TONY PORTER: My aim is to get people thinking

In summary I have lived in Wigan more than 30 years, worked at many retail outlets around the town and in the Northwest and now own and run a shop that is currently in The Galleries.

I write about my thoughts on local issues, such as the redevelopment of said Galleries, national issues including Covid-19 and international stuff like global warming.

I try and talk what I feel is common sense, many agree with my ponderings and as many do not, but the whole point is to get people thinking about issues, talking about them and maybe acting on them to make things better for all.

I am not here to make friends or suck up to those in charge, just to give my thoughts and ideas of issues that are important. Politics-wise I am a classic floating voter, I have voted for all three main parties as well as others.

In my new weekly home of the Wigan Observer I will continue pondering.

In the past few months my eye has been on the unacceptable cultural destruction by,what seems an unchallenged Wigan Council on their beyond ridiculous redevelopment plans for The Galleries, now inexplicably renamed Galleries 25.

I agree that there needs to be redevelopment of the site, I agree that part demolition is not a bad idea, but I utterly disagree with the six to eight story apartment blocks being built on the site to replace the current Market, its square and old Morrisons.

Almost every town in the land has the same issue with empty retail units and what to do with them, retail as we know it has gone, Covid-19 has accelerated what was already happening.

But to completely flatten the whole of The Galleries, not yet 40 years old, and build a cinema, madness after Covid, despite The Empire struggling as many people now prefer to stream movies and more at home, a hotel, when most of many hotels are far from capacity and a bowling alley when again the one near the half and, what looks like abandoned, redeveloped Wigan Pier is underused.

We, you, have lost so much of the heritage of Wigan already, Wigan Casino, Wigan Pier Night Club and the partial demolition of the mills near it. We have Eckersley Mill that has been redeveloped into apartments and there is a perfect building that’s screaming for redevelopment next to Mesnes Park, the old college Rylands Mill, with views of the park and in line for demolition itself, it’s ideal to redevelop. Then we could demolish from Makinsons Arcade to what is now Poundland and open up Woodcock

Square to the rear of B&Ms, demolish the lower Standishgate entrance and have independent retail bistros and micro pubs to Woodcock Square. If we need a cinema, put it in the Debenhams unit in The Grand Arcade, remodel Marketgate heavily to put the Market back where it should be, the heart of the town, overlooked by a Wigan Casino themed Food Court and more indie shops to Market Place.

We then repurpose the remaining Galleries buildings into apartments and housing. Rename the whole area Makinsons Quarter, which was the original name of redevelopment.

We would have a huge square ideal for celebrations, relaxing in, etc, as well as more compact shopping area for people to visit from out of town.

The current council plans have been dumped on us by a woman who is not from Wigan and seems intent on removing what originality it still has left and is exiting her post in October leaving us with, what I fear, will be a huge white elephant or, worse still, a town that is characterless.

In the next local elections we need change.

Do you agree with Tony? Join the debate on our facebook page or send us a letter. Email [email protected]