Paddy's Market Closure: Costly Failure?, £700,000 spent with nothing to show Options

[GG]

My personal opinion is that, although Paddy's Market may not have been pleasing to the eye, it served a useful purpose and, more importantly, it had the history and potential to become something a lot more useful and appealing to the city. The problem was that upgrqading, refurbishement and diversification were never considered as options to immediate closure.

Anyway, in the media today was a response from the Green Party: Nina Baker, the Green city councillor who championed Paddy's, said:

"The problem is a lack of imagination by the Labour leadership and their obsession with high-end shopping.

When they should have been trying to find ways of developing markets where local people could sell local goods – which is what tourists loved – they worried about high-end retail. There was a real opportunity to take the best of Paddy's Market – respectable traders – and do something really interesting.

It could combine stalls selling second-hand goods with, say, places selling textiles or local designer clothing.

We want to see local small-scale businesses supported and they [Labour councillors] like big shiny malls and what the French call 'grands projets'."

£700,000 Paddy’s Market bill under fire from Greens
http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/700-000...reens-1.1155246

GG.

[Melody]

My sentiments exactly Martin although as you say Paddy's Market was not pleasing on the eye, it was obviously serving an important and cultural need. I was just saying in Diary that Scotland has a dreadful lack of markets, so many English towns support and have thriving markets I don't know why we can't do the same, especially in this financial climate. Paddy's Market should have been updated instead of cleared. It's the usual lack of vision, get rid of the traditional and cultural and then live to regret it.

[Scotsman]

I would agree with you Melody.... lets see more markets in the city and then we wont need to spend the high prices at the high end shops. I was in Mancester last year and they had loads of wee markets where you could pick up all kinds of bargains. They were smarter than Paddys was but I bet thats because someone at their council had actually supported and helped them rather than call them names and close them down!!

[Heather]

My favourite Markets are in Venice. Just get off the Waterbus at some of the Islands and there are lovely Markets to wander through.

In Murano you can watch the men making Murano Glass.

Italy has some of the nicest colourful glassware you would ever see anywhere.

[benny]

My favourite Markets are in Venice. . . . .

A bit faur tae go fur "Sports socks, three furra pound, three furra pound..." though Heather.

[Heather]

Aye Benny, but think of the good time you could have there, enjoying all that lovely Italian food and vino.
Just make sure you have a good pair of walking shoes for wandering around all the wee streets and alleys, then when your tired you can go sailing up the Grand Canal on the Water Bus singing O Sole Mio.

You can't do that in the Barra's, you would get arrested.

[zascot]

Ever been near the barras on a Friday night Heather? O solo Mio an a bottle o lannie an a fish supper fae the Tally chip shoap, nae bother.

[Melody]

Zascot. Ye could go intae The Sari Heid and get two tae the moon.

[zascot]

ah want a kerry oot.
This isnae an off licence
Ahm tokin aboot me.

[Heather]

Zascot, I've never tasted Lannie and I'm not keen on fish suppers.

I'll stick to lasagne and vino.

Would you believe that one time when we were on holiday in Lake Garda my husband found a shop that sold sausage rolls. All that lovely Italian food and and he buys sausage rolls.

[zascot]

Zascot, I've never tasted Lannie and I'm not keen on fish suppers. .

Same here.