Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose. The French have a word for it. Loosely translated it means everything changes; nothing changes. The French were wrong. This was the view from our bedroom window in February 2021 before the work on Lea Wharf began. About the same time I superimposed what it might look… Continue reading Just like a rolling stone
Tag: Bircherley Green Redevelopment
Premier Inn Checks Out
It should come as no surprise following Whitbread’s announcement of job losses earlier this week that they have now pulled out of building a Premier Inn Hotel in Bircherley Green (see full story in Hertfordshire Mercury). It is fair to say that few people in Hertford saw the need for a hotel. Except for Whitbread… Continue reading Premier Inn Checks Out
Hertford Saved! – Doomed!
So, after 6 years a development on the Bircherley Green Shopping Centre site was given the green light on 25th June 2020. I sat through 2 hours of the Development Management Committee and frankly learned nothing that I didn’t know already. It confirmed two things. One it was not viable to offer affordable housing and… Continue reading Hertford Saved! – Doomed!
Seed Warehouse
The Seed Warehouse houses the Mill Bridge Rooms which are owned by Hertford Town Council and can be hired by small groups for meetings. The truth is that the Seed Warehouse is a Tardis. You could almost walk past it, unaware of its existence down a narrow alleyway, squeezed between a newsagents and a fast… Continue reading Seed Warehouse
Fings aint what they used to be
Since it was announced that Chase Homes intended to buy Bircherley Green the newspapers, message boards and pubs have been full of hopes, plans and wish lists. Unfortunately the planning process does not work that way. I have lived in Hertford since 1980 but was born and grew up in Camden Town. On Saturday morning… Continue reading Fings aint what they used to be
This is your home town
Son take a good look aroundThis is your home town. Bruce Springsteen I am tired of everybody telling me that Hertford is the county town. Maybe it is; but on what grounds? Look at this. This is the situation facing anyone walking through Maidenhead Street towards Salisbury Square. You have to turn left and cross… Continue reading This is your home town
Hertford’s future now?
Now that the dust has settled on the planning application for Bircherley Green Shopping Centre it is time to think ahead. There are still a few permissions and details to be finalised but for many the die has already been cast. The owners of the site have given everybody notice to quit. This was not… Continue reading Hertford’s future now?
Hertford retail – Part Three
During my time as Town Centre Manager it was easy to promote Hertford, a different but amazing kind of town full of independent traders; a town where you could still find a haberdashery (since closed), ironmongers and diving school (closed since December 2016 and premises still unoccupied). That wide retail offer continues to decline since… Continue reading Hertford retail – Part Three
A walk through Hertford 2017
Wrenbridge have just submitted the final plans for the redevelopment of Bircherley Green Shopping Centre after months of discussion between themselves and East Herts Planning Department, local groups, residents and more than enough statutory consultant bodies such as the Environment Agency and the Canal and River Trust that you can throw a blueprint at. If… Continue reading A walk through Hertford 2017