I go back 'home' to Bolton a half dozen times or so a year to see family. I grew up from the age of nine on the north-eastern edge of town, close to the West Pennine Moors. It's a sweet spot and, on a bright day, a bit of heaven. On wet days you think a lot about things you might do on a bright day. You don't want to be unprepared. I left in instalments: college; first proper job; marriage and buying a home. All somewhere else. Despite the regular visits and a lifelong sense of 'connection', I have largely lost touch with the town's reality beyond our locality and its surrounds. On my latest trip I had a few more days, so went on a wander around to see the town centre again, up close and personal. A great few hours.
The Bolton I knew as a boy and younger adult was bright and busy, even boastful, despite the wider economic malaises of the 70s and 80s. It was a jewel. It punched above its weight. Smart, fine spaces and architecture, and lots of shops and people. It's still strong looking and very attractive. But so many of the shops have now gone. Some large and once mighty; others small and once solid. The number of empty premises is striking. Of course, many towns have closed-down shops, boarded-up and waiting. But too many of them can unravel the fabric and viability of town centres as people stay away and spending increasingly flies elsewhere. There are many reasons: incomes; spending online and out-of-town, or in re-born Manchester and thriving Bury; prohibitive rents and leases; and past planning and development decisions. It may get worse as the once regal M&S asks 'should we stay or should we go'. But it might also get better. There are some good things happening and in the pipeline. Areas of the town have recently been improved and last year a £1 billion 'masterplan' to re-develop the town centre was announced. There's too much empty space for retail to be king again in an Amazon age. The future has to be different to the past. Getting more people back into the town centre, to live, work or play, is crucial to stopping the 'emptying' process. More residential, more open spaces, not just new shops and cafes that then leave others empty. A virtuous cycle can potentially kick-in and, who knows, the shops and others will come again. Bolton's plan starts with the re-development of the old bus station, sat derelict since last year when a new bus terminal was opened. This will include a large number of new homes right in the centre of town. The broader plans are certainly ambitious. I hope these photos on a sunny afternoon show the beauty and brilliance of Bolton alongside some of its present realities.
