University of Bradford Stadium

Students having parties.

 

Looks like you're in the wrong game, scrap the car wash and start selling fireworks you will make another killing.

 

Not sure if I could work with 2 out of your 3 mate sorry, because of that I'm out.

 

The fact is Keefly, others have tried but sadly there is no energy in the Local Authority and hasn't been for at leat 20 years. Bradford Council is ingrained with average to poor across the spectrum. In November 2008 my Company hosted a business breakfast meeting at our HQ. Well attended at our Award winning building and I was one of 3 speakers. At the end the Chair asked each of us where we saw our business and the City in 10 years time. The first 2 were gushing, do this that and the other. I said in all my career dealings with each of the Home Governments, tens of Local Authorities and Local and Regional Governments abroad, Bradford was bottom of the pile. Inept Politicians and below average Officers, unless there was drastic change the City would go nowhere, I think I was right looking now. During tea one senior Politician told me I was right.
All political colours have missed the boat. I sat on a group in 2009 which had a scheme to link the two stations, drawn by an International firm of Engineers, it worked if Broadway was moved slightly but no, BMDC love affair with Westfield overuled, then the scheme got reduced in size too late, now they are obsessed with a station on the site of an earlier failure due to being too far out of town.
I was responsible for drawing up a scheme to redevlope the area from Hamm Strasse to the bottom of Kirkgate Market which combined all the markets under one roof (for food) and the household went into the market section of Kirkgate with John Street (Oastler) becoming a new store site for us. Total cost of build only at mid 90s costs £35 million all from my Company. Rubbished as too ambitious, in other words can't be bothered.
Don't get me started on Richard Dunn and the crazy ideas for that, tabled to me in 2017 which I said wouldn't work, no market for takers, etc. but no, we know better.
As for Bronc's comments on City of Culture, I hope you're right, Dave but history, Hull and now Coventry suggest otherwise, huge loss makers with hardly any benefit.
Keefly, the only revolution will come when BMDC gets some talent. Despite what we may think I know there has been some talent but seen off as a threat by those who are less talented and can only see threat instead of managing. All of which concludes with lack of progress which we see in other regenerated Cities who like us have lost their original industrial base but have moved to other things in real terms, not endless hot air and constant whining about others letting them down.
Rant over.

 

You're absolutely right, Roger. Not only have most people with money deserted Bradford, but most people with brains have too. Whenever I see and hear people from the city being interviewed the overwhelming impression is well-meaning but naive and dim, or simply just dim. In the medium to long term, the prospects for a city with a burgeoning population but so little economic development are frightening.

 

Great rant. You should do it more often!

 

That Bradford on Duty programme in @wetherbywhaler style has set us back 5 years. No way would a power house business want to move into Bradford now. What was the council thinking?

The city is crying out for positive talk and hope. Clayton, Wibsey, Wrose, Thackley, Baildon, Saitare, Queensbury, Ilkey (Bradford council owned) are very decent places to live and need to be talked about more.

Manchester, Liverpool market themselves on positivity. Bradford markets itself on being poor. It needs key changes and urgently.

 

That was from 2021 and for the T & A who know nothing.

I look all the time and recently the most expensive house for sale was in Clayton at 1.5 million on Right move.

Apperley Bridge isn't what it was. Their prices are now no different to Thackley, Wrose and Idle in some parts.

 

No, just Right move. When I looked it was Clayton with a house of 1.5m about 2 weeks ago but it might have sold or come off the market now.

Either way Bradford has some nice areas but the council and government are starting to ruin them too god damn LAZY.

 

You've clearly never been round Hyde Park then

 

You're coming across a bit pot kettle Fordy. I don't disagree with you on this in the slightest, but your opinions about Bradford are some of the most negative you'll find on here.

 

Sorry mods, I know this is off topic but I couldn't not respond to IB's response to my earlier throwaway comment.

Thurrock has always been the scummy industrial embarrassment in Essex and overlooked by the powers that be in Chelmsford. And the development of Lakeside shopping centre completely killed what was once a thriving Grays High Street.

But Thurrock council has done as big a job of decimating anything worthwhile in the town centre as the council in Bradford has done. All the old buildings of any character have been knocked down and replaced with faceless modern buildings. The Riverside area you mention once boasted the Old High Street, full of 17th & 18th century clapperboard houses (see pic below) and a magnificent old coaching Inn. In the mid 60s, as a 9/10 year old, I used to walk down it and marvel at its character. It should be a major tourist attraction today, except they pulled it down in the late sixties and built a load of modern houses that looked like rabbit hutches. Those houses were so poorly built they were themselves demolished in the 90s!
So Bradford Council doesn't have a monopoly on disastrous planning decisions. Plenty of others have made similar mistakes.

 

My paternal grandfather was born in Grays and lived in a one up, one down railway cottage next to the level crossing. His mother lived there until she passed away aged 98!

 

Whoever in the council signed off and allowed Bradford on Duty to be made should resign, absolute PR disaster.
Bradford needs to stop doing itself down and needs to stop comparing itself to Leeds.
Bradford has a lot going for it, just needs someone with a brain and vision to market it properly.

 

Built a store right next to the station and crossing. Never thought Grays was too bad but agree with the points on Chafford Hundreds.

 

That would probably the nearest Morrisons to me about 13 miles.

 

I've been to the Grays Morrisons a few times. It's a decent store. Always seems pretty busy whenever I've been.
The high street is a pale shadow of its former self. Very run down and shabby; no decent shops because everyone goes to Lakeside.

 

You are right Fordy , Bradford has some decent area's that the council appear to neglect . I live in the Thornton area, birthplace of the Bronte's . We should be shouting it from the rafters. Most people think they come from Haworth and its hardly surprising ,as the council push all the interest that way. At least Haworth has a Bradford postcode.