Great to see shops opening in Bray

Annasopra

I have to say that I am delighted that business people are still prepared to invest in our town and I am delighted that we have a new garden shop and framers on the main street, a new newsagent and a new tesco on the quinsboro road and a new florist on the parnell road

Annasopra

Hopefully the report of the Bray Economic Think Tank will also deliver positive results

danjo

Nice to hear some good news.

LEIN

Johnnymcg wrote: »

new tesco on the quinsboro road

Dunnes will love that!

runrabbit

And the bead shop that used to be on the Quinsboro Rd. (where the new Tesco is) has moved to a lovely new premises on the Florence Road!

Annasopra

danjo wrote: »

Nice to hear some good news.

Agreed - the constant negativity about Bray drives me mad

Judgement Day

Johnnymcg wrote: »

Agreed - the constant negativity about Bray drives me mad

You may have a point there but burying one's head in the sand (pebbles) is not the answer either. Bray was a wonderful place in which to grow up, 40 years ago, and could be again but you need some decent non-party councillors who will put the interests of the town ahead of their parties.

foxy06

Things won't change though. It's easier for people to go to dundrum and carrickmines for anything they want. A lot of people pay bills ect online rather than go to the post office too. Would love to see a good size pennys or Heatons or even an m&s to get people up the town but at the moment I could go months and not set foot in it or have any need to.
In saying that I would spend a lot of time down the beach with the kids or go for a meal with the hubby in one of the restaurants or pubs.

Whippersnapper

I was looking at that framing shop the other day and was thinking, that's not exactly a service or product people will be queuing up for at the moment. It will be interesting to see how long it lasts. On the other hand, Bray could really do with a M&S shop, clothes and food.

Annasopra

foxy06 wrote: »

Things won't change though.

Things always change and they can improve without such negative attitudes

Calhoun

Johnnymcg wrote: »

Things always change and they can improve without such negative attitudes

Agreed but i think the people of bray need some inward reflection and decide what they want from the town. The state its in and how its run is not by accident the people in the council were elected by the people.

Things will change but people need to be positive about it but also understand they are part of the solution.

Annasopra

Calhoun wrote: »

Agreed but i think the people of bray need some inward reflection and decide what they want from the town. The state its in and how its run is not by accident the people in the council were elected by the people.

Things will change but people need to be positive about it but also understand they are part of the solution.

To be honest I think the new council has done a lot of good work since it was elected last year

They reopened the playground at the peoples park and there will be a new one on the seafront
They got the god awful hoarding take down off the main street (NOT ideal but it's a start!)
They were succesful in giving Bray Lakers a new home
They have helped to set up a new tidy towns committtee
They helped to set up an economic think tank that will look at ways of improving Bray in many ways
They've launched a text information service for the town
They assisted organisers in hosting a succesful bloomsday event in the town
They have ensured that the council now is taking many estates in charge
They assisted in promoting the Bray On Ice business venture
They came up with the initiative of celebrating the chinese new year
They've identified a site for the new enterprise centre for Bray

Calhoun

Johnnymcg wrote: »

To be honest I think the new council has done a lot of good work since it was elected last year

They reopened the playground at the peoples park and there will be a new one on the seafront
They got the god awful hoarding take down off the main street (NOT ideal but it's a start!)
They were succesful in giving Bray Lakers a new home
They have helped to set up a new tidy towns committtee
They helped to set up an economic think tank that will look at ways of improving Bray in many ways
They've launched a text information service for the town
They assisted organisers in hosting a succesful bloomsday event in the town
They have ensured that the council now is taking many estates in charge
They assisted in promoting the Bray On Ice business venture
They came up with the initiative of celebrating the chinese new year
They've identified a site for the new enterprise centre for Bray

They need to do a hell of allot more, the town has been on a downward spiral for a number of years. What do we have to show for the economic boom? a couple of holes in the ground, a new civic offices and practices that drive custom from Bray.

Allot of what you have said above is "helped", "supported" or "assisted" have they anything to show for themselves in terms of forward thinking and re-generation of the town?

I take your point but its frustrating to see the town going to crap i would like to see more

Judgement Day

Calhoun wrote: »

They need to do a hell of allot more, the town has been on a downward spiral for a number of years. What do we have to show for the economic boom? a couple of holes in the ground, a new civic offices and practices that drive custom from Bray.

Allot of what you have said above is "helped", "supported" or "assisted" have they anything to show for themselves in terms of forward thinking and re-generation of the town?

I take your point but its frustrating to see the town going to crap i would like to see more

The town has been going downhill since the late 1960s courtesy of the U.D.C and it is only they that can do anything about it so forget it.

Calhoun

Judgement Day wrote: »

The town has been going downhill since the late 1960s courtesy of the U.D.C and it is only they that can do anything about it so forget it.

Well before my time , i can only view this in the context of the past few years and the missed opportunity of the economic boom.

Also (a personal bugbear of mine) is the inaccessibility of the mermaid for local drama groups. It is extortionately expensive to rent out and if you do, you have to charge €15 a head as it's so expensive! I'm sure there are many ways around it, such as a percentage of nights per annum given over to local groups etc.

It is my belief (but I could be wrong) that it was paid for out of the public purse, so it should be used for more local community projects.

zoobizoo

Calhoun wrote: »

They need to do a hell of allot more, the town has been on a downward spiral for a number of years. What do we have to show for the economic boom? a couple of holes in the ground, a new civic offices and practices that drive custom from Bray.

Allot of what you have said above is "helped", "supported" or "assisted" have they anything to show for themselves in terms of forward thinking and re-generation of the town?

I take your point but its frustrating to see the town going to crap i would like to see more

Do you run a business in Bray or are you part of any community groups, the Summerfest, the tidy towns or Coastcare, the Bray Chamber of Commerce?

The council can't control the rents, they can't get people off their arses to shop local and they can't get people to open shops.

The Economic boom built Dundrum which has effected all the major shopping towns..... Bray and Dun Laoghaire especially.

Put down your ideas here for the town and maybe one or two could be used to improve the town.

Judgement Day

zoobizoo wrote: »

Do you run a business in Bray or are you part of any community groups, the Summerfest, the tidy towns or Coastcare, the Bray Chamber of Commerce?

The council can't control the rents, they can't get people off their arses to shop local and they can't get people to open shops.

The Economic boom built Dundrum which has effected all the major shopping towns..... Bray and Dun Laoghaire especially.

Put down your ideas here for the town and maybe one or two could be used to improve the town.

Well the UDC could start by returning Dargan's wonderful Esplanade to the state it was in when they took over responsibility for it. Remove the Normandy gun emplacements, restore the seating and associated seatbacks, some Victorian lighting would be nice too, then there's Naylor's Cove and the Chairlift etc. etc.. I could go on but there's no point as none of it will happen.

Annasopra

Judgement Day wrote: »

Well the UDC could start by returning Dargan's wonderful Esplanade to the state it was in when they took over responsibility for it. Remove the Normandy gun emplacements, restore the seating and associated seatbacks, some Victorian lighting would be nice too, then there's Naylor's Cove and the Chairlift etc. etc.. I could go on but there's no point as none of it will happen.

Some of the seatbacks have been replaced but hey - "It'll never happen....."

Judgement Day

Johnnymcg wrote: »

Some of the seatbacks have been replaced but hey - "It'll never happen....."

I'll take you word for that but it must be very recent. How about removing the bunkers shelters - I suppose they could come in handy for a remake of "Saving Private Ryan".

Annasopra

You see what I mean - lots of positive things (see below) have happened and people are still constantly moaning and being negative

* 5 new shops opened
* reopened the playground at the peoples park and there will be a new one on the seafront
* hoarding take down off the main street (NOT ideal but it's a start!)
* a new home for Bray Lakers
* a new tidy towns committtee is active
* an economic think tank is looking at ways of improving Bray
* There is now a text information service for the town
* A succesful bloomsday event was held recently in the town
* The council is now taking many estates in charge
* Events like celebrating the chinese new year are now taking place
* a site for the new enterprise centre for Bray has been identified

Anyway - yes lets all moan and groan and say how horrible the town is, how **** the council is blah blah blah blah - lets all play the negative broken record

Calhoun

zoobizoo wrote: »

Do you run a business in Bray or are you part of any community groups, the Summerfest, the tidy towns or Coastcare, the Bray Chamber of Commerce?

The council can't control the rents, they can't get people off their arses to shop local and they can't get people to open shops.

The Economic boom built Dundrum which has effected all the major shopping towns..... Bray and Dun Laoghaire especially.

Put down your ideas here for the town and maybe one or two could be used to improve the town.

I don't run a business nor am i part of any of the community groups i am resident of the town, are you a member of one of these groups or an employer?

Regardless i don't believe because i am not a member i don't get an opinion, being a member of one of these community groups doesn't entitle anyone to any special power or privileges.

As for shopping local the council cannot force people but they can make conditions favorable so people will shop local. If it is easier for people to get in their car's and drive for 10-20 minutes distance to do their shopping something is wrong. I do admit though not all problems in bray are related to the council the business owners have allot to answer for also.

Finally, yes the economic boom built Dundrum but guess what it is built around a town centre, it didn't just sprout up out of the ground from no where. What has been put in place in Bray? A hole in the ground that was then re-filled in so more parking spots could be put in, good job all round.

Calhoun

Johnnymcg wrote: »

You see what I mean - lots of positive things (see below) have happened and people are still constantly moaning and being negative

* 5 new shops opened
* reopened the playground at the peoples park and there will be a new one on the seafront
* hoarding take down off the main street (NOT ideal but it's a start!)
* a new home for Bray Lakers
* a new tidy towns committtee is active
* an economic think tank is looking at ways of improving Bray
* There is now a text information service for the town
* A succesful bloomsday event was held recently in the town
* The council is now taking many estates in charge
* Events like celebrating the chinese new year are now taking place
* a site for the new enterprise centre for Bray has been identified

Anyway - yes lets all moan and groan and say how horrible the town is, how **** the council is blah blah blah blah - lets all play the negative broken record

I get what your saying but people are entitled to want more from their council and can be disappointed with how thing are being run at the moment but to my original point you get what you vote for plain and simple.

I don't believe it is a horrible town i think its a great place and would like to see more but yes let scupper any discussion/criticism on the town by playing the negative broken record card which is just as bad.

Judgement Day

Johnnymcg wrote: »

You see what I mean - lots of positive things (see below) have happened and people are still constantly moaning and being negative

* 5 new shops opened
* reopened the playground at the peoples park and there will be a new one on the seafront
* hoarding take down off the main street (NOT ideal but it's a start!)
* a new home for Bray Lakers
* a new tidy towns committtee is active
* an economic think tank is looking at ways of improving Bray
* There is now a text information service for the town
* A succesful bloomsday event was held recently in the town
* The council is now taking many estates in charge
* Events like celebrating the chinese new year are now taking place
* a site for the new enterprise centre for Bray has been identified

Anyway - yes lets all moan and groan and say how horrible the town is, how **** the council is blah blah blah blah - lets all play the negative broken record

Yes, I probably do sound like a broken record but I call things as I see them. I ran out of the place in 1989 and would have left years before save for family reasons. Now on the rare occasion when I visit I know I was right to leave when I did; however, I still have a fondness for the place or I wouldn't be bothered contributing to this thread.

Annasopra

Calhoun wrote: »

I get what your saying but people are entitled to want more from their council and can be disappointed with how thing are being run at the moment but to my original point you get what you vote for plain and simple.

Well I think that the new council that was elected last year has achieved a huge amount in the last year - 7 of the councillors were newly elected and also some of the 12 councillors work full time jobs as well - Yes - you do get what you vote for and from what I can see last year Bray wisely elected councillors who are getting things done in the town (see examples above)

Also I do think that Judgement Day is wrong to say all responsibility lies at the hands of the councillors - it doesn't it lies with everyone; council management, businesses, residents etc - someone will say for example - Oh Greystones is lovely compared to Bray - well one of the reasons for that is that Greystones has an extremely active Tidy Towns Committee

Calhoun

Johnnymcg wrote: »

Also I do think that Judgement Day is wrong to say all responsibility lies at the hands of the councillors - it doesn't it lies with everyone; council management, businesses, residents etc - someone will say for example - Oh Greystones is lovely compared to Bray - well one of the reasons for that is that Greystones has an extremely active Tidy Towns Committee

I agree i don't feel that responsibility lies solely with the town council, far from it which is kinda what i was trying to say earlier about people moaning about the council, effectively they get what they vote for.

I do still feel though they have allot more to do, i see what you mean about greystones but with a town the size of bray i would expect more from it than just looking nice. I do hope they revisit plans for the shopping centre in the town or at least try develop something to compete with the surrounding competition of dundrum and dun laoghaire.

zoobizoo

Calhoun wrote: »

I don't run a business nor am i part of any of the community groups i am resident of the town, are you a member of one of these groups or an employer?

Regardless i don't believe because i am not a member i don't get an opinion, being a member of one of these community groups doesn't entitle anyone to any special power or privileges.

I started a business in Bray 6 years ago and got up off my arse to do something for the town. I also volunteer my time to do things around the town. Why? Because it's a great town and I like to see it doing well. And if we didn't do it, no one else would.

While that doesn't entitle my opinion to be any more or less valid than yours, it makes me laugh that residents moan about the place yet do nothing to improve it.

Get off your arse! Call your councillors. Start a campaign.

If you think that the cove is untidy or your housing estate is littered, get some people together and change it or do it yourself and create some momentum.

What's the longest distance time wise to walk down the town from anywhere in Bray - about 20 mins (same as a drive to Dundrum). So people are too lazy to walk.

No parking? Bray Wanderers grounds, the car park on the Florence Road, Quinsborough Road.

Where does one local school recommend parents to buy school uniforms? Tanseys? No! They direct them to an internet site.

Take a walk down the prom on any day to of the week and it's about 50% foreign - so even if the seafront isn't perfect, people still want to use it.

The majority of the negativity about Bray comes from its residents and until they decide to get themselves active, the town won't change.

Macy0161

zoobizoo wrote: »

No parking? Bray Wanderers grounds, the car park on the Florence Road, Quinsborough Road.

Can only speak for us, living in the mountains, and parking (and traffic) is an issue. The Carlisle isn't that handy for shopping on Main Street for example. One of the main factors in us not going to Bray shopping as much is all the car parks (particularly the Church car park) going pay and display rather than barriers/ huts in the last number of years.

We do use the promenade a bit, and if there's going to be a playground that would be an attraction for us with two young children. Not sure it will necessarily get us shopping in Bray regularly again, but it will certainly put it back on the radar more.

Calhoun

zoobizoo wrote: »

I started a business in Bray 6 years ago and got up off my arse to do something for the town. I also volunteer my time to do things around the town. Why? Because it's a great town and I like to see it doing well. And if we didn't do it, no one else would.

While that doesn't entitle my opinion to be any more or less valid than yours, it makes me laugh that residents moan about the place yet do nothing to improve it.

Get off your arse! Call your councillors. Start a campaign.

If you think that the cove is untidy or your housing estate is littered, get some people together and change it or do it yourself and create some momentum.

What's the longest distance time wise to walk down the town from anywhere in Bray - about 20 mins (same as a drive to Dundrum). So people are too lazy to walk.

No parking? Bray Wanderers grounds, the car park on the Florence Road, Quinsborough Road.

Where does one local school recommend parents to buy school uniforms? Tanseys? No! They direct them to an internet site.

Take a walk down the prom on any day to of the week and it's about 50% foreign - so even if the seafront isn't perfect, people still want to use it.

The majority of the negativity about Bray comes from its residents and until they decide to get themselves active, the town won't change.

First off, something for the town are you or are you not in business to make money? but ill move on.

To most of the rest of your post i couldnt agree more with what you have said which was my original point. If people complain against a council they voted for what do they expect? Like you said they do need to get off their arse to do something.

I don't agree with the Dundrum point there is more to it than pure lazyness and its probably that condesending attitude of your customer base which is a factor to business moving out of the area.

To Johnny's earlier point its a collective effort, residents, business owners and the council that all need to start talking up the town not just one group.

Annasopra

Calhoun wrote: »

If people complain against a council they voted for what do they expect? Like you said they do need to get off their arse to do something.

Hang on a second - They have been doing things - As I pointed out above -

It's so easy to say crap like - councillors are lazy blah blah blah yet even when I point out the positive things that they have done in a year people STILL find time to moan :mad:

Judgement Day

Johnnymcg wrote: »

Hang on a second - They have been doing things - As I pointed out above -

It's so easy to say crap like - councillors are lazy blah blah blah yet even when I point out the positive things that they have done in a year people STILL find time to moan :mad:

OK - I won't post on this again until I visit me old hometown and then with pics....