The Greater Manchester town centre going through a reboot – but will it succeed?

There was a time when amateur historian Bill Sumner’s social life revolved around Stretford town centre.

He’s a key member of the ‘Remembering Stretford’ Facebook group where there are hundreds of images of how the town used to be and part of an online community hooked on nostalgic images of the town.

Remembering Stretford

Brought up in Gorse Hill, 74-year-old retired joiner and builder has lived in Stretford all his life and bore witness in the 1960s as the Arndale, or what we now know as Stretford Mall, swallowed up the old King Street.

And he’s watching now from his home with his wife Larraine, also 74, not far away on Talbot Road, as Trafford council and its joint-venture partner Bruntwood remodel the town centre yet again at a cost of about £50m.

Uppermost in those plans is the re-emergence of King Street as an open-air thoroughfare in an apparent attempt to recreate that traditional town centre vibe.

The key question for Bill and the Stretfordians who would love it to become as vibrant as neighbouring Chorlton, Didsbury, Sale and Urmston is, will it succeed?

“I’ve got to admit I’m quite cynical,” he said. “Back in the day, King Street was a busy street where you met all your neighbours.

“People go on about the old buildings in Stretford and how grand they were, but they were practically falling down when they were converted into shops.

“I loved the precinct. In 1966 I was working on some of those old premises and they were manky. They needed millions spending on them. They didn’t do anything wrong by pulling them down.

“I would be happy with a new centre, but it’s only going to be 100 yards long.

“I had friends from Flixton, Chorlton, Urmston and Sale and I used to meet them all in Stretford, because it was central. Can it be like that again? I don’t know.”

And he went on: “Back in the day, King Street was a busy street where you met all your neighbours. But these days you wouldn’t meet your neighbours. Your neighbours are all having stuff delivered.”

White City, Stetford

Bill reckons that Stretford will struggle to reestablish itself as a shopping centre because of the close proximity of the White City complex.

“Stretford is different to the other areas of Manchester,” he said: “A few years ago it was reported that 65per cent of the population of Stretford have been here less than five years. “Now, it’s more like three years. That’s a big turnover. It’s a town of first-time buyers and renters.

“Remembering Stretford has nearly 10,000 members, but nearly 2,000 of those people are living abroad, which is quite remarkable.”

And Bill alluded to the traffic congestion which is now evident in both directions through Stretford in and out of Manchester at rush hour.

He said: “You’ve got between 10,000 and 10,000 people living in the centre of Manchester. Twelve to 15 years ago, it was around 600. That means the rush hour traffic is moving in both directions, whereas the road towards town used to be empty.”

Meanwhile, moving images of Stretford how it used to be continue to be posted on the Facebook site.

A post from its administrators says: “Did you grow up there or visit family members on a regular basis? Any photos, past or present, are welcome. Let’s remember why we left there/or stayed put.”

One contributor has posted: “Moving back to Stretford next year to be nearer to my family. I have not lived there for over 50 years.

“I lived in Chorlton for many years, so I saw Stretford decline after work left Trafford Park. Then the Trafford Centre saw the decline of the centre.

“Hopefully when all the redevelopment work is finished the centre will be better than before. Stretford when I lived there was really only a suburb of Manchester. When I was older most of my social life was spent in Manchester.”