City on road to greater success

Jun 5 2009 by Peter McCusker, The Journal

IRONICALLY a museum which showcases ancient artefacts is showing Newcastle the way ahead for a modern city.

The Great North Museum is a fantastic collection of buildings which have been redesigned to make the past more accessible and the journey through it more exciting.

Architect Sir Terry Farrell’s master-plan for the area including the new museum, university and city centre envisages a ‘Geordie Ramblas’ stretching down from the Haymarket to the quayside.

It may be too bold, romantic and impractical for some but it is the sort of shake-up Newcastle needs to move forward. New ideas and big changes keep the fizz in a compact city.

Farrell’s masterplan for the Quayside 20 years ago was hugely successful because it connected an assortment of buildings, public space, art and waterfront to shift the focus of the city from the centre to the river.

His equally confident plans to reshape Newcastle’s central retail area and create a ‘cultural quarter’ at the north of the city could echo the impressive impact produced at the quayside. Without Tyne and Wear Development Corporation’s ability to fund and drive such major urban projects, however, it may take years if not decades for this project to be realised.

The launch of the Great North Museum is a cheering first step. The past appears to have a bright future in our region. Museums and key visitor attractions are central to our tourism and development strategies and are increasingly entrepreneurial businesses.

Their funding requires energy, imagination and hard-nosed commercial acumen to supplement visitor fees and uncertain grants.

The bigger picture, recasting Newcastle’s central area for this century, may take time but should be seen as a priority.

The city’s ability to dazzle residents, visitors and investors with imaginative schemes has kept business, shopping and nightlife strong, robust sectors for many years. The recession is now battering retail and business. New investment and bold ideas are needed to create future success for Newcastle.

The Great North Museum exudes vivacity, fresh thinking, character and the ability to fascinate. The ambitious £26m, three-year project has created a world-class museum right on our doorstep.

If the momentum is extended to recast Newcastle’s retail route as a bustling, busy ‘Ramblas’ from Haymarket to Quayside it could become the backbone of a re-energised modern city.

Nicholas Craig, Watson Burton law firm