Sites for sore eyes ...

Let's hope English

Heritage isn't disappointed

Stand by your boots with your bed in your hand ... English Heritage are coming to town today for a walkabout to see some of Boston's historic sights.
Because English Heritage is a quango, no fewer that 23 people will be paying us a visit - including the chairman Baroness Andrews, the chief executive Dr Simon Thurley and regional director
Anthony Street.
And as if spending your Tuesday trooping the mean streets of Boston wasn't enough, the visitors will be entertained by a presentation from Steve Lumb, the council’s head of planning and strategy.
It was Mr Lumb, who in a radio interview some while back described Boston's heritage as: ..... "really second to none. Sometimes we smile when we compare it to York, but really it is very comparable to York  ... except York has had its money and in terms of listed buildings, in terms of  its archaeology. Really there is nothing much else to beat it (Boston) in the East Midlands."
Having visited York a time or two, we puzzled at Mr Lumb's comparison, and hope he doesn't try to hard to sell the notion too hard during today's talk.
In that same interview, English Heritage Historic Areas Advisor Clive Fletcher  referred to Boston  as “one of the most important market towns in the country, but it's more important than that even  - partially because of its past. It was a very important port in the medieval period - busier than London at times - so it was a very, very important medieval town and because of that it's got a great heritage of medieval building and also  medieval  archaeology. But unfortunately it's fallen on harder times. Over the past number of years it hasn't really had a great deal of investment in a lot of its historic properties so a lot of them are in danger of not collapse necessarily, though there are one or two like that, but certainly they're not being used because they can't be - holes in roofs and things like that - and also general decline in the quality of repairs to things like shop fronts and windows which we think we could possibly help with.”
But he also pointed out: “We don't invest massive amounts every year but when we're interested in a place we'll consistently invest over a period of time. It might take seven or eight years to regenerate a place. In Boston it might take longer"
As if that length of time wasn't bad enough, he then cited a programme in one town where they spent 15 years helping shop owners do their places up  and convert space over shops for residential  use.
According to the borough's latest bulletin, English Heritage's interest in Boston is long standing, and over the past few years it has been involved in heritage-led regeneration, and urban design, grant aid for urgent works, archaeology and planning advice and is now considering ideas for the Market Place and wider area.
All very fine, but if any more help is to be spread over a decade or more, the impact will be lost in time and will appear never to have happened. What Boston needs is quick action - and now.
We just hope that our visitors aren't too disappointed when they tour the town.
It's one thing to picture the place from papers and reports but when they see it in bricks and mortar we hope that they won't think our reputational pudding has been over-egged.

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