Mark & Spencer in Aldershot Town Centre

Post length: 471 words, just over 2 minutes.

Marks & Spencer, AldershotThe announcement made by Marks & Spencer at the end of June that they intend to shut their Aldershot Outlet store must have come as a real blow to the town’s management team. Rushmoor Borough Council have been pumping money into regenerating the town’s pedestrianised shopping area, the area in which the M&S Outlet takes centre stage. The unit itself is one of the largest in the town centre and sits in a key location half way up the high street directly opposite the town’s main shopping centre, The Galleries. As one of only a handful of clothes shops in the town centre, the closure of the shop would leave a gap in the town centre in not just a physical sense — there would be a severe lack of quality clothing outlets too. [read more]

Posted on Thursday 2nd July, 2015 at 10:31 am in Obiter dicta.
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Aldershot – the coucil’s response

Post length: 498 words, just over 2 minutes.

I wrote back in August about a consultation put out by Rushmoor Borough Council regarding a £4.5 million pound regenration scheme of the Aldershot town centre. The response I posted on my blog was the response I gave to the council in feedback. I was apparently one of 280 people to provide feedback on the scheme, and last Monday I recieved an email from the council regarding the consultation.

The majority of you were very positive about the plans and you also took the time to share your own ideas to regenerate the town, which included everything from encouraging new shops to Aldershot, supporting businesses, tidying up shop fronts and building on the town’s Victorian heritage.

[read more]

Posted on Monday 29th December, 2014 at 10:06 am in Obiter dicta.
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Aldershot – our town centre coming together

Post length: 1,008 words, about 4 and a half minutes.

Rushmoor Borough Council recently put out a consultation on proposed improvements to Aldershot town centre. The proposals cover three phases of work to improve the environment of the main shopping areas and pedestrian approaches to the town’s main shopping areas. Further details of the proposals can be viewed on the Rushmoor website.

Having lived and worked in the Aldershot area for going on 9 years now (some of the work work having even been related to improving the image of Aldershot town centre), combined with my amateur interest in town planning, I have more than a passing interest in these proposals so decided to respond to the consultation. Below are my thoughts, recorded for posterity. I will be interested to see the further discussion of these plans amongst the elected members of the council in coming months. [read more]

Posted on Thursday 21st August, 2014 at 8:50 am in Obiter dicta.
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Westgate Aldershot: Spot the Difference

Post length: 333 words, about 1 and a half minutes.

Cineworld from Princes HallThe long awaited Westgateleisure complex‘ in Aldershot officially opened on the 26th October 2012. For the first weekend the only thing open in the complex was the cinema, with Morrisons opening the Monday after.

Having watched the development being built just over the road from where I live and reviewed the planning applications in some detail I was curious to see how close the final product to the promotional pictures actually were. So I went out on the 4th November to try to reproduce the concept images in real life. I’ll add a few updates as the restaurant units fill up over the next couple of months.

See if you can spot the difference…

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Posted on Wednesday 14th November, 2012 at 1:23 am in Obiter dicta.
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Aldershot Live Music Day

Post length: 78 words, about 0 and a half minutes.

Aldershot Live Music Day

Last weekend saw Aldershot Live Music Day — an event held across three stages in the town centre showcasing a range of live artists and bands. As I didn’t have anything else on this weekend I decided to take my camera out and have a look.

I have added a full straight colour edit of my photos to my gallery, but thought I’d also produce some more ‘rocky’ style black and white images. [read more]

Posted on Tuesday 24th July, 2012 at 10:34 pm in Arts & Ents, Photography, Photos.
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More shops close (and one opens)

Post length: 285 words, about 1 and a half minutes.

I noticed just now while out doing my weekly shop in town that the local camera shop, Wellington Cameras, has closed leaving another empty unit in the high street.  The first thing which crossed my mind was that it’s a shame that another independent camera shop has been forced to close.  This one seemed to be a very traditional shop selling cameras and telescopes and things, and I would presume has been there for quite a while.  Thinking about it though, I’ve never been into the place and this is what I do for a living.  I can think of two other professional photographers around here and I recon they probably do the same as me — shoot in digital and buy their kit from specialist online retailers.  It’s a shame to see another shop close in the high street, but I suppose I didn’t do anything to help it.  I also noticed another empty unit further along the street, although I can’t remeber what that shop used to be.  This is on top of the mobility shop at the top of the high street which closed a few weeks ago, and one of the travel agents on Victoria Road which moved out probably 3 or 4 months ago now.

On a (perhaps slightly) brighter note, the site of the old Woolworths store has now become a ‘99p Stores‘ shop.  It’s good to see the place isn’t empty, but a bit of a shame nothing of any better quality has sprung up — while this 99p shop seems better than the other one in the town (it’s a chain for a start, so I’d guess has bigger buying power), it is the second the town has.

Posted on Sunday 7th June, 2009 at 2:14 pm in Obiter dicta.
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