WikiWirral Wirral's Biggest Online Forum
Forum Statistics
Forums65
Topics76,347
Posts1,033,259
Members14,550
Most Online16,551
Feb 2nd, 2024
Who's Online Now
9 members (3 invisible), 10,089 guests, and 527 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters
sunnyside 45,164
MattLFC 22,315
Mark 21,269
granny 17,788
_Ste_ 16,345
Newest Members
JohnC, Luke2307, jharwood, TamTam, mrbigglesworth
14,550 Registered Users
New General Forums
Do we need Trident?
by derekdwc - 20th Jan 2016 1:11pm
New Wirral History
Tall Brick Chimneys
by diggingdeeper - 16th Mar 2024 11:56am
D.I.Y. / Building Shop
by mharford91 - 3rd Mar 2024 8:53pm
Looking for Joneses
by Markjon88 - 11th Apr 2019 7:06am
1970's Murder in Central Park, Wallasey
by cutespam - 4th Aug 2018 10:28am
Oleo Works
by Ducko - 14th May 2008 3:09pm
Top Posters(30 Days)
granny 15
casper 14
bri445 4
Topic Replies
This is Elvis
by GingerTom - 17th Mar 2024 2:37pm
Tall Brick Chimneys
by diggingdeeper - 16th Mar 2024 12:20pm
Gaza
by granny - 15th Mar 2024 10:13pm
Get your Money Tree ready
by StellaSimmons - 11th Mar 2024 11:50am
D.I.Y. / Building Shop
by bri445 - 4th Mar 2024 5:54pm
Xbox
by TudorBlue - 3rd Mar 2024 8:48pm
Restaurant/pub with outdoor seating - Bromborough
by Abakumss - 2nd Mar 2024 3:52pm
Oleo Works
by diggingdeeper - 1st Mar 2024 11:51pm
Wiper mechanism needed
by Gibbo - 28th Feb 2024 12:29pm
March
M T W T F S S
1 2 3
4 5 6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14 15 16 17
18 19 20 21 22 23 24
25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Top Likes Received (30 Days)
casper 1
Top Likes Received
bert1 14
Mark 4
granny 3
casper 3
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
#1067173 30th Apr 2019 9:54am
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,836
Likes: 3
Forum Addict
OP Offline
Forum Addict
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,836
Likes: 3
What should be done to lift the general air of hopelessness that pervades Central Birkenhead? I drove through the other day and found it utterly depressing.

The council has tried several times to get the place going and each scheme has proved an expensive flop. Perhaps its time for the general public to take a hand and suggest something that might work.

Demolishing the whole place and starting again seems a not entirely unreasonable suggestion at times.

Google Ads
Excoriator #1067174 30th Apr 2019 10:12am
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 14,334
Likes: 18
Wiki Master
Offline
Wiki Master
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 14,334
Likes: 18
The same as every other town in the country, as you are well aware!


We don't do charity in Germany, we pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments' responsibilities - Henning Wehn

https://ddue.uk
Excoriator #1067177 30th Apr 2019 1:01pm
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 17,788
Likes: 3
Wiki Master
Offline
Wiki Master
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 17,788
Likes: 3
It's been going on for years, and deliberately managed IMO. Hoping for better things like investors to come and do it all for them. Well it didn't happen.
We heard so many might be, could be , will be, speals over the years and all pie in the sky. So many architectural plans, consultations and mountains of money poured down the ever guzzling drains.

First to go were the little electric buses from the centre to the ferry. The council had it in their grasp . A ferry from Liverpool to Birkenhead, could have bought in masses of revenue if the place had been kept in good order, which it wasn;t . How much was spent on Birkenhead park ?
If people visit they want to visit a nice place which is appealing and a nice experience. Sadly all the money thrown at Birkenhead was never going to do that because people sitting in places of decision making were not qualified enough to make them. So much waste . It was always the case that EU funding for tourism would dry up but council did not use their abilities to promote or sustain what could have been a busy and production town... and clean and inviting.

So now they want to develop Hoylake and take the problem away from Birkenhead. I wonder if the natterjack toads will be affected at Hoylake. One of very few sites in the UK. They probably will be, but what does that matter against a council hungry for recognition .

I hope to goodness this lot get voted out on Thursday, they've been at the helm for far too long and we need fresh blood and ideas.

I get really angry about it all.

Last edited by granny; 30th Apr 2019 1:06pm.

Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect.
~Chief Seattle
Excoriator #1067183 30th Apr 2019 5:55pm
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 14,334
Likes: 18
Wiki Master
Offline
Wiki Master
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 14,334
Likes: 18
I don't think much of Birkenhead's problems have be caused by the local council, it was the imposition by central Government that Birkenhead and Wallasey lost their independence, getting dragged out of Cheshire and put under the control of our rival Liverpool in the guise of a Metropolitan County.

Wirral's transport system prior to this was brilliant, our transport hub at Woodside worked really well. This was one of the first targets to be destroyed as part of a managed decline.

Wirral gets that which is left over, one of the best tall ships events was the first one which ended up primarily at Birkenhead docks because Liverpool didn't have docks big enough at the time.

Our docks have also been in managed destruction, other ports in the country are making the most of the waterside availability, we have had much of our docks filled in and there is now only one entrance which makes it a commercial risk - did that decision make any sense whatsoever?

The commercialisation and sell-off of the Merseyside Docks and Harbour board should never have been allowed but Liverpool and the Government knew the long term implication of this, more managed decline.

We should have been allowed to continue to compete with Liverpool on an open market basis, instead we have been made underlings.

One significant indication of how the Wirral has been purposely hampered is why there was never a station built by Woodchurch, its an obvious central point with space for parking ride etc.


We don't do charity in Germany, we pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments' responsibilities - Henning Wehn

https://ddue.uk
Excoriator #1067184 30th Apr 2019 6:09pm
Joined: Apr 2015
Posts: 8
Beginner
Offline
Beginner
Joined: Apr 2015
Posts: 8
Hm, the situation with the docks is rather annoying. Plenty of other cities have made good use of their historical dockland (Liverpool included) while ours is just wasted rotten space, now being sold off to the Peel Group.

59_Volts #1067189 30th Apr 2019 7:41pm
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 14,334
Likes: 18
Wiki Master
Offline
Wiki Master
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 14,334
Likes: 18
Originally Posted by Maxman2000x
...... now being sold off to the Peel Group.


No, Peel group have owned the docks (and a lot more) since 2005 when they "bought" Merseyside Docks and Harbour Company.


We don't do charity in Germany, we pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments' responsibilities - Henning Wehn

https://ddue.uk
Excoriator #1067190 1st May 2019 9:49am
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,836
Likes: 3
Forum Addict
OP Offline
Forum Addict
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,836
Likes: 3
I think Birkenhead has been permanently in the doldrums. Certainly, as long as I can remember it has been a depressing place to wander around.

It gets worse when the country is economically on a downturn - usually when the conservatives are running things - but even at best it isn't doing well. Take a look at the amount of development going on in Liverpool. You can see this by looking at the number of construction cranes you can see there these days, or by looking at this map of development projects in the city.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1atchF4biejtix2gzucFcUNEE2A4&ll=53.40891173076168%2C-2.974962079197894&z=14

I don't know if the map doesn't cover Birkenhead or whether there isn't anything here to cover, but I can't think, offhand, of ANY development projects in Birkenhead.

Perhaps we should simply recognise it for what it is - a dormitory area for Liverpool - and turn it into as desirable one as possible. Abolish all industrial or commercial areas and turn the whole lot over to housing whilst improving transport links to Liverpool.

Excoriator #1067206 2nd May 2019 12:05am
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 14,334
Likes: 18
Wiki Master
Offline
Wiki Master
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 14,334
Likes: 18
The same as Liverpool, Birkenhead has a lot of proposed developments, which means nothing. Then there are the numerous stalled developments in Liverpool which is causing uproar. A lot of Liverpool's developments have been student accommodation or other projects linked to the Universities.

Name another large TOWN that is dissimilar to Birkenhead? Every council is facing the same problems that we have in Wirral.


We don't do charity in Germany, we pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments' responsibilities - Henning Wehn

https://ddue.uk
Excoriator #1067210 2nd May 2019 8:56am
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,282
Likes: 3
Forum Master
Offline
Forum Master
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,282
Likes: 3
Stalled developments - especially Chinese ones - are everywhere. I've seen ones in Preston and Sheffield which have come to naught, or stopped mid way.


Moderated by  Mod 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Random Wirral Images

Click to View Topic.
Newest Topics
Tall Brick Chimneys
by diggingdeeper - 16th Mar 2024 11:56am
D.I.Y. / Building Shop
by mharford91 - 3rd Mar 2024 8:53pm
Xbox
by TudorBlue - 3rd Mar 2024 8:48pm
Possible Cause of Dementia
by diggingdeeper - 22nd Feb 2024 2:08am
Wiper mechanism needed
by Peter0787 - 20th Feb 2024 4:07pm
For Sale & Free
This is Elvis
by GingerTom - 17th Mar 2024 2:37pm
Member Spotlight
TheComputerLab
TheComputerLab
Wallasey
Posts: 1,315
Joined: May 2011
Today's Birthdays
There are no members with birthdays on this day.
New Wirral Info
Get your Money Tree ready
by keef666 - 22nd Mar 2023 12:27pm
Restaurant/pub with outdoor seating - Bromborough
by CarterUSM - 7th Aug 2020 7:59pm
Floral pavilion promo code?
by TheComputerLab - 31st Dec 2018 2:11pm
News : New Topics
Gaza
by diggingdeeper - 29th Oct 2023 9:28am
New Enthusiast Forums
Xbox
by TudorBlue - 3rd Mar 2024 8:48pm
Possible Cause of Dementia
by diggingdeeper - 22nd Feb 2024 2:08am
Wiper mechanism needed
by Peter0787 - 20th Feb 2024 4:07pm
Popular Topics(Views)
5,067,096 WIKI WALK CHAT
4,011,053 Spotted!
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5