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Lights are turned off in crunch
Thursday 5th February 2009, 11:30AM GMT.
Walsall Illuminations will not run for the next three years – with question marks over its future beyond 2012.
The council has agreed to axe the attraction this year in a bid to save £170,000.
Spiralling costs and dwindling visitor numbers have dogged the annual event, which has been staged at the town’s Arboretum since 1951. Council leader John O’Hare said he hoped that it would return in 2012,.
He said: “We will look at it as soon as it becomes opportune. The Illuminations will be cancelled this year.
“They would have been cancelled the next two years for maintenance work anyway. We will be looking to see if during this period of time we could come up with a new concept which can bring it up to date.”
The move is among cost-cutting tactics in Walsall Council’s draft budget, which was approved by the cabinet last night. Other measures include the closure of the borough’s only municipal golf course, a reduction in library and leisure centre opening hours and a rise in the price of meals on wheels. The budget has been designed to claw back £12.8 million.
Job cuts will also be made at Walsall Council, but yesterday’s meeting was told that backroom management would be hit more than front-line employees.
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Such great vision from the Conservatives.
People still need to shop. The one thing that Walsall is known for is its Illuminations. Rather than managing their decline (with the obvious intention to scrap them once and for all), it would be braver, more imaginative and probably more successful to instead put even more money into the Illuminations to make them a national attraction – bringing visitors to the town, who then spend money in shops, on services, car parking, transport, food etc… the spin off would support the town in an economic downturn and kick start growth and new jobs.
But no. For the sake of the salary of the Chief Exec they cut the one thing apart from Walsall FC and the New Art Gallery that anyone outside of the midlands may possibly know about Walsall.
Thanks, Tories. Great thinking and courage.
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Ah well, no worries. Blackpool illuminations here we all come.
Cheaper anyway, even including the cost to get there and back.
I can’t offhand see the point in restarting them.
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I think they’ve used the same light display from 1951 too… Perhaps that’s why the number’s have dropped?!
Half of the kid’s these day’s have never heard of the shoe people…
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Shame…..been going there for 30 years. (except now they’ve changed the time of year) Always went in September withouut fail:-(
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Hmmm ….. Closing the municipal golf course at a time when increased exercise is on the national agenda and enforced leisure is caused by unemployment does not seem quite sensible to me. Maybe this thinking is the last hurrah of the backroom staff that are going.
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Agree with Rebecca up to a point. I think it is wise to re-group and re-launch after the refurb… but heard Mr O’Hare on the radio this morning and he appeared to be playing down questions about a relaunch saying they ‘may’ look at ideas for a different format… something more modern and interactive. I think that a clear vision is needed that doesn’t exclude anyone under ten. For a kiddie attraction (which is what it’s become) it is too expensive and problematic on cold wet school nights. You’ve got to attract adults and couples as well by making it classier… It’s a great park with a lakeside setting and should look spectacular lit up… but I can only take so much of spongebob squarepants!
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Sad day. My 2 year old daughter had a great night there last year. I’m just glad I took some photos as a keep sake for her, as I will doubt it will ever start up again.
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The illuminations is about the only thing that brightens up the drab, dreary town centre that Walsall has become. The beautiful sylvian Arboretum roundabout has been ripped out and replaced with an ugly, ill-conceived traffic light junction. This is such a retrospective step. What’s going to happen to the golf course; will it become overgrown and litter-strewn like much of the Borough?
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I have always been as a child, and since my son was born we have taken him yearly. It will be a great shame if these are not going to be on anymore. They could maybe attract more visitors if these are put on earlier – I’m sure they used to be? Last year the weather was bad, the year before we planned to go and the bad weather forced us to cancel three times! The year before that we went twice! Try New light displays(more modern maybe)they are almost identical each year with one new attraction, and maybe a little earlier, before the Britigh eather gets us. If they want to save costs the big bosses at the council could not recieve the fat bonuses….
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I think it’s a shame, the lights are a great night out.
I’m going to have a baby in August and was looking forward to going to the lights but wont be able too now.
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Now we need to sack the entire Events Team, undoubtably the most useless department in the UK. The Town Hall is in danger of closing because they have refused to move with the times and offer only choirs and organ grindings. We have no theatre and despite countless opportunities the council have shown zero interest in developing any facility. The Council jealously knocked down the Littleton Arms which attracted nationally known acts to Walsall. They closed and now wish to knock down the Garage Arts Centre, and they also got rid of the People’s Festival and Folk Festival.
So, with the illuminations gone, what are the Events Team actually for now? Make them and the Creative Development Team redundant immediately and save a fortune. These people have arrogantly taken as much as £40000 a year to find excuses to do nothing before returning home to Birmingham where they can enjoy their evenings out. Surely they’ve gone too far now. If Walsall has to die why the hell should we pay for it?
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Pleasure for a majority taken away, yet money on a minority continued to be wasted. Says it all about British Councils no matter who they are.
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Comment “2″ – Martin Davies: “Ah well, no worries. Blackpool illuminations here we all come. Cheaper anyway, even including the cost to get there and back.”
Martin – I would be happy for you to explain to me how travelling up to Blackpool (116 miles and 2.5 – 3 hours journey) to see the lights is cheaper than my £1 bus fare (4 miles) and £5 entrance to Walsall lights?!
So, a 5 hour minimum roundtrip and 232 miles return! Thats about £40 in fuel and half the day wasted travelling. Not to mention the rip off prices for refreshments and other “attractions!.
Hmmmm….Not convinced you have done your homework there!
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Sad day, not surprised with the decision – shame for that company that received all of the money to consult on the lights,they will have to find other mugs !
Stay warm over there -15 C here on Ohio
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Cutting back funding for Libaries,Golf Course,Leisure,Old Fols Homes,haven*t heard any of these councillours cutting back on thier funding yet
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Maybe they will make the xmas lights better in the town, or even use the old illuminations lights, recycle is a good thing.
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Thought it was 1.70 these days on the bus?
But i did go for the first time ever last year the kids loved iit BUT could be a bit cheaper on entrance and teh food inside cheaper as well.
But as with the UK they sell things more expensive in teh hopes to make a profit.
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We did the Blackpool trip last year after discovering how expencive Walsall Illuminations were. And, for us as a family Blackpool worked out much better value for money.
I just hope the council now use the money they have saved to make the town attractive -just like the route the Queen took when she came to visit the New Art Gallery! :-)
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Number 16 – Richard
Please dont put it into the councils heads to recycle the Arboretum lights and use them for the xmas display in the town. I just dont fancy walking up Park Street and having a giant spongebob or Postman Pat flashing annoyingly while i do my christmas shopping thanks – However, while on the subject i hope they get a proper tree with proper lights on this year.
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I visited the illuminations last year for the first time in about 20 years: I felt the whole event was very downmarket. For example, there are throngs of street traders outside selling what can only be described as tat. A lot of the lights I saw 20 years ago were still there and the catering facilities are truly awful; the usual predictable burger vans and candy floss vans. I’d be interested to know how many people used the Log Flume ride a few years ago; it’s not the sort of thing I’d fancy on a cold winter night.
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13 – Mark. I and my family going to the lights in Walsall is over £20. Car travel to Blackpool, including driving through lights, I can do for under £20 in fuel costs. Amazing how economical a 5 seater car is these days.
And have a much better experience. Oh, and only a little over 2 hours each way.
Rip off prices I can get in Walsall or Blackpool. Or if I shop around, cheap prices in either place.
Blackpool illuminations are much bigger, change more and have better displays than Walsall. And can drive through them.
Walsall illuminations sole attraction is location. And no choice but to walk it, in whatever weather.
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21. Martin
i must agree, costs me £20.00 to fill up car, thats a punto 1.4 btw. to get to blackpool, and there is a lot more for the little ones to do, there’s free entertainment, themed lights that are up to date i.e doctor who, night garden etc. not some old lights that kids today dont know, and exciting fireworks to watch the end of the night. oh yeah and when TopGear Opened it up that was really good, must admit beats Walsall, and im from Walsall work that out :D Black pool Again this year oohhhh yes
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Just another nail in the Walsall coffin why don’t the council just put up town closed signs on every road leading to Walsall.just wait for the tumble weed to blow through the streets of my home town.Well was i would never live back in the town for the simple fact i would refuse to pay my council tax to such a shamble of a council regardless of what party controls it.It is perhaps a good idea too as the shambolic reconstuction of the arboretum island would take visitors longer to get through the junction than to get around the lights.I have now finished my moan!!!!!!!!!! perhaps these visitors could try a night out at the Banks’s stadium instead
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Comments 21 & 22:
Walsall lights and Blackpool lights are not mutually exclusive! You can do both. Yes, of course Blackpool lights are a more impressive spectacle than Walsall and Blackpool offers lots of other entertainment experiences, but what if I just want to “pop to see the lights” for an hour after work at 7pm on the evening?
I am there in 10 mins. Thats simply not possible with Blackpool is it with a 5 hour round trip! You would have to plan that trip and likely do it on a weekend or during holidays. Then its an entire day out.
They are different things and that was my point.
It was great to have that option to “pop to see the lights” after work in the evening, but now its gone.
The Blackpool experience is quite a different thing (like comparing popping down the adventure playground vs having a day out at Alton Towers!).
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Mark, for the next 3 years Blackpool is the only place for the illuminations.
Whats the odds the council will be willing to spend money in 3 years time to do up the lights, attract visitors and so on?
Once you lose customers, much harder to get them back.
While I’d be pleased if we ever got illuminations here again, I think its unlikely.
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