Thumbs up if you're thinking .." What ever happened to my home town "!? Andover used to be full of colour ,architecture , open spaces and 'people' in the street ! It looks like ghost town now ( 2019) Lifeless ,bland and lacking any 'energy'. It's time that ultra conservative landlords and council stopped hiking up their rent/rates and driving small businesses away. I know..times have changed, but maybe we should do something about the lack of support of new business ventures . I was born here , and these pictures show Andover as I remember it . It is 'people' that make the town - not fly by night entrepreneurs. Andover needs colour.... street life and a little bit of good luck and magic.
If people didn't shop online so much then the shops would still be open. But they won't stop using Amazon and those shops will never re-open again, they are now surplus to requirements. They will have to be re-purposed; fine for some of the older buildings in on the High Street, they can be turned into pubs, restaurants, cafes, homes, offices etc. Unfortunately what do you do with 1960s retail units in a shopping centre that closes at 6pm in the week and at 4pm on Sunday? That space is good for nothing apart from retail, and retail ain't coming back. Maybe they should have not demolished those lovely Georgian and Victorian buildings that were there before? They could have at least be turned into something else.
moved there in 1967 and lived on Admirals Way for 2 years before we Emigrated to Australia in 1969, I guess the London overspill was part of the problem and I was part of that problem..stayed in Aussie for 7 years, came back to England and visited Andover around 1977 - 78 and a few times after, it was a sprawl, Andovers quaintness had gone and it just became a faceless Town like any other..Older and Retired now and living on Koh Samui Thailand, still, I have some great memories of Andover and my Youth...
Andover has transformed from a attractive little market town to a town sprawling with huge social housing estates , an outcome going back to a decision made in the 50s where Andover was designated as an overflow town. The town has continued to grow in size since with new estates but the towns facilities have not kept up. A good example is the town centre. There are no longer any major stores, these have now all closed. 30 years ago there was once a CoOp department Store where Wilkos is today, and there was even before that a small Debenhams adjacent to the Danebury Hotel. The last major store M&S closed its doors only last year. What remains is the Chantry center where 50% of the stores are vacant, a high street dominated by discount shops and a market that is a shimmer from the past. With population growth one would expect more activity, but this has not been the case. I can only guess that this is related to another Andover failure, namely attracting businesses which pay good wages/salaries and offer good employment opportunities. Andover was once home to TSB (Bank HQ) long gone, Twinnings Tea who relocated their production to Poland and companies like Furniture Factory’s and engineering companies like Stannah Lifts, Britax, Taskers, Plessey Marine who have all been replaced by low pay warehousing, menial service companies. It is sad to see the town continue to decline and looking increasingly tired. Worse go outside Andover to other surrounding towns e.g Newbury , a town of a similar size, but a town that is faring considerably better.
TSB turned into Lloyds which employs 800 people in the town (right on Charlton Road, you can't miss it). Twinings and Stannah are still there. Andover's not perfect, but let's not unnecessarily talk down the town. High streets are dying all over the country because of the internet. If the demand was there then the shops would open (or stay open).
Grew up in Andover 1952 to 1972. Lived away all my adult life but now building a OO gauge model of Andover Junction station circa 1960. Very interested in getting a copy of the shot of Charlton Road as it shows the back of the engine shed. Also shots of any other buildings around the station in that period. Any help much appreciated.
I was born in 2000 and lived here my entire life. I only wish that the town looked similar to this than it does now. This makes me upset to see how it used to be, and the state that it's in now. Makes you really wonder what the council are doing. Especially with the new stores popping up and down all over the time. I might actually buy a plot in the centre and see about setting up the old book shop, same look and style.
Thumbs up if you're thinking .." What ever happened to my home town "!? Andover used to be full of colour ,architecture , open spaces and 'people' in the street ! It looks like ghost town now ( 2019) Lifeless ,bland and lacking any 'energy'. It's time that ultra conservative landlords and council stopped hiking up their rent/rates and driving small businesses away. I know..times have changed, but maybe we should do something about the lack of support of new business ventures . I was born here , and these pictures show Andover as I remember it . It is 'people' that make the town - not fly by night entrepreneurs. Andover needs colour.... street life and a little bit of good luck and magic.
If people didn't shop online so much then the shops would still be open. But they won't stop using Amazon and those shops will never re-open again, they are now surplus to requirements. They will have to be re-purposed; fine for some of the older buildings in on the High Street, they can be turned into pubs, restaurants, cafes, homes, offices etc. Unfortunately what do you do with 1960s retail units in a shopping centre that closes at 6pm in the week and at 4pm on Sunday? That space is good for nothing apart from retail, and retail ain't coming back. Maybe they should have not demolished those lovely Georgian and Victorian buildings that were there before? They could have at least be turned into something else.
moved there in 1967 and lived on Admirals Way for 2 years before we Emigrated to Australia in 1969, I guess the London overspill was part of the problem and I was part of that problem..stayed in Aussie for 7 years, came back to England and visited Andover around 1977 - 78 and a few times after, it was a sprawl, Andovers quaintness had gone and it just became a faceless Town like any other..Older and Retired now and living on Koh Samui Thailand, still, I have some great memories of Andover and my Youth...
Andover has transformed from a attractive little market town to a town sprawling with huge social housing estates , an outcome going back to a decision made in the 50s where Andover was designated as an overflow town. The town has continued to grow in size since with new estates but the towns facilities have not kept up. A good example is the town centre. There are no longer any major stores, these have now all closed. 30 years ago there was once a CoOp department Store where Wilkos is today, and there was even before that a small Debenhams adjacent to the Danebury Hotel. The last major store M&S closed its doors only last year. What remains is the Chantry center where 50% of the stores are vacant, a high street dominated by discount shops and a market that is a shimmer from the past. With population growth one would expect more activity, but this has not been the case. I can only guess that this is related to another Andover failure, namely attracting businesses which pay good wages/salaries and offer good employment opportunities. Andover was once home to TSB (Bank HQ) long gone, Twinnings Tea who relocated their production to Poland and companies like Furniture Factory’s and engineering companies like Stannah Lifts, Britax, Taskers, Plessey Marine who have all been replaced by low pay warehousing, menial service companies. It is sad to see the town continue to decline and looking increasingly tired. Worse go outside Andover to other surrounding towns e.g Newbury
, a town of a similar size, but a town that is faring considerably better.
TSB turned into Lloyds which employs 800 people in the town (right on Charlton Road, you can't miss it). Twinings and Stannah are still there. Andover's not perfect, but let's not unnecessarily talk down the town. High streets are dying all over the country because of the internet. If the demand was there then the shops would open (or stay open).
Grew up in Andover 1952 to 1972. Lived away all my adult life but now building a OO gauge model of Andover Junction station circa 1960. Very interested in getting a copy of the shot of Charlton Road as it shows the back of the engine shed. Also shots of any other buildings around the station in that period. Any help much appreciated.
I was born in 2000 and lived here my entire life.
I only wish that the town looked similar to this than it does now.
This makes me upset to see how it used to be, and the state that it's in now.
Makes you really wonder what the council are doing. Especially with the new stores popping up and down all over the time.
I might actually buy a plot in the centre and see about setting up the old book shop, same look and style.
Destroyed by counselors of that time and its never stopped.
Burden Fruiterers!
Andover is a boring town tbh