When will Wakefield Council wake up and arrest the decline of our city centre? - Yorkshire Post Letters

The recent article by Bob Robinson (June 1) on town centre changes was illuminating, especially his reference to Barnsley ‘as an example of a place where proactive steps have been taken to transform the town centre’. In particular ‘the thriving market hall and food court packed with independent, local businesses’.

Compare this to Wakefield city centre. Not only has the Council destroyed what was an excellent market, but the whole area is scruffy and unattractive.

When was the last time the paving adjacent to the Cathedral was cleaned, or the piles of bird droppings removed?

When I have raised concerns in the past over the unsightly large areas of blacktop, the answer is always that ‘improvements are in the pipeline’. What pipeline?

I commend the Council for the improvements to, and restoration of, buildings in Lower Westgate. However, will these be enough to attract shoppers into Wakefield whilst the present conditions remain?

From my own experience, shoppers are now deserting Wakefield for Barnsley, Castleford, or Leeds. When will Wakefield Council wake up, and arrest the decline of our city centre?