Letter from John Monniot (From Swindon Advertiser)

Letter from John Monniot

9:11am Friday 12th March 2010 in

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I WAS pleased to read in today’s Adver (March 9) that Forward Swindon Ltd, unlike the former New Swindon Company, will take account of the needs of the whole town and be run by local people in its regeneration work. I do hope, though, that local ownership of the company won’t limit its access to national and regional sources of money.

Of course, the recession is a major cause of the Old Swindon Company’s slow progress. But its narrow focus on the tired old trio of shops, flats and offices must also have contributed to its low performance. So maybe we’ll be able to thank the recession for saving us from this last century formula. With the town centre all pulled down with nowhere to go we can think again about what the town really needs.

Here are some suggestions for the work of the new company.

1. Involve the community at all stages of your work – not just when you’ve produced some pretty plans. This is a free source of ideas and advice.

2. Put the enhancement of Swindon’s greatest architectural and historical asset, the Railway Village,, at the heart of your plans.

3. While we need some more shops, don’t forget we have plenty of other shopping areas such as the Outlet Village, Old Town, the Orbital Centre, etc. Make provision for small, specialist shops, cultural facilities, like a concert venue and green spaces.

4. Don’t compromise on high quality, distinctive, environmentally friendly architecture: High standards are always worth the investment in the long term and Swindon needs to be more distinctive. Why not hold competitions for the design of key buildings and let the public choose the winners?

5. Bring the vibrance of higher education into the town centre.

Hope this helps.

JOHN MONNIOT

Mill Lane

Old Town

Swindon