Why the Ridings got rid of the food court down at the bottom and filled in the first-floor balcony I'll never know. That along with when Trinity opened a fair number of businesses went up there, has left it struggling.

As for the City , with the obvious advent of people preferring to use online stores being the biggest hit on bricks and mortar shops. Plus in Wakefield, we have places just out of the with free parking, like along Ings road where Sainsbury's is and the Ings road retails park, plus to some extent, the new one near the 41 Ind. Estate. Add all the above to some questionable decisions from the Council over the years as a whole, is maybe a reason why Kirkgate being run down as well. Which will hopefully get sorted, as they are meant to be doing it up in stages> It just needs some real investment in the old Cinema area.

The above has changed Wakefield no end from say the 80's & 90's.

Definitely agree about the Clayton site but I'm not sure where you get that about Pinderfields, where is it in decay? Stanley Royd all got converted into a housing estate (which they're still extending atm) and they built a new Pinderfields and new Eye Clinic with a huge car park on the site. There literally is no spare land or anything in decay at Pinderfields.
You can't have been in past in a fair few years WC.

That literally is one of the craziest things this lot in charge have done to this City and that's saying something. It's not like we haven't got a perfectly good Multiplex just down the road that's perfectly adequate for a City of our size.

Referring to a previous post from you there is one empty unit on Trinity Walk with another one shortly, Timpsons are relicating their shop.

There’s some good things happening to the City Centre. The way we use City centres are changing it’s becoming more leisure/shopping mix not just 9-5, the way we shop has changed and the City Centre needs to change with it. Trinity Walk is a massive success, Northgate is becoming a pleasant night out with all the restaurants and a cinema will compliment that part of town. Merchant gateway is getting there and decent bars popping up all over the City Centre. The new market Hall was a disaster and losing BHS has affected the precinct with lots of closed shops but you’ll see the same in most City/town Centres. Watching the mighty Trin at the new community stadium on Balne Lane then short walk to a nice eatery on Northgate what a perfect leisure time experience. The council has held this City back and the way they’ve handled the community stadium is disgusting but the City Centre is a lot better than it was.

Go a bit further to Bury mate they have a cracking market!

What does it say in League Weekly about stadium? Anything we didn’t know?

It more or less confirmed that Nosey Parker had been reading this forum.

No doubt about that City's like ours and lots of others have and are changing, they've had to, to move with the times or they simply get left behind. Like certain parts of ours have done to some extent.
In Wakefield, there is actually some cracking restaurants now, where at one time there was nothing really. So you're right, nowadays it's about getting the right mix of restaurants/pubs/coffee shops etc and retail outlets, that want to make people get off the internet and enjoy their City.

wonder how mc meeting with manny went today

Wakefield's shopping centre is 10miles up the road, Trinity, in Leeds!!!!

Hadn't heard he had a meeting.

I was in Exeter in Devon last Friday, a city of similar size to Wakefield. The centre was absolutely teeming. All the big name shops and stores plus hundreds of small independant outlets. Admittedly the nearest large town (Plymouth) is about 35 miles away, but to see such a thriving area makes me all the more despondent when I see what legacy we are left with in Wakefield.

I actually think that the Market site would be good for a cinema, with all the restaurants and bars around there but it will do to Cineworld what Trinity Walk has done to the Ridings. We will get a new cinema and the old one will end up being another white elephant.

That's my thought as well. We've made this sort of mistake before so why do it again. Like you say if there wasn't one it would be a good place. Then again knocking the old one down and building a new one there would be as well, seeing as it's the biggest eyesore in the City and would do a lot for that area of town. It may encourage more upmarket shops down Kirkgate as well & revitalise the area.

I don't know if it's being printed anywhere but who's funding it, because I'd be surprised if the private sector would risk the money with the Multiplex about 1/2 a mile away. That's in a free parking retail area, with every fast food place goingnext to it and a couple of 'restaurants' and it's not as if you can't fall out and be in a pub in 2 minutes.

You do look a little like victor

Forget the cinema. What about a bowling alley on the site of the old market utilising the existing cinema, more or less. Cineworld could carry on as normal and a much missed facility in Wakefield could be restored. Bowling is big business in Barnsley. No reason why it shouldn't be here.

Previous post should read "utilising the existing building.........."

New thread started with details!

Now that's not a bad idea, used to like going bowling and having a few drinks. I know quite a few have to travel to get a game in nowadays. The old one used to have 2 floors and god knows how many lanes, something smaller would do business in the town IMO.

Bowling alley with a pool hall would be good in that spot.

I think you'll find both Devon and Cornwall being similar where they have thriving cities due to the locations, we've just come back from Devon to and was 15 mins to a local town but to get to a descent shopping area took 45 mins drive so they are bound to be thriving if you want cheaper goods

Ah, but is he as miserable as his posts...

Balne Lane is not a non starter in a functional sense, far from it. All obstacles could be overcome with an committed council pushing it, it's no less feasible than BV or NM in that respect.

That however isn't the problem. The rub is that IMHO the council no more has the will to make this work than they did Thornes, NM or BV. You could give them the perfect site for free and it still wouldn't happen. Until there are big changes at WMDC nothing will happen.