Toxteth has had some rotten luck over the decades.
Neglected by a City Council more concerned by yuppie flats and adding to the Duke of Westminster’s fiefdom,than looking after its more run down places.
it is was always going to be a mammoth task to save anything in and around such a neglected area.
Wayne popped into the Florrie and was blown away by its
rebirth which was a result of people power and the prolonged tenacity of a
small group of local dedicated campaigners who have made something happen.
“When I was restoring listed buildings for a living it was
always a disappointment when on completion of the task, it actually looked like
nothing had been done".
I am afraid I was
one of those people on Saturday last who had to compliment all concerned because
it looked like it should have and would have.
But it is hard to
believe that this place never had a roof and had water creeping into it for
ages.
The saving grace was that it was
built of such good glazed brick that did exactly what it should have done, and kept
out the elements and protect the structure despite the roof falling in.
This wasn’t a council job in fact it is a shame that ex council leader Warren
Bradley had been driving his fire applicance around his beat, which is Toxteth, probably
turned the hose pipe to put out fires there on numerous occasions.
We lost Beaufort Street school just over the way as a direct result of
Warren “warzone” Bradley’s ineptitude to be able to look further than his nose
and comprehend the state of affairs that was Toxeth’s decline.
It is a breath of fresh air to know that there are people
who get up off their behinds, believe in quality of community and put their
energy and commitment into something that can give them the sense of
satisfaction for being involved in a mammoth task that will probably not
benefit them financially.
But how can you sum up a group whose dedication will
benefit the whole of Toxteth.
The
Florrie could be Toxeth’s Albert Dock, its turning point, its navigation out of
the doldrums. Looking to the future but
remembering the past. And more
importantly showing a sense of community is at the heart of Toxteth, still, no
matter what it has been through.
I bumped into Tom Calderbank, who
I was as impressed today as I was with him years ago when I first met him. Though he is not the only one, he is typical
of the people that have made this happen and I have to take my hat off to
them. If this city has more people who
understood the depth of their community can start from the ghosts of old buildings
it would be on the path to greatness, stirring a course away from the recent
homogenisation.
Thank God Urban
Splash didn’t get their hands on this.
With the renovation of Toxeth Town Hall there is a now a key
series of buildings that can make people believe again.
Maybe they could tackle the library in Lodge
Lane now, which seems to have been ignored by Louise Ellman and co, while
declaring the decimation of the central docks in the WHS would be of benefit to Liverpool,
thus abandoning the need to infill those parts of the Dingle that desperately
need bringing back to life. Transferring much needed Toxteth jobs up river.
Tom showed me around and showed me the Great Hall, with its
beamed ceiling and its sense of history.
There is a Heritage Centre showing scenes from the past. The Gymnasium is being restored where the
likes of Alan Rudkin trained and generations before met.
The Cafe now has cream scones and tea and
they hope to be supplying it from the allotments next door in the future. There is an overall feeling of friendship and
enthusiasm. And I hope the trench lines
have been drawn, and from now it is forward marching and forward thinking encompassing
the spirit of Toxeth.
The Florrie can be
held up as what can be achieved and give inspiration for other historic
building in and around the Toxeth/Dingle area.
The grand opening on 18th July will be performed
by Jimmy Tarbuck. More details can be
founmd www.theflorrie.org.
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