Thanks folks. Didn't want to descend into a colour-by-numbers "Ooh, aren't the council awful!" rant, as there's plenty of those and we have Oscar to drive home the criticism when it's needed (or in some cases, when it's not!).
Truth be told, I imagine that the job of the council - both members and officers alike - must be a bloody difficult one, and likely only to earn public ire (hasten to add I'm neither of those things myself, but would like to reserve my anonymity just in case) if anything even goes slightly wrong.
I've met people who work for the council and they're not the scummy, corrupt, cash-hoarding, "no work for me, thanks - I'm in the public sector!" types they're frequently made out to be. They're drawn from a wide range of backgrounds, both public and private alike, and some try the best they can do in difficult circumstances. BUT - that said, they do make some cock-ups, and my main gripe (as spelt out in my above post) is the fact that even with all sorts of checks and balances, scrutiny, expert opinion and avenues of public consultation available to them, they can still make dangerous mistakes.
What equally infuriates me is the usual rhetoric of "COUNCIL = BAD, PRIVATE = GOOD" which is aimed against them, because it tends to spell out a particular kind of pompous, "I'm a self-made man, me!" ideology, and doesn't actually get to the heart of the matter.
I digress. As for for the Pier Pavillion, what it needs is not another theater (we have one big one and if the Broadway thing goes ahead we'll have a smaller independent one) and nor does it need a hotel. We already have a museum (the one on Gloddaeth Ave, while small, does a damnably good job with what space and resources it has).
I may be aiming a bit high, but what it needs is some sort of amusement arcade type doodah. Not quite like those already on the pier. Get some sort of jungle gym for the kids (bit like Geronimo's in Rhyl), but throw in a more modern, more "immersive" style games arcade for older kids and teens. You could even bring back that simulator ride. Sort of like the Trocadero in London, if it still exists, or if anyone's familiar with it. Top it all off with a bar at the top, with a hint of Victorian decor - hell, throw in the Alice in Wonderland connection if you like. And maybe it could even be a nightclub on Friday and Saturday evenings, especially during the summer? It would replace what we've lost with Broadway shutting.
Like the pier, it would be an attraction in its own right. People would come specifically for that. And while it may not suit the elderly day-trippers - with all due love and respect to them (as, let's be fair, they've been keeping the town going for the past thirty odd years) it doesn't have to - they'd still have all the other lovelier, more old-fashioned attractions about the town to keep them going.
All completely Cloud 9, wouldn't it be lovely thinking on my part, but hell - I can dream!