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Proposed Re-Development of Northampton Town Centre

Northampton might have been Oxford or Cambridge if it hadn't been for the students revolt and the great fire of 1675. There have been big changes since 1960 - You often hear Northampton people reminiscing about how it used to be; the fountain in the Market Square and the New Theatre (both demolished in the 1960's) and the Notre Dame High School, demolished in 1979.

In the 1950's Coventry, Swansea and Plymouth, due to horrendous bombing, had to re-build their cities with often cheaply made and poorly designed buildings, Northampton however appeared to knock down its cherished past and replace it in a similar way.

There are still many fine buildings in Northampton, including (in my view) the one you are standing in. The best place to stand to 'see' Northampton is appropriately on the pavement in-between the Tourist information Centre and the Guild Hall. From hear you can gaze full circle and see a fine Town Centre.

But it's not only the buildings. Walking through town can sometimes be a real battle as you are visually assaulted left, right and centre by texts and bright primary colours vying for your attention and your custom. The café ultimately wins as you seek its solitude and need a fix of caffeine to carry on with your journey. Do the most brightly lit shops with the boldest colour schemes attract the most custom?

Sometimes look above the shop fronts at the eclectic mix of building facades dating back to the 1600's, then notice how similar the ground floor shops are - what happened to variety being the spice of life?

If we could take pride and look after our businesses and places of work like we would do with our own houses; if we could put as much effort into straightening our 2nd floor blinds as we do into cleaning our shop front windows; then Northampton Town Centre would be our town centre.

Something else is missing from our town centre. There's a distinct lack of trees. There are plenty of poles with flowers hanging from a height designed to prevent damage by vandals but no shady leaf littered squares.

I'm not saying that Northampton has gone downhill, most people will welcome our paved, pedestrianised Abington street. Looking back at old photographs, there has always been congestion, crude advertising, poor design and lack of green places. At I do not want to see Northampton of as a romantic vision of what it may have been through rose coloured spectacles, rather I imagine Northampton as it might still be, or may become.

View from All Saints Church, 27th April - 29th May 2001

I propose shop signs are toned down in colour; primary colour for nothing more than capturing attention is visual pollution.I propose that we don't make a feature out of litterbins; a red band will do little to encourage people to use them. I propose that more trees are planted and that flowerbeds are always stocked with flowers.I propose a contemporary Art Gallery to encourage visitors to the town regionally and nationally.
I propose a greater restriction of parking on aesthetic and environmental grounds. I propose the re-location or closure of fast food restaurants on moral, nutritional and aesthetic grounds.

Market Square 10th April - 31st May 2001

I propose a high quality of design and building materials. I propose more space and openness. I propose public Art, more specifically non-representational sculpture (thanks Rob Fogell).I propose that building owners/occupiers should be responsible for the façade of their premises and take the same care and pride as they would with their own home: clean up the stone work, paint the woodwork and straighten the blinds on the second floor. Hanging baskets, though very welcome when in bloom, are no substitute for shady, leaf littered squares.

Guildhall Extension 11th - 31st May 2001

I propose restrictive car use, better facilities for pedestrians and cyclists and public transport that people would choose to use. I propose preservation of good design and quality whatever the heritage of the building. I propose that shops and businesses should be sensitive and mindful of the shape and balance of the building they occupy, and its place in the environment, when planning the re-design of the ground floor/shop front, whether or not the building is listed.