Author Topic: Civic Pride  (Read 4404 times)

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Offline DaveR

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Civic Pride
« on: November 20, 2014, 10:47:48 am »


One thing that seems to have disappeared from local towns to a great degree since the creation of the vast behemoth known as Conwy County Borough Council is Civic Pride. It's not a deliberate policy, of course, more a natural result of creating such a vast organisation that has to look after a significant part of North Wales (an area of 1,130 kmĀ² and 117,000 people).

What is Civic Pride and why is it important?

Civic Pride can be defined as 'taking a pride in your town' and ensuring it is looking its best. In an area that depends heavily upon Tourism, high standards of presentation in public areas are vital in order to both attract visitors and encourage them to visit again. I'm talking about things like public parks, flower displays, clean, tidy & well maintained streets, public toilets, car parking facilities etc.

Yet, all too often, these are the things that are not done properly locally. Take Llandudno, for instance. Wales' leading seaside resort. The principal town in Conwy County.

Yet, I can't walk down the main street without having to dodge a whole legion of cracked and broken paving stones. The street lighting at night is poor - old floodlights dating back to the 1970s, whilst the original Victorian street lamps stand unused. The flower displays seem to get reduced every year - whole sections of bedding plant displays on the Promenade have been grassed over last year, whilst the once famous LLANDUDNO display in Happy Valley has been filled in with concrete! Railings which were carefully installed back in 2000 as part of the renovation of North Western Gardens have not received a lick of paint since. Street trees are removed and not replaced. Public benches are allowed to get so rotten that a local Estate Agent has to write to the North Wales Weekly News in order to get something done about them. Street nameplates are rusting and unpainted. The only Public Toilets on the Promenade (Happy Valley Road) have been closed for several years...I could go on and on.

These are false economies to make. With its natural and architectural features, Llandudno has a head start over many seaside resorts. However, we squander this advantage at our peril. People these days are choosier than ever; they will not hesitate to go elsewhere if we do not live up to their standards. The annoying thing about it all is that most of the issues I have mentioned would not cost millions to resolve - they are all things that should just be done on an everyday basis as part of the maintenance of an attractive seaside town.

First Published in October 2009

Offline SteveH

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Re: Civic Pride
« Reply #1 on: November 20, 2014, 11:14:04 am »
Well said,...and summed up with "Civic Pride can be defined as taking a pride in your town".


Offline born2run

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Re: Civic Pride
« Reply #2 on: November 20, 2014, 12:58:03 pm »
The towns football team could do with your support as could Colwyn Bay's. Let's have pride in our sporting achievements too. The more people that get off their backsides from watching Man United in the 147 and go and support their local team, the better the teams will get.  $walesflag$