Ya know what? I think those market gazebos made it look busier than it actually was I mean no one was perusing were they. Comparing it to the ones I did which was weekends in January actually, so that could be forgiven it was just after Xmas, take away the gazebos it's about the same amount if people.
11:23 do you remember the building that used to be where that park is, there was a stationery shop in it among other things i seem to remember. I will have to go into town again, i was there every saturday at one point a few years ago as my wife worked in town but not been much since as she works in Maltby now. Theres a homebrew shop in town I want to check out as well, its near lidl i think. It is a shame whats happened to rotherham. Its a combination of things, meadowhall and parkgate being so close and once a few shops shut less people go so more shut and it snowballs. I used to go every day for college in mid 2000s and back then i thought it wasnt what it once was but there was a lot more then than there is now. Hopefully the new development will help but i dont know. Is the cinema open now then?
@@nowt1002 that stationary shop was at side of ring o bells cafe towards corporation street wasn't it? Seem to remember they had fancy expensive pens in the window
I was really emotional when i seen the state of my hometown and what has happened after all these years. I'm a Yorkshireman through and through and born and bred in Rotherham and left this area when i was 15 and i've lived in the north east since then. I used to live in Wellgate and Herringthorpe and it was the best times of my life. I use to go to Parkgate every week with my dad and my mother and my sister and my nan and we use to go to Morrisons for a breakfast or fish and chips and go to HMV and Comet. I would love to live back in Rotherham but i don't think people who i knew then would not know me now.
@@MarkAnthonySmith-y6m Rotherham is a great place to live steeped in history too, unfortunately people are ignorant and just see the town centre which is still great but also empty of pedestrians. Most towns up and down the country are no different to ours and are suffering too.
@@Rotherman I agree pal yeah I've got lots of memories living in Rotherham when i was a kid i miss living in Herringthorpe on Tennyson Road where my best years of living a happy life were when i was a kid. Rotherham will always be my hometown and i would visit and live there again but people would not know me now i'm older. I use to get the train from Rotherham Central Station with my step grandad to Sheffield or maybe's Doncaster every Saturday.
I'm not from Rotherham but I think it is quite a beautiful town centre with all those trees. I've been to the market a couple of times and to the wonderful Grimm a couple of times. Rotherham town centre re shoppers is suffering same as every city and town in country. No one has money to spend. If they converted more old buildings into low cost rented apartments that might help make it busier.
The former Regal Cinema which then became the Odeon and then Scala Cinema and finally Mecca Bingo which now stands empty has been given Grade II listed status but i don't think this is a guarantee that it will not be demolished, it is a lovely Art Deco building.
@@Rotherman Yes, in November 2021 after a campaign Historic England managed to get the cinema listed as a Grade II listed building, this happened just in time because Rotherham Council had it on their list for demolition and to be replaced by flats. Apparently this Cinema was built in 1934. Despite the Grade II listing, in special circumstances it could be still demolished, let's hope that Rotherham Council don't find any "special circumstances".
I only visit Rotherham town centre twice a year when i have a dental appointment. I do my shopping at Meadowhall and Retail Shopping (used to be known as Retail World) at Parkgate and my favourite Crystal Peaks in Sheffield.
the two burnt out buildings, the issue was they were privately owned when they burned and the owner did a vanishing act. Under the compulsory purchase rules RC had to wait a set period before they could apply to take over them. Rotherham centre has been destroyed by the labour council over a 40 year period and turned into a concrete bowl, the retail has gone and the customer base have moved onto meadowhall and parkgate retail parks. Parking is terrible, the oneway system sucks and to top it off they have now turned Westgate into a both directional single lane road with cycle priority. Sanity has left the building in the planning dept and people simply dont want to go there
Eyup John , sad is de reyt word i'm afraid . Rotherham council policies and Parkgate /Meadowhell /Amazon has all but killed towns like Rotherham. De new Forge island developmen will make no difference whatsoever all that will happen is young people will hang about and not spend a penny if all this development was done years ago along with some free car parks mebbe it could ave been different . I'm same as de doh al never say owt bad as I had 20 happy years drinkin eatin and shoppin between early 80s till early 2000s sign of the times Mate ☹ si de soon 👍
@@twistedsister2568 disagree tbh the late 80s was busy in town all the clothes shops were there next dot perkins Burtons etc. High rents and the attraction of parkgate where it was busier far outweighed the rent prices of town.
It’s not the most attractive place for big shops to invest in given the proximity to local large retail parks where they get more footfall. But it’s holding on at the moment, we need more small independents with a broader and different offer. Easier said than done, I admit. Good to see the Forge Island site up and running. Be good once all the units are filled.
I really hope it improves cos I remember the days it was rammned every weekend and busy most days of the week, I went to college in the town for 3 years late 70s
I enjoy your videos,but do a bit of research, outside market is being refurbished, it was on look north other week , but mate I can remember when town was good not full of smackheads and lowlifes ,sorry but my opinion
@@milrman12345 I said in the vid didn't I that I had conflicting veiws on the market, those ladies with the stall confirmed it was being refurbished. Another stall holder said it was being knocked down to have an open plan seating picnic place. That's my research lol
@Rotherman no commercial developer would underwrite it which should have been a red flag to the council that it will be a commercial flop. I walked round it also a couple of weeks ago and there was absolutely no one there.
Not Council Money. Money allocated by government levelling up fund. Council only 2 choices, take the money and remove a few eyesores or don't take it and leave eyesores to continue rotting.
Rotherham is starting to look good on your video but why doesn’t the council create free easy to reach parking and do away with the pointless pedestrianised areas then people would start to use the town centre again. Until then it’s always going to be Meadowhall for its ease of use. I suppose you have to be careful who you film as they may not be declaring the job. I photographed a wedding reception a few years ago in a local Rotherham pub and was accused of working for the DHSS trying to catch the scrounges out! Ridiculous as my relatives had actually hired the venue and these people were freeloaders trying to get to the free food in the buffet.
Hi Tony thanks. Walking around town the pedestrian areas are nicely done and I'm sure to great expense, I think pedtrianising high street has been a bad decision, I know my vids show it empty and I don't think that's a coincidence.
@@Rotherman lots of empty places that could be used for free car parks or just paint parking bays on the large empty pedestrian areas. What’s to loose? If it doesn’t work then simply revert back. Something needs to be done and quickly. Rotherham council are simply running the town down by their scandalous behaviour. Are they just thick or just stubborn?
Plenty of TH-camrs have covered the decline of the high street in UK & Rotherham looks to fall into that category One of main reasons for boarded up/empty shops is business rates Have a run to Blackpool & see all Hotels empty/boarded up & derelict A lot of hotels at seaside are now been converted into flats A few towns are bucking the trend -Barnsley for one have spent millions & is thriving Probably getting a lot of trade from nearby towns that are struggling or who are making improvements Reasons for decline i would say is Covid/Brexit business rates young people trying to save up mortgages I know people only in there 40s who since covid hardly go out
Ya know what? I think those market gazebos made it look busier than it actually was I mean no one was perusing were they. Comparing it to the ones I did which was weekends in January actually, so that could be forgiven it was just after Xmas, take away the gazebos it's about the same amount if people.
11:23 do you remember the building that used to be where that park is, there was a stationery shop in it among other things i seem to remember.
I will have to go into town again, i was there every saturday at one point a few years ago as my wife worked in town but not been much since as she works in Maltby now. Theres a homebrew shop in town I want to check out as well, its near lidl i think.
It is a shame whats happened to rotherham. Its a combination of things, meadowhall and parkgate being so close and once a few shops shut less people go so more shut and it snowballs. I used to go every day for college in mid 2000s and back then i thought it wasnt what it once was but there was a lot more then than there is now. Hopefully the new development will help but i dont know. Is the cinema open now then?
@@nowt1002 that stationary shop was at side of ring o bells cafe towards corporation street wasn't it? Seem to remember they had fancy expensive pens in the window
I was really emotional when i seen the state of my hometown and what has happened after all these years. I'm a Yorkshireman through and through and born and bred in Rotherham and left this area when i was 15 and i've lived in the north east since then. I used to live in Wellgate and Herringthorpe and it was the best times of my life. I use to go to Parkgate every week with my dad and my mother and my sister and my nan and we use to go to Morrisons for a breakfast or fish and chips and go to HMV and Comet. I would love to live back in Rotherham but i don't think people who i knew then would not know me now.
@@MarkAnthonySmith-y6m Rotherham is a great place to live steeped in history too, unfortunately people are ignorant and just see the town centre which is still great but also empty of pedestrians. Most towns up and down the country are no different to ours and are suffering too.
@@Rotherman I agree pal yeah I've got lots of memories living in Rotherham when i was a kid i miss living in Herringthorpe on Tennyson Road where my best years of living a happy life were when i was a kid. Rotherham will always be my hometown and i would visit and live there again but people would not know me now i'm older. I use to get the train from Rotherham Central Station with my step grandad to Sheffield or maybe's Doncaster every Saturday.
I'm not from Rotherham but I think it is quite a beautiful town centre with all those trees. I've been to the market a couple of times and to the wonderful Grimm a couple of times. Rotherham town centre re shoppers is suffering same as every city and town in country. No one has money to spend. If they converted more old buildings into low cost rented apartments that might help make it busier.
It is indeed a lovely town
The former Regal Cinema which then became the Odeon and then Scala Cinema and finally Mecca Bingo which now stands empty has been given Grade II listed status but i don't think this is a guarantee that it will not be demolished, it is a lovely Art Deco building.
@@dragonfly6908 I dint know about the grade 2 listing, knowing Roth council it will end up being rubble soon.
@@Rotherman Yes, in November 2021 after a campaign Historic England managed to get the cinema listed as a Grade II listed building, this happened just in time because Rotherham Council had it on their list for demolition and to be replaced by flats. Apparently this Cinema was built in 1934. Despite the Grade II listing, in special circumstances it could be still demolished, let's hope that Rotherham Council don't find any "special circumstances".
I love Rotherham always have, but Ive no time for Rotherham labour council
@@Rotherman No, first there will be 2 fires to weaken the structure, then for safety reasons demolishing.
What Street was Dickens in please?
@@user-up5vp8gk4k it was the old station hotel top of Westgate
I only visit Rotherham town centre twice a year when i have a dental appointment. I do my shopping at Meadowhall and Retail Shopping (used to be known as Retail World) at Parkgate and my favourite Crystal Peaks in Sheffield.
I share your sadness John, let's hope things improve. Carry on making your videos though, especially now you've retired. All the best, Bob M.
@@bobmorgan5767 aw thanks Bob, and I really hope Rotherham town sees a resurgence, we see it as it is today but our great town is steeped in history.
the two burnt out buildings, the issue was they were privately owned when they burned and the owner did a vanishing act. Under the compulsory purchase rules RC had to wait a set period before they could apply to take over them. Rotherham centre has been destroyed by the labour council over a 40 year period and turned into a concrete bowl, the retail has gone and the customer base have moved onto meadowhall and parkgate retail parks. Parking is terrible, the oneway system sucks and to top it off they have now turned Westgate into a both directional single lane road with cycle priority. Sanity has left the building in the planning dept and people simply dont want to go there
@@totenvt can't argue with that.
The sign at the bottom of corporation st saying this way to forge island should read this way out of Rotherham.
Eyup John , sad is de reyt word i'm afraid . Rotherham council policies and Parkgate /Meadowhell /Amazon has all but killed towns like Rotherham. De new Forge island developmen will make no difference whatsoever all that will happen is young people will hang about and not spend a penny if all this development was done years ago along with some free car parks mebbe it could ave been different . I'm same as de doh al never say owt bad as I had 20 happy years drinkin eatin and shoppin between early 80s till early 2000s sign of the times Mate ☹ si de soon 👍
I think ya reyt Jon
Rotherham was dead and buried long before Meadowhall. Parkgate and Meadowhall shopping is crap as well.
@@twistedsister2568 disagree tbh the late 80s was busy in town all the clothes shops were there next dot perkins Burtons etc. High rents and the attraction of parkgate where it was busier far outweighed the rent prices of town.
Rotherham town centre is nice but there are no shops so there’s no reason to go there. That burned out restaurant has been like that over 30 years.
@@twistedsister2568 you're right I can't argue that. That restaurant I understand was demolished last week at last. I wonder what is planed for that?
It’s not the most attractive place for big shops to invest in given the proximity to local large retail parks where they get more footfall. But it’s holding on at the moment, we need more small independents with a broader and different offer. Easier said than done, I admit. Good to see the Forge Island site up and running. Be good once all the units are filled.
I really hope it improves cos I remember the days it was rammned every weekend and busy most days of the week, I went to college in the town for 3 years late 70s
I enjoy your videos,but do a bit of research, outside market is being refurbished, it was on look north other week , but mate I can remember when town was good not full of smackheads and lowlifes ,sorry but my opinion
@@milrman12345 I said in the vid didn't I that I had conflicting veiws on the market, those ladies with the stall confirmed it was being refurbished. Another stall holder said it was being knocked down to have an open plan seating picnic place. That's my research lol
The new forge island cinema and hotel development is a total waste of council tax payers money.
@@nisadave it was multi millions too, I didn't think Roth council was that cash rich.
@Rotherman no commercial developer would underwrite it which should have been a red flag to the council that it will be a commercial flop. I walked round it also a couple of weeks ago and there was absolutely no one there.
Not Council Money. Money allocated by government levelling up fund. Council only 2 choices, take the money and remove a few eyesores or don't take it and leave eyesores to continue rotting.
Rotherham is starting to look good on your video but why doesn’t the council create free easy to reach parking and do away with the pointless pedestrianised areas then people would start to use the town centre again. Until then it’s always going to be Meadowhall for its ease of use. I suppose you have to be careful who you film as they may not be declaring the job. I photographed a wedding reception a few years ago in a local Rotherham pub and was accused of working for the DHSS trying to catch the scrounges out! Ridiculous as my relatives had actually hired the venue and these people were freeloaders trying to get to the free food in the buffet.
Hi Tony thanks. Walking around town the pedestrian areas are nicely done and I'm sure to great expense, I think pedtrianising high street has been a bad decision, I know my vids show it empty and I don't think that's a coincidence.
@@Rotherman lots of empty places that could be used for free car parks or just paint parking bays on the large empty pedestrian areas. What’s to loose? If it doesn’t work then simply revert back. Something needs to be done and quickly. Rotherham council are simply running the town down by their scandalous behaviour. Are they just thick or just stubborn?
There are no shops so no one would go there. The fault of RMBC.
Plenty of TH-camrs have covered the decline of the high street in UK & Rotherham looks to fall into that category
One of main reasons for boarded up/empty shops is business rates
Have a run to Blackpool & see all Hotels empty/boarded up & derelict
A lot of hotels at seaside are now been converted into flats
A few towns are bucking the trend -Barnsley for one have spent millions & is thriving
Probably getting a lot of trade from nearby towns that are struggling or who are making improvements
Reasons for decline i would say is Covid/Brexit business rates young people trying to save up mortgages
I know people only in there 40s who since covid hardly go out
@@leedsunitedandy I hear everything you say Andy, sad innit.
Nowt to do with Covid/Brexit...Rotherham town centre has been dead like that for at least 10 years now, long before Covid and Brexit
@@acidmack1041 Well you will know better than me mate re:rotherham town centre
All am saying is its like it in most towns/cities up & down country
Sadly it is all too common through out the UK.
Rotherham was at home its going to be busy any other Saturday its dead