Glad you said this. If we didn't have TW we would lose even more life from the City. The trick for me is how best to integrate it. My plan would be to knock down Westmorland House and put the market back there (not that I remember it there). This would create the perfect link to both TW and the Ridings IMO and WH is ugly as.

I would also challenge WMDC to buy Clayton Hospital and help the College achieve University status by turning that into its landmark HQ. It can be done and would save a wonderful building and give it real value to our City once again!

Oh, and I'd build a chuffing Community Stadium! Sigh.

Completely agree with that. If the City could get University status it would do absolute wonders for the City.

Also on Trinity Walk, I think not enough thought was put into how it would effect the rest of the City . I just believe more thought could have been put into the whole thing, including like I said previously how they handled the market.

I think Trinity Walk has been a great addition to the City centre. Probably rescued Wakefield from becoming another Castleford. Can't remember the last time I went to White Rose.
Ridings is hanging on by a thread thanks to Primark, M&S, TKMaxx, Boots etc. Nice run of stores along the full length of Ings Road too.
On the negative side Kirkgate from the old ABC cinema up to the Cathedral is awful. Dregs of humanity loitering outside multiple vacant buildings.

I was under the impression that Clayton hospital was to be bought jointly by QEGS & the girls school over the road - no inside info, just what I overheard a few weeks back.

Plans have been submitted, but it involves knocking it down apart from a small section and it has received some strong objections, including from the Victorian Society.

They're now looking at putting housing in the middle of Thornes Park too on the old college site, not like that would suit a stadium putting on it insead to match up with the running track... God forbid Wakefield had a true multi-sports village close to the town centre

It is really frustrating regarding the ground for all concerned, fans, staff and directors.

It isnt as if we want or need a stadium of football capacity 12-13 thousand would suit.

A smallish, compact stadium close to the centre would be ideal. We only have to look at the LSV model to prove it works.

Agree it is beyond frustrating and lets be honest if the Council had made the Agreement more like Castleford's new Stadium, or not let them build till at least the proposed amount of square foot had been already sold, we wouldn't probably talking about this now. They screwed up and Yorkcourt walked all over them and the rest of us who got sucked into the whole scheme.

Also just read your post on the Hull KR forum but did won't to go of topic on their site.

I agree with a lot of what you say about the Leader of the Council & Stadium etc but when looking it from Castleford's perspective, apart from The Xscape there hasn't been any proper money put into it the Town in decades.
In those times we've had The Ridings, Ings Road retail park, Trinity Walk, Westgate station redeveloped and the surrounding area, plus Kirkgate station getting finally improved & a new Bus station. Whether people like the look of it or not, the Hepworth Museum has attracted plenty of visitors to the City. I like a moan about the stadium and parts of Wakefield as well but imo the only really place that seriously wants attention is the Kirkgate side.

What about "The Bridge"? Money well spent there.

A sporting village would be great at the Pugneys / Durkar.
Wakefield produces very little in the form of sports people entertainers because it doesn't provide facilities.
The city of Wakefield went for years without a swimming pool thanks to the council.only when enough or a substantial amount was raised from the car park on the site was a new one built.
Our council like many others look to take the easy way out .
If the council does not realise the benefits of providing a sporting facilitie for the public then stuff em.

Add it to the list.

Going back to the swimming pool, both me and my wife have been going to a gym throughout 2016 to keep the pounds off which is working.

Recently my wife has been suffering with knee problems which is restricting what she can do. She looked at the options of swimming in the city and the cheaper option turned out to be changing gyms and going to Total Fitness.

I don't often post much on other teams forums Shifty, but as my wife supports Hull KR, I do have a soft spot for them.

It was mainly a word of congratulations, as they have passed 5000 memberships, which I think for a club that got relegated, is quite outstanding. If only we could manage that. I follow both Michael Carter and Neil Hudgell on Twitter, and they appear to get on really well.

I mentioned the state of our ground, and the lack of effort by the council, as I dont think clubs see the full picture of other clubs plights sometimes. I know there are some cynical lot out there that think we have a poor ground and a poor fan base.

Thanks to Newmarket it has highlighted what a bunch of cretins are running Wakefield Council. Prior to getting their council seats being a trade union shop steward or on the committee of a WMC was the highlight of most of their lives.

They have now demonstrated how they have let millions of pounds slip through their grasp by not making a developer pay his dues by means of a 106. At Newmarket the community have lost a stadium and sporting facilities but it could just has easily have been a school, medical facilities etc.

New market has highlighted their incompetence because we have all got interested in its progress. However it really makes you wonder what other development schemes around Wakefield have left the public sold short. I bet there has been other 'newmarkets' that have gone before and we know very little about them.

Makes you wonder who the biggest cretins are, the councillors or the people that keep voting them in !!!

I think the problem is the no one votes them in so low is the turn out for local election - they are probably personal friend or related to most of the voters. If voting were compulsory most of these low lives would be out in a shop - either way your right as we only have ourselves to blame.

I often thought SWAG should become a single issue party at the election because I swear we have the numbers to win - worked for UKIP in the referendum.

Agree with so many comments on here about the state of BV and our once vibrant city. Walking up the precinct the other day I was staggered to see the number of boarded up shops and it was the same in the Ridings. Our council are a disgrace and I really hope lifelong Labour voters have a re think at the next local and general elections as without change I can only see Wakefield getting much worse.
Don't let me get started on Mary Creagh.......she really speaks for the people of Wakefield NOT!

It always baffles me when people raise the Hepworth to attack WMDC; there's plenty of things to criticise them for, but that isn't one of them. They didn't pay for it, and it's been one of the few positive developments in the City in recent years. It's won multiple awards, and attracted 2 million people to visit it (and the City) since it opened. I can't think of any other single attraction in Wakefield that could boast those kinds of numbers - it's an unqualified success!

Totally agree, I think it is the only addition to Wakefield that I have been proud of in many a year!

Even though the council prop it up with £1.25 million worth of taxpayers money each year?

Don't know how you manage to keep your cool with the councils lack of any support to our fine club when you know that!
One place that was busy when I was in town was the club shop, don't think you and your team could possibly do more.
I work in a school and get to see the fine work of the community team too.

The Hepworth cost the council around £20m up front and needs over £1m per year in subsidies to keep it open, that's hardly successful. The figures of 2 million people into the city are the council's own figures, it makes you wonder if they're making that figure up to cover up the failings of this massive waste of tax payers money

You have to consider the wider impact of having Hepworth in Wakey. it's not exactly my cup of tea but I've been a couple of times and it is what it is. But art types love it and it has potential to attract other similar schemes and make Wakefield a bit of a culture destination (bizarre as that sounds) Unity Hall reopening is another great addition to the city for this reason.

All it needs is for 1m visitors to spend £1 in wakefield (parking, coffee, food, other art places etc) and bam! pays for itself.

We need to make more of the yards and alley ways . They could be turned into atmospheric mini shopping and leisure areas. The vestiges of the past that remain, and were not destroyed in the short sighted 50's should be cherished. Perhaps then the people who visit the Hepworth might spend more time in the city and pass on to others what it has to offer.

I am all for that. I would start with Gallows Hill, its still sign posted so we could put it back into use. What a better way to celebrate our past than our esteemed leader to be the first to be used to test drive the site.

I think you are wrong here! Much of the funding was external, but there's was a chunk of money - mostly proceeds from the sale of LBA - that went in.

Funnily enough I was told personally by a Cabinet member that this money had been put aside and 'ring-fenced' to go towards the Thornes Park stadium venture! Now what happened there?