Lewes Forum thread

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Gridlock traffic and the underground carpark??

On 3 May 2016 at 10:18pm if art wrote:

It's a bit embarrassing, yet this is the first time I've walked up southerham hill prompted by photo with the shepherd!! better late than never.. Since finding a few photo's of old at the tip I've been bit quite a journey collecting over 400 images and getting to know the old layout of Lewes, its big demolition late 70s into the 80's with the tunnel and oneway system, supermarkets etc.. Now with the North street Qtr coming on can't really see how the traffic in and out of town will get any better only worst.. The ongoing building at Hailsham and on the cheaper land along the A27 will only bring more traffic etc.. Going to need one hell of an underground carpark on the old phoenix place for the tourists and happy shoppers and where will the cars from the 415 flats/house and 450+ workers from the jobs created be parking each day and night??
see link: This postcard shows a shepherd and his dog watching over a Southdown flock just above Southerham. In the distance can be seen the Southerham chalkpits and limeworks. The publisher is not named.

Check it out here »

On 4 May 2016 at 9:40am if art wrote:

A few words on town planning, from a thought provoking paper written about the changing townscape of Lewes Town by Jim Franks
The High Street had, traditionally, provided much of the towns retail food needs but by the 1980s there had been a shift of shopping emphasis from the top to the bottom of the High st as the Eastgate development made its presence felt. Boots and Safeway had an impact, and the building of new shops on the Greyfriars side of the high street made the 'bridge end' of the street the place for retailers to be. Soon, in addition to the Eastgate development, there was a Tesco supermarket on the eastern riverbank, north of the new bridge, acting as a magnet for every-day shoppers. It claimed to be able to cope with almost all everyday shopping needs. Shop owners west of Eastgate, on school hill and at 'the top of town' were forced to look for specialist shop tenants or to suffer vacant premises. They tended to look to service providers - building societies, estate & travel agents and the like.. Charity shops abounded..
It was not just the retailers who populated the bridge end of the high st. Lewes's industrial base had changed significantly from heavy to light industry, combining the production of specialist goods with retail outlets and occupying newly constructed sheds in North St, Brooks rd and the riverside..
Jim Franks 2002
2016 Quote from North Street Qtr developments: A joint application to regenerate the largest brownfield site in the South Downs National Park in the historic county town of Lewes was approved by the South Downs National Park Authority Planning Committee. The scheme will deliver 416 new homes, 40 per cent of them affordable, which is a first for the area; 140,000 sq ft of workspace accommodating 475 registered full-time jobs; new riverside walkways, including a foot and cycle bridge across the river, as well as a health centre to serve 26,000 patients. It also includes a large undercroft pay on exit carpark, to support the wider town centre and tourism in the town.
THATS A LOT MORE PEOPLE AND CARS FOLKS..

On 4 May 2016 at 1:29pm Not me pal wrote:

I don't go to towns that a) have ridiculous meters everywhere. b) have rip off traps like near Waitrose.

On 4 May 2016 at 7:54pm Nosey Parker wrote:

@Not me pal ..
You refer to rip off traps like near Waitrose. Have you found a way to actually PAY to park alongside Laura Ashley? If you have, can you let us know?
As far as I can tell, it's a patch of private land painted up to look like a public car park, but if there is no way of paying, it must be something different ... What, though?