Closing Afflecks would be an act of cultural vandalism. Bruntwood won't be happy until they own all of Manchester and it is a bland corporate world of flats and offices with their logo emblazoned upon everything.
This is a Manchester institution which is what differentiates the place from anywheresville UK. It also gives people the chance to start their own businesses and has much wider benefits to the local econonmy
To take away Afflecks would be another step in ripping the heart out of Britain's finest Cities. The Silver Arcade in Leicester went, quickly followed by Liverpool's Quiggins. If Manchester lost Afflecks its loss would be immeasurable.
How can anyone even contemplate closing this fantastic piece of Manchester culture? Probably by sitting there thinking of how much money they can make! Money being the only thing that seemingly matters in the world now. KEEP AFFLECKS!
This all seems odd, Aflex palace is the reason the northern quarter was ever considered cool vibrant and exciting, to remove it just turn the northern quarter into another well marketed souless housing development.
Well how typical is this of modern capitalist manchester. I aint a communist, i aint a hippy and aint anythin like this. But it does my head in how these business men couldnt care less about the youth or the people of the town their workin in. All funding goes on pointless big wheels, office building, fancy hotels that no normal working class person could afford to go (even the hotel on the middle floor off the hilton is over priced, and you cant wear trainers!!). Manchester started the industrial revolution, and the peoples revolution. Where great minds from working class victorian Manchester had a vision of a city, that would be for the people, run by the people. Not by fat cats that knew nothing about how life was in the city. Just visit the town hall, designed by working class people, built by working class people. Then look at the trade hall, same scenario. Manchesters now turned into a corporate hole where money is now the priority and not the people. Everything are great granparents a city forefathers fought against. What would Alfred Waterhouse (thow a scouser, he built many of the iconic buildings in manchester) think off modern Manchester that seems to reversing threw the history books instead of moving forward. Its one big joke
Afflecks is as much a part of Manchester culture as Camden Market is to London. I must be allowed to stay open and provide alternative choices to those not obsessed with mortgage sized credit card bills and the latest designer labels.
