Downtown Beirut?

[roopy]

Apparently the pommy press who stayed in Newcastle were put up in that new hotel near Wickham station, and are saying Newcastle is like 'downtown Beruit'.
I have to agree. I can't believe how sleazy that part of town is these days.
Very poor PR by the town, although the whole town seems to have slipped under that Tate guy.
They should have put them up near the beach or up the valley and bused them in for the game.

 

[antonius]

Newcastle city centre is a disgrace. The council seem to be incapable of making any sort of decision, rather they form commitees and spend a fortune deciding something that blind Freddy could decide in five minutes. It took them 3 years and around $300,000.00 to decide how to remove that rock from the middle of the road in King Edward park, at one stage they were even going to leave it there as a tourist attraction LOL. All Mayor Tate is interested in is the Art Gallery, everything else comes second. I was amazed they didn't get booted out last election. The place is run by a select few who live on the hill, any change mooted gets the thumbs down from them every time.

 

[roopy]

When they started doing honeysuckle and the foreshore it really looked like the town could become something special - and the bones of something special are there - but the council are hopeless.
There is a plan to move the courthouse, police station and all the lawyer offices from the top of town and turn all that sleazy part of town into a 'Justice precinct' with some huge new buildings.
Then i suppose all those buildings would be left to rot like the old post office - and when James Fletcher hospital shuts next year i suppose all the soldiers barracks will be destroyed by vandels, despite being some of the most historic buildings in NSW.

 

[antonius]

When they started doing honeysuckle and the foreshore it really looked like the town could become something special - and the bones of something special are there - but the council are hopeless.
There is a plan to move the courthouse, police station and all the lawyer offices from the top of town and turn all that sleazy part of town into a 'Justice precinct' with some huge new buildings.
Then i suppose all those buildings would be left to rot like the old post office - and when James Fletcher hospital shuts next year i suppose all the soldiers barracks will be destroyed by vandels, despite being some of the most historic buildings in NSW.

Yep you are prob spot on. The problem with Newcastle are the residents group. They are all a thousand years old and don't want change. They whinge about the hill climb being run once a year because it's too noisey, they complain about the truckies day that raises money for the rescue helicopter because there's too much traffic that day, They don't want any new buildings because they will de-value their houses (how that works I have no idea) and the council seem to pander to them.

 

[macavity]

the legal precinct isnt moving.

the real problem is the train line - remove that and town and honeysuckle will be integrated - and honeysuckle will clean up the town.

what really needs to happen is an entertainment precinct in town between wickham and civic would be ideal. nightclubs and good pubs, for all their bad press, will regenerate that area - meaning the east end will be top-end residential, the west end commercial, and entertainment in the middle. concentrate the clubs and actually have some open, and a lot of the anti-social behaviour caused by roaming drunks will disappear.

removing the rail line is the first step.

oh, and having seen pictures, beirut is no where near as bad...

 

[Bulldog Force]

BWAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHA

ROFLOLOLOLOL

LMFAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

............ wait............... i'm not finished yet.............












BWAHWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA


for even COMPARING newcastle to Beruit.

Newcastle DOES NOT EVEN COME CLOSE TO COMPARING to it.

This is Beruit for you:

 

[antonius]

the legal precinct isnt moving.

the real problem is the train line - remove that and town and honeysuckle will be integrated - and honeysuckle will clean up the town.

what really needs to happen is an entertainment precinct in town between wickham and civic would be ideal. nightclubs and good pubs, for all their bad press, will regenerate that area - meaning the east end will be top-end residential, the west end commercial, and entertainment in the middle. concentrate the clubs and actually have some open, and a lot of the anti-social behaviour caused by roaming drunks will disappear.

removing the rail line is the first step.

oh, and having seen pictures, beirut is no where near as bad...

Totally agree, train line needs to go (again the people making the most noise are the minority that want to keep thebloody thing) Yes I reckon the curfew rather than curing the anti-social behaviour has actually added to it, the kids are now roaming the streets earlier after not being able to re-enter pubs after the designated curfew time.

 

[macavity]

notwithstanding Hunter St, would still rather live in Newcastle than Beruit...

 

[macavity]

look, pretty pictures of Newcastle too...

 

[B-dos]

i fully agree that its a disgrace to put these guys up in a hotel in wickham. we have plenty of top quality hotels and accommodation available. probably penny pinching which is typical.

the GPT proposal is the first step to rejuvenating the city centre.

cut the rail line at wickham as proposed and encourage new development all the way down to the beach.

the sooner the various residents group and all the other minority self-interest groups are overpowered by the silent majority the better. problem is, most of us sit by and do nothing while the "stop-everything brigade" gets into the ear of council and keeps the city on the back foot.

 

[roopy]

This is Beruit for you:

Funnily, that pic really looks like Newcastle looking from the cathedral, although Newcastle has a lot more open spaces.

 

[macavity]

http://www.bangthetable.com/

have a look at "Newcastle Connectivity"

this is Jodi's little PR stunt - although she doesn't like the results this time...

 

[antonius]

http://www.bangthetable.com/

have a look at "Newcastle Connectivity"

this is Jodi's little PR stunt - although she doesn't like the results this time...

She's a bloody "yes" man...(sorry woman) if ever there was one.

 

[B-dos]

thankfully Rees has acknowledged a change of heart and it seems the issue is being given serious consideration. (although the 'change of heart' is more a result of listening to the people of newcastle and not the 'save our rail' nutters)

 

[macavity]

most of the save our rail people don't even live in Newcastle...

 

[roopy]

I love the rail because of all the childhood memories of Christmas shopping at Waltons etc - but any fool can see what a beautiful city we could have without that dirty great scar up the middle of it.

 

[antonius]

I love the rail because of all the childhood memories of Christmas shopping at Waltons etc - but any fool can see what a beautiful city we could have without that dirty great scar up the middle of it.

Not all the fools on the hill!! (good name for a song that!)

 

[Frederick]

I get sick of all the old fogies writing in to the Herald whinging that if the rail line is cut at Wickham then they'll have no way to get into town. Have they not heard of buses? The rail line needs to f**k off, as does Jodi McKay...makes me ashamed to be a labor voter

 

[macavity]

well write in yourself fred

letters@theherald.com.au

 

[Pika]

Why is it our responsibility to accomadate the English media?

They should look after themselves.