that with the clientele you get wandering through our city.

 

To be fair it will make the market look nice. However it will still be surrounded by grotty buildings that have been there since forever and never seen a lick of paint or a good stone wash etc in years.

The reason the Highcross bit is nice, inspite of some crappy places such as the real china place etc, Is the clean modern buildings, such as the cinema and john lewis etc.

As was suggested " would you rather live in a shit looking house with views of a palace, or live in the palace but look at the eyesore"

The fact that when you sit and have a drink around the highcross the buildings are ok to look at and it's bight makes a hell of a lot of difference, who want's to look at the back of WHSmith, Shoe Zone etc.

[davieG]

This is to replace the red brick indoor market at the back of the corn exchange not the market stalls

 

[Guest MattP]

  To be fair it will make the market look nice. However it will still be surrounded by grotty buildings that have been there since forever and never seen a lick of paint or a good stone wash etc in years.

The reason the Highcross bit is nice, inspite of some crappy places such as the real china place etc, Is the clean modern buildings, such as the cinema and john lewis etc.

 

Spot on this I think.

 

It's no use trudging to the market then when someone asks you how nice it was the reply goes along the lines of.

 

"Well the coffee and building is lovely, just a shame about all the fags and spit on the floor as you walk past the Clock Tower on the way, didn't like the top at all, nice building but there were a couple fighting outside squares and some pisshead decided to put a brick through the window of the Market Tavern, they don't serve alcohol on Fridays either whilst prayers are on at the Saddam Hussein Mosque"

 

[I am Rod Hull]

Least they have got the ethnic makeup correct on that one.

 

That pic is out of date, I cant see any Zimbabweans....

[absolutelegend]

Leicester's market is already much better than Covent Gardens - it just doesn't look anywhere near as nice!   This project should help towards that a bit, and by the look of the artwork provide some much needed space in the area.

 

At least Leicester market serves a purpose in terms of the local community - i.e. it has a good selection of food stalls, cov garden just pedals overpriced tourist tat, and provides a home to them blokes that paint themseleves gold, stand still, and expect us to throw money at them.

[Webbo]

This is to replace the red brick indoor market at the back of the corn exchange not the market stalls

 

It only opened in the 70s. How long will this next building last?

[Guest MattP]

You've got to be joking Webbo?

 

I would honestly have said that was built in the 1800's

 

This new thing will last about 10 years then before it looks like turd.

[Finnegan]

Can't polish a turd.

No point putting up something like that with the clientele you get wandering through our city.

That's a repeating cycle you have to break somewhere though, isn't it? How do you encourage a higher class of consumer to come to the city if you leave it a shit hole?

Something has to give.

Do we never both improving anything, ever? Look at the effect regeneration has had in places like Hackney. They're gradually turning England's murder capital in to white, middle class suburbia.

[Guest MattP]

That's a repeating cycle you have to break somewhere though, isn't it? How do you encourage a higher class of consumer to come to the city if you leave it a shit hole?

Something has to give.

Do we never both improving anything, ever? Look at the effect regeneration has had in places like Hackney. They're gradually turning England's murder capital in to white, middle class suburbia.

 

Not arguing that, but a thousand places need doing before the back of the market.

 

Frog Island would be a start then let's work our way in, just picking little parts inside of it for vast amounts of money will just end up leaving it a tip, you either do it properly like the High Cross or don't do it at all.

[Finnegan]

No council is going to leave it's city centre, especially a flagship "attraction" (I know its awful but they always bang on about how special it is) a shit hole and develop millions in an outlying sector.

They're obviously going to start in the middle and work out.

[James.]

Hackney is a long way from a white middle class suburb but yeah I know what you're saying.

 

Surprised though how much people appear to love new, modern buildings. I find areas like that (including High Cross) quite sterile environments full of chain restaurants, bars and shops. Much prefer wandering around places with a bit more character - old buildings, boutique shops, independent restaurants, etc.

 

In London for example I spent 5 years working in Canary Wharf. Impressive as fúck when it comes to first impressions but much prefer it now that I'm surrounded by the old, historic charm of the City. Similar with shopping centres... Westfield in Stratford is great for awhile but surely you'd prefer the winding alleys of Covent Garden or the impressive architecture of Oxford Street.

 

Anway sorry for banging on about London but the same principles apply... redeveloping the market looks a good opportunity to modernise a (sort of) famous Leicester landmark while retaining some of the area's historic appeal.

[Guest MattP]

Hackney is a long way from a white middle class suburb but yeah I know what you're saying.

 

I was going to say if it's white and middle class you have to seriously wonder why 50 Labour councillors are being returned from 56 seats and Diane Abbott is still in a job.

 

 

On the subject of Westfield I wasn't too impressed by the area at all, stayed at the Hilton Kensington while I was going to Lords over the summer and I thought the area had lost of a lot of it's charm and found it a bit dirty, did find a mental little bar though just over the roundabout, little Italian place. Loved that.

 

 

edit. Bellushis.

[davieG]

It only opened in the 70s. How long will this next building last?

Practically every thing that was built then is now an eyesore and many are falling down. Not that today's buildings are built to last many are just grey slabs.

[James.]

I was going to say if it's white and middle class you have to seriously wonder why 50 Labour councillors are being returned from 56 seats and Diane Abbott is still in a job.

 

To be fair the white, middle class that are in Hackney are liberal, Guardian-reading arts and media types so would probably vote Labour regardless!

[Guest MattP]

To be fair the white, middle class that are in Hackney are liberal, Guardian-reading arts and media types so would probably vote Labour regardless!

 

Touche.

 

Though you expect them to returning more Lib Dems than Tories.

[Stadt]

The Lanes is the nicest area in the city, in my opinion, you get past the clock tower and it's horrendous.