Our city deserves something better

YOUR piece about the bingo hall plan for a former store illustrates the continuing decline of this formerly attractive shopping area in Grainger Street.

Charity shops and fast food outlets now dominate the bottom end of the street leading to Central Station.

This comes hard on the heels of a planning application for the former Odeon site on Pilgrim Street.

After shamefully having its listed status removed and the facade mysteriously collapsing we are now, it seems, to have portacabins on the site for a ‘temporary’ period of time.

Citizens must have had high hopes for the site after it was closed but no, temporary buildings are what we get and in the middle of our city.

Some of us remember the ‘temporary’ buildings at the junction of Haymarket and St Thomas Street that have been there for 50 years.

The portacabins seemingly includes leisure outlets which no doubt will include even more unnecessary drinking establishments.

Northumberland Street is a mess, Clayton Street has all but totally sunk into a decline consisting of betting shops, fast food outlets, loan companies and ‘tick’ shops.

The Grainger Town buildings that were returned to their former glory decades ago are starting to look dirty and tatty again. There are some bright spots mainly driven by the NE1 organisation.

Come on City Council, Science City ought not to be the only show in town. Turn down these applications and work for something better for our city. DAVID ROCHESTER Newcastle