Let's change Cheltenham, say Echo readers
The Cheltenham of the future could be a radically different place if the visions of its residents become a reality.
Some want greater pedestrianisation, others want more nightclubs, while some would like to see it become more European.
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Others are concerned about maintaining or improving the town's architecture and those of a green nature will be glad to see that several want more facilities for recycling.
The comments come the day after the Echo launched a major debate on the future of the town to keep it vibrant and prosperous.
Today we get the views of Edward Gillespie, managing director of Cheltenham racecourse.
He has the radical vision of getting rid of the Long Gardens in front of the Regency municipal buildings in the Promenade, calling them "a dreary strip of grass and floral formality".
He wants to remove them to make way for a public space to allow people to sit, chat and, as he puts it, "debate and gyrate", evoking images of Barcelona and Alicante.
Conservative party prospective parliamentary candidate Mark Coote, who hopes one day to represent the town in Parliament, wants Cheltenham to be bolder as it approaches its future.
He says we should think about getting a 21st century concert hall, because the town's festivals are outgrowing the facilities available.
He adds: "Why not a conference town too, encouraging some of the great annual gatherings here?
"This would help us demand better rail links to London and infrastructure improvements in the town."
Visitors to our website also had their say.
ZP said: "Try and keep Cheltenham a place that's nice to visit and spend time in. Maybe extend the park and ride schemes and pedestrianise the entire centre?"
Restricting traffic and pedestrianising the town centre was a popular theme but one message- poster said it would discourage the elderly or those with heavy shopping from ever coming into the town centre.
Plenty of people said they wanted more to do in town at night, family facilities like an ice rink were suggested and others wanted nightclubs for the over-25s.
Alf Hart had similar aspirations to Mr Gillespie, to import a little continental chic.
He said: "Open shops and pavement cafes at night. People complain that town is full of drunks at night but what do you expect if that all that are open are bars and pubs?
"I am not complaining about the bars but let's mix it up a bit, as happens in the rest of Europe."
6 Comments
by thrillrider, Cheltenham
Thursday, November 13 2008, 1:44PM
“THeme park, theme park, theme park!!!!!”
by Fuller, Cheltenham
Wednesday, November 12 2008, 11:30AM
“Tell the council to get out a dig up the enormous weeds growing around the central reservations around the town and by the roundabout at the top of Montpellier - it is a disgrace and makes the town look uncared for !!”
by DG, Cheltenham
Wednesday, November 12 2008, 11:14AM
“Get a Police force that polices and does not go in for showy pointless exercises like scanning students for knives, rather than rounding up and searching the yobs on that hang around housing estate and other streets and searching them!
Stop cars and motorcycles/scooters using pedestrian areas as a short cut-even in broad daylight and other blatant law breaking by a visible police presence in the town AT ALL TIMES-not just as another self-congratulatory and very limited exercise.”
by Paul, Cheltenham
Wednesday, November 12 2008, 10:41AM
“"Few European towns and cities are as filthy as ours in the UK"
I remember a few years ago visting Dieppe, nice town, apart from having to tip-toe around the dog muck that no French dog owner seemed to want to pick up!
And don't get me started on the toilets.....”
by jonas samuel, cheltenham
Wednesday, November 12 2008, 9:27AM
“dear sir,after the council vandalised and knocked our beloved coach down,in its place we the people would like a fully functional coach station to serve the cotswold,and increase tourism for all.”
by Neil, Cheltenham
Wednesday, November 12 2008, 8:35AM
“Like others I would prefer to see Cheltenham become more "European", but to do so would require a huge clean up of unsightly litter and filthy pavements. Few European towns and cities are as filthy as ours in the UK. Mainly due to the fact that each day every householder or shopkeeper cleans up the bit of pavement outside their premises. Generally speaking people in Europe have far more civic pride and do not drop litter in the first place. One reason for that is that litter laws are enforced. The end result is that most European towns, at least in France, Germany, Holland, Italy and Belgium (particularly Belgium), are spotlessly clean and a delight to visit. The same cannot be said of Cheltenham's High Street where one is sometimes ankle deep in litter and filthy remnants of take-away food which has been thrown down in the street.”