The state of the City centre

Status
Not open for further replies.

Hbk69

Winger
An absolute disgrace and demoralising to walk through. What the hell is going on? It hasn't had any investment in decades, bars and pubs look minging, dreadful shops that look shabby as fuck or empty. It was far from great 20 years ago but light-years ahead of what it is now.

Who on earth outside of the area will want to come and support us if they have the wonders of Sunderland city centre pre match. It needs sorting ASAP.
 


An absolute disgrace and demoralising to walk through. What the hell is going on? It hasn't had any investment in decades, bars and pubs look minging, dreadful shops that look shabby as fuck or empty. It was far from great 20 years ago but light-years ahead of what it is now.

Who on earth outside of the area will want to come and support us if they have the wonders of Sunderland city centre pre match. It needs sorting ASAP.
Rightyo
 
Eh?

Did you miss Keel Square with the fountains and ships wheel sculpture? Did you miss the improved paving and street furniture in High Street West? Did you miss the ongoing renovations around the old fire station? Did you miss the new building currently under construction on the Vaux site? Did you actually go to Sunderland?
 
Eh?

Did you miss Keel Square with the fountains and ships wheel sculpture? Did you miss the improved paving and street furniture in High Street West? Did you miss the ongoing renovations around the old fire station? Did you miss the new building currently under construction on the Vaux site? Did you actually go to Sunderland?

Buildings are nice and I'm pleased that somewhere that isn't Gateshead is getting some kind of arty investment, but people come for shops and I can't say I've ever had any need to go to Sunderland shopping.

Newcastle or the Metro aye, not Sunderland.

That seems to be the OP's point - no decent shops or bars or owt.

Mind you I'm happy with cheap food and chain places so I'm part of the problem and not the solution.
 
Eh?

Did you miss Keel Square with the fountains and ships wheel sculpture? Did you miss the improved paving and street furniture in High Street West? Did you miss the ongoing renovations around the old fire station? Did you miss the new building currently under construction on the Vaux site? Did you actually go to Sunderland?
Haway man it's an absolute shit tip our city centre. Minging and depressing place it is.
 
An absolute disgrace and demoralising to walk through. What the hell is going on? It hasn't had any investment in decades, bars and pubs look minging, dreadful shops that look shabby as fuck or empty. It was far from great 20 years ago but light-years ahead of what it is now.

Who on earth outside of the area will want to come and support us if they have the wonders of Sunderland city centre pre match. It needs sorting ASAP.

It's not the city centre to blame, it's the state of most of the people who shuffle round it! Miserable, overweight, callow, unkempt....etc
 
An absolute disgrace and demoralising to walk through. What the hell is going on? It hasn't had any investment in decades, bars and pubs look minging, dreadful shops that look shabby as fuck or empty. It was far from great 20 years ago but light-years ahead of what it is now.

Who on earth outside of the area will want to come and support us if they have the wonders of Sunderland city centre pre match. It needs sorting ASAP.

I know.........love Sunderland but the city centre has been neglected. They really should have located more office jobs in the city centre rather than the periphery. More people living AND working in the city centre needs to be the goal......No retention of cash from workers at doxford or rainton bridge. They're more likely to jump in their cars to go home and spend money in other city centres. Also the economy of the city centre is primarily retail......more people shop online, so they need to diversify what the city centre offers
I do think they are trying to rectify this with the vaux site and siglion but it's going to take time. Love them or loathe them the new student accommodation might help also.
 
Buildings are nice and I'm pleased that somewhere that isn't Gateshead is getting some kind of arty investment, but people come for shops and I can't say I've ever had any need to go to Sunderland shopping.

Newcastle or the Metro aye, not Sunderland.

That seems to be the OP's point - no decent shops or bars or owt.

Mind you I'm happy with cheap food and chain places so I'm part of the problem and not the solution.
There's plenty of decent bars and shops would open if there was a demand.
Out of interest, what items do you wish to buy that you need to travel to the Metrocentre to get?
I tend to buy most of my stuff from the internet so I maybe don't notice this struggle you are having but I suspect that most stuff that you can get in the Metrocentre, you can get in Sunderland.

As always with these threads, people will see what they want to see. If you want to see the good, you will, if you want to see the bad, it is also there.
Sunderland is far from perfect but the OP is misleading to say the least. No investment in decades, light years better twenty years ago etc.
 
Personally I'd knock half it down and make it residential, could easily house 20k people in a variety of good quality flats and town houses. Supports the desire to attract a bigger level of job to the area and it also then means there is constantly people in and around town. Resulting in huge amounts of spend and the the left over shops, bars and restaurants etc having a constant stream of customers attracting even further investment. Sunderland future is its coastline, it will never be a Newcastle or a Durham therefore it needs to be something different. The investment in seaburn / Roker is great and we need to build on that. The city centre is NOT the future of Sunderland but it could be a fantastic city centre if we think differently.
 
Whenever I'm back I have a wander around town to see if owts change, The Bridges is a depressing place. The people pottering about in there don't look well.

This is the one thing I want demolishing. The place is like a scene from a zombie film.

Fill up the empty spaces in the more desirable parts of town with the stores inside the bridges then create some new plans for the plot of land this would leave.

Easier said than done I realise.
 
City of culture :cool:

As @RestlessNatives pointed out the other day, "City of Culture" is not based on existing culture, it is about developing and articulating culture within the city and bringing in investment so that it can develop into a "city of culture", it's about potential.

Otherwise, we might as well give that award to Manchester/Leeds/London every period, but that's not the case is it? Rather all of the bidders are cities like ours, hoping to develop their cultural foundations to obtain investment.

I am tired of people putting down Sunderland as a city, I am well aware of its flaws, difficulties and painful history, but the only way forward is to end this attitude of negativity, pessimism and self-shame because honestly it does us no good.

Right now we are experiencing one of the biggest sprees of development and investment in the city's recent history. I have never seen things change as much in my lifetime, yet people are still not satisfied, despite:
  • A new bridge
  • The Vaux Site getting done (The Crown jewel of council criticism is finally being sorted!)
  • A new music and arts centre
  • the fire station redevelopment
  • the beacon of light
  • The joplings site to be converted
  • The new Tombola HQ getting built
  • new accomodation and restaurants down by the riverside
  • The new college next to park lane
  • All the regeneration of the seafront so far
  • Even more regeneration of Seaburn planned
This is the Sunderland Renaissance, stop putting our city down!
 
An absolute disgrace and demoralising to walk through. What the hell is going on? It hasn't had any investment in decades, bars and pubs look minging, dreadful shops that look shabby as fuck or empty. It was far from great 20 years ago but light-years ahead of what it is now.

Who on earth outside of the area will want to come and support us if they have the wonders of Sunderland city centre pre match. It needs sorting ASAP.
It's ideal for a pre/post match drink. Dunno why more away fans don't utilise it.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Back
Top