Bridgend Town : The Decline Continues

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

Regular readers to this blog will know that even though I don't live in the area anymore I make occasional trips to Bridgend Town to look around. As I've discussed previously I believe it's an urban tragedy mainly brought on by the arrogant incompetent management of the local Labour Council.

After visiting it yesterday nothing appears to have changed. Still vast swathes of empty abandoned shops or redeveloped shops no one wants to rent. Indeed it's got slightly worse with a clothes outlet in the local shopping centre closing down.

With one exception I haven't bothered to do any pictures. Simply because there would be no change from the position in July, or when I chatted about it many times beforehand.

Bridgend Town is...let's face it...seemingly being slowly tortured.

I have four indicators re the town that I refer to when I visit. Let's chat about them.

Nolton Street Arcade: This is the small shopping arcade where apart from the two shops that go onto the street every single shop in the arcade has closed down. Well nothing has changed.

Bridgend Indoor Market: The Christmas decorations (it's September!) are still there.

You may remember that there was a plan to revitalise the market but I promised the blogger who first explained it that I wouldn't mention it until September out of fairness to him? Well it's September now so the plan is basically to cut the rents.

Trouble is. Whilst it's fine in itself judging on things as I went there yesterday it doesn't appear to have worked. If anything (though I'm not sure) there may be even more empty outlets.

I think I know why. If you have difficulty in attracting visitors to the town then you will consequentially have difficulty attracting people to the market. Bridgend Council should realise that. And yet nothing appears to either have been done or has been apparently successful.

The Old McDonald's: That is the old McDonald's that had been closed down and left to rot for seventeen years until demolished last year. Well last time I visited there was machinery. Today just a space, a portaloo and three men in high vis jackets.

I mean...what are they doing and why has it taken them so long to do it? Will we have to wait another seventeen years for a building to emerge from it all?

Phones4U: With the demolition of Mcdonald's this I think is the oldest disused space in the town. Four years since it closed down and still nothing.

This was the one I wanted to take the picture of:

Have A Look At The To Let Sign On The Right

Above the actual To Let wording it says in smaller lettering "Prime Shop". Really? If it was a "Prime Shop" it would have been let out a long time ago.

So you see the urban tragedy continues. What it shows above all is that Labour, who helped cause it, should be thrown out and people with, what are the words? Ah yes common sense should take it over. And as I've argued before that should be Plaid Cymru.

Unless anything unexpected happens I'll return again in December.

Before I go and relating to absolutely nothing I wandered round the local W H Smith for a bit and two books caught my eye.

Firstly in Bridgend I give you proof that perfection comes cheap

Told you

And probably the most astonishing book I've seen this year.

I see it. I've taken a picture of it. I still don't believe it

Until the next time.