Stoke-on-Trent like Afghanistan, says pottery director
The director of one of Britain's largest pottery firms has compared parts of Stoke-On-Trent to Afghanistan's Helmand Province and has demanded the local council stop the demolition of historic buildings.
Matthew Rice, director of Emma Bridgewater, said that areas of the city, known for its ceramics industry, resemble a wasteland and "disaster zone" comparable to London in the 1950s following World War II.
Referring to city planning as "feckless", he called on the local council and developers to use historic buildings and former factories during regeneration rather than to knock them down.
Mr Rice says the focus for Stoke should be regeneration and building conservation, rather than the 'demolish and start again' approach which would see many of the city's unique building disappear. These building he says, are "cultural anchors" which need to be hung onto as redevelopment takes place.
He added: "If you go around Stoke these days there is lots of bare land where things have been demolished. I've no idea what it looks like in Helmand Province but I get a feeling it would look a little like here.
"There is always this idea that we have got to demolish everything to put things right. A blank canvas they call it. But I'd rather see people use the buildings in regeneration and development."
Stoke has, down the years, spawned and played host to the country's biggest pottery firms including Wedgwood and Royal Doulton. But the decline in the manufacturing the 1980s and 1990s saw the city hit hard, with dozens of factories, mines and steelworks closing and historic buildings left to fall derelict. At its height, Stoke housed 2,000 bottle kilns and 200 factories. Only around 30 factories now operate.
Cllr Mervin Smith, Stoke-on-Trent City Council spokesman for city development, said: "Serious regeneration of any city takes more than a couple of years. We have seen this with Birmingham and Manchester for example. Significant projects have already been delivered, such as the new state-of-the-art Sixth Form College and the City Waterside development, amongst others, with work due to start on the new bus station next year and the East West precinct in 2012.
"We are indeed proud of our ceramics heritage which is evidenced by the banners which decorate the Potteries Way, celebrating pride in our local companies, the restoration of surviving bottle ovens and most importantly the biennial celebrating Stoke-on-Trent as the world capital of excellence in ceramics.
"The city council has worked closely with local ceramics businesses, including Emma Bridgewater Ltd, and are disappointed at the attitude expressed by Matthew Rice. He is perfectly entitled to his opinion, which we respect but cannot agree with."
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