It's fairly quiet on Secret Leeds at present so I thought (hope!) this may be of interest.
I noticed on June 7 2016 that a quotation was being painted on part of the long-vacant old Lyons building on Templar Lane, so I took the first photo here. I took the second photo on June 9 when the second row was still being painted. I had expected it would have all been done when I was there on June 14 but the third row was not finished then, so the third photo here showing the full quotation was taken on June 16 2016.
It's good to see the building being used for something pending its renovation and use at some stage as part of the proposed redevelopment of the area.
The old Lyons building on Templar Lane (taken June 7 2016).
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The old Lyons building on Templar Lane (taken June 9 2016).
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The old Lyons building on Templar Lane (taken June 16 2016).
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A rainbow is a ribbon that Nature puts on when she washes her hair.
The Yorkshire Evening Post (YEP) has an almost full page report on page 3 today (July 12 2016) about the 'massive public art installation' quotation on the Lyons Works building. The YEP has caught up .
A rainbow is a ribbon that Nature puts on when she washes her hair.
It surprised me to find that the lettering has been up such a long time. However, passing by on July 6 2021 I noticed that the letters are no longer there. They were still there though as recently as a week or so back, so they must have been removed very recently. I have added 2 photos that I took on July 6 2021 from the Templar Street car park.
I wonder when the area will finally get redeveloped as the whole area looks so depressing with its long out of use buildings such as Templar House, Lyons Works and Circle House.
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LyonsWorksFromTemplarStCarParkLeedsJuly062021(2)..jpg (113.46 KiB) Viewed 3149 times
A rainbow is a ribbon that Nature puts on when she washes her hair.
Perhaps this is evidence that the demand for traditional retail space is collapsing faster than the planners can plan. Perhaps John Lewis are already regretting opening their new store which I believe is much smaller than the original project.
Perhaps they are considering a new International Pool - or something like Leek Street flats.
I don't think the John Lewis store is smaller than planned but the overall development is as it was originally planned to stretch as far as the inner ring road and even beyond. I don't think it will ever be developed as retail space unless it is distribution/wharehousing for internet shopping. Rents/rates would have to drop to out of town prices but I suspect other than bar/restaurant culture the demand for City living space may also drop meaning rent and rates follow.
living a stones throw from the Leeds MDC border at Lofthousehttp://tykebhoy.wordpress.com/
It is perhaps slightly relevant that the John Lewis store in Birmingham, which was opened after the Leeds one and was the centre of the "shopping" above new street station has been closed after only a few years
It is perhaps slightly relevant that the John Lewis store in Birmingham, which was opened after the Leeds one and was the centre of the "shopping" above new street station has been closed after only a few years
Same in York, it never reopened
Is this the end of the story ...or the beginning of a legend?
I do wonder if John Lewis Partnership's current problems are a bit greater than the general downturn for traditional retail.
I remember watching a tv documentary only a few years ago, probably coinciding with the opening of the store in Brum mentioned above. Glitzy doesn't begin to describe it. The star of the show then was Andy Street, their MD for the decade 2007 - 2016. That was a period of rapid expansion at JLP when retail more generally was shrinking. He left before it went wrong, becoming the elected Mayor of the West Midlands. Perhaps he saw the writing on the wall, if not on the Lyons building illustrated above.
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