Geoff Hicks Photography - Clay Cross Redevelopment

2011-02-27T11:03:00.015Z

Well, it's been nearly three months since the opening of the new Clay Cross Tesco, and now it's like it's always been there. Activity on the site has slowed right down. A new car parking area close to the town centre is in operation, and the new Spiritualist Church is finished. It has a lovely Peter Maris sculpture on the rear wall facing Bridge Street. Peter has been beavering away in his local workshop on more sculptures and panels (see picture).

Once planning issues have been sorted out, we expect the second phase of the development to start in the Spring. in the meantime, NEDDC are working hard at attracting shoppers into Market street - there's a lovely mural (see picture) on the access road to the store.

In the meantime, if you want to see some more of my images, Allison Westray Chapman from NEDDC has kindly agreed to put some of them up at the Coney Green Business Centre in Clay Cross. Their website is at http://www.coney-green.co.uk/.

Coney Green Business Centre offers a friendly reception service to meet and greet visitors, staffed between 8.30am to 5pm Monday to Friday. It also offers serviced office suites and workshops, industrial units and excellent conference and meeting facilities.

2010-12-06T12:33:00.002Z

Having managed to dig my way out of my drive, I took a trip round Clay Cross Sunday afternoon. I guess we had around two feet of snow between Tuesday 30 November and Saturday 4 December. Happily the new store car park was mostly clear, with piles of snow up to 5m high at the edges. Gritters had been at work on the new link road and round the car park and bus station. And the store looked ready. I'm told that Peak FM are publicising the store's opening this morning. Good luck chaps - here's to phase 2. I'll post some images this evening, but there are some on Flickr.

2010-11-27T23:13:00.004Z

I see Blogger have recently added a hit counter to the options menu, so I've included it (see right). I guess this is total hits since I started the blog on 24 January 2010.
PS: 4" of snow in Clay Cross this morning, and it was still there at 22:00, with temperatures at minus 6.0 deg. I hope the new link road is on a gritter route.

2010-11-26T15:19:00.005Z

The new link road was opened to traffic this afternoon at about 14:30. I just happened to be in the Cross. All the barriers had been taken away, replaced by lines of cones. A sure sign. Sure enough, half an hour later, the cones had gone, and there were large numbers of people in full PPE (including David) looking very pleased with themselves. So I was probably one of the first officially to drive down the new road (and back). Well done chaps. I know how it feels - you must be very proud that another important stage in the process is completed.
PS I wonder what the stage 3 safety audit picked up?
PPS I wonder what it's going to be called? New Bridge Street sounds logical. Up to NEDDC I guess. I hope it won't be a "Way" or an "Avenue".

2010-11-22T19:02:00.004Z

Two weeks to Tesco opening. This image shot through the store front window. I have to go through all sorts of permissions and inductions to go inside now, so best stay out of the way really. What struck me this morning was how the development has now completely transformed this corner of the town. Not just the store building, but the bus station, landscaping, changes to the road layout, the whole thing. It's as if the centre of gravity of the town has moved north 300 yards. Is that feeling shared by town centre traders and shoppers? What do you think? Here's your chance to comment.

2010-11-10T21:43:00.008Z

We're rushing headlong for (I'm told) a 6 December store opening. Everything is happening everywhere; trees planted, tarmac laid, lines painted, paving laid, chiller cabinets and gondolas being installed, phones connected, signs put up, you name it. I've posted two images (both captured yesterday): one looking in through the window (I liked the reflection of the spire and fire station tower) and the other showing the activity outside (compare this with the 16 October image).

2010-11-08T23:08:00.003Z

Well, I was going to do some more photography today but the weather said otherwise. Instead, I've done a bit of a retrospective on Flickr, looking out some images captured in January. It's only looking back that I can see which images weren't important then, but are now. There'll be more to come. I hope the weather clears up tomorrow - another site visit is planned for then. In the meantime, lights are burning in the new store...

2010-10-16T16:03:00.003+01:00

Two visits, one yesterday and the other today, to dodge the showers. Interior work on the Tesco store is well under way, with the final floor going in at breakneck speed. How these guys lay the floor tiles to line and level so accurately and so fast is beyond me. Also, the block paving for the Avenue (see Flickr)is going in, with its thin blue wavy line. The link road to the A61 is virtually complete, waiting for wearing course, with the new roundabout finished. The bus station has bus shelters. The mobility centre and new loos are nearly finished. The main store car park is looking more like a car park now than a building site. And the section of Bridge street north of the site, being improved by Derbyshire County Council, is looking nearly finished.

2010-09-29T22:08:00.004+01:00

My latest visit was last Saturday morning and (believe it or not) the sun was shining. Interior walls for the Tesco section of the main building were going in (see photo). The new roadway alongside Somerfields was being surfaced. The link road to the A61 is virtually finished. Less and less of Bridge Street is evident, with surfacing going on there as well. And Mr Bown and Mr Snape's premises have now disappeared (missed that, unfortunately). Somebody told me Tesco is less than 12 weeks from opening. I'll have to visit more often.
Also pictured is Aaron, who won the balloon race, receiving his prize (a signed football and tickets to the game) at the Chesterfield United ground last Friday.

2010-09-08T18:39:00.005+01:00

I did a quick site visit a week ago Saturday, the day after the open day. This is the new Tesco front door. I'll be going back in three months to see the great Clay Cross public disappearing through it, possibly.
There was a smell of blacktop in the air, always a sign that things are moving towards a completion date. The new link road from Bridge Street to the rear of Somerfields is in and being used by the public. A lot of the floor in the new Tesco is in to finished level. Blacktop is going down at the A61 junction. The car park is taking shape. And there are now two big information hoardings with a site plan, a mural and (yes) my digger image, with credits (see Flickr). Thanks, folks, what a great advert for geoff hicks photography.

2010-08-27T19:38:00.006+01:00

Well, the third GMI open day was a success, helped by the beautiful weather. Councillors, GMI and Tesco people combined to make it a great day with lots going on - art workshops, a football shoot-out competition, stands by local groups and organisations, and even a visit by the Spireites. Things really do have a sense of purpose now, and I am told that Tesco are starting their recruitment in earnest very soon now. In the meantime, here's a couple of images, featuring GMI Chairman Peter Gilman and the lovely Carolyn Lord, to keep you smiling.

2010-08-23T22:17:00.024+01:00

Somewhat belated, this one - how time does pass. I'm now busy preparing for the next OPEN DAY, to be held at the Clay Cross Social Centre on Friday 27 August from 11:00 - 17:00 (or thereabouts). Some prints of my images will be on display, plus a laptop slide show, plus loads of other things being cooked up by the GMI team (with help from Tesco).
You'll have noticed from walking round the site that this is now very much a Tesco project, what with bright new hoardings, people wandering round in hi-vis jackets with Tesco written on them (can I have one please?), and a getting-on-with-it atmosphere.

I must mention the girls form The Curiosity Shop, Market Street. The shop had its second anniversary the other week, so St Trinian's outfits were the order of the day. Sorry, girls, I did say I'd put this on the blog...

A lot has been going on in the background, as well. Public artist Peter Maris has been doing a number of projects with schools and youth groups, so much so that he's got a small workshop off Bridge Street to put all the art work in. Lots of it will be on display on the 27th. Some examples are on the Flickr site. Here are some more.
Do come along to the Social Centre on the 27th and have a look, and also introduce yourselves.

Finally, this image is of Public artist Peter Maris (centre) choosing stone for an art project at Stone and Slate Ltd. in Clay Cross. See their website at http://www.stoneandslate.ltd.uk/

2010-07-12T22:17:00.004+01:00

It rained all day. I got wet. So did everyone else on site. So did my camera lens, so quite a few ruined images, I'm afraid. The timber frame is coming on. Apparently it's Glulam - a timber laminate system, see http://www.glulamtimbersystems.co.uk. You're not looking at single pieces of timber, more many small pieces glued together. On the rest of the site, the line of the link road is clear from Bridge Street through to Derby Road, with a number of retaining walls nearing completion. Lots of drainage is going in at the southern end of the site. And Derbyshire County Council are cracking on with reconstructing Bridge Street south of Lower Mantle Close. The site offices resemble a small village.

2010-07-07T22:17:00.003+01:00

Construction of the store's timber frame started on Monday 5 July. See Flickr for a couple of images taken today. Timber frames are not common, but can result in spectacular interiors. I wonder how this one is going to turn out? This image is the result of converting to black and white and then cross processing in Photoshop. I might do some more fiddling with it.
The character of the site is really beginning to change now. The line of the link road can be clearly seen. Stuff is really starting to come out of the ground.

2010-06-30T17:41:00.005+01:00

More images of progess with the steel frame on Flickr today. Also, hoardings are now going up along Bridge Street (see this image), which is worrying. We won't be able to see what's going on on site, and this photographer's job is going to get more difficult! I know security's important, but I sincerely hope we'll get some viewing windows. Do say yes, GMI.

2010-06-24T20:20:00.001+01:00

Four days work...
Taken at close of play Thursday 24 June.

2010-06-23T20:44:00.000+01:00

The Tesco frame is cracking on. See the set on Flickr. Images on three consecutive days now.

2010-06-21T23:20:00.005+01:00

Construction of the steel frame for the Tesco building started today, on a 12 week programme. I hope to follow its progress by taking an image from the corner of the car park behind the job centre every day for the next week, and then possibly every 3-4 days after that. I'll post them on Flickr.
Supermarkets are the cathedrals of the modern age, both physically and spiritually. 200 years ago you were expected to go to church every Sunday, and other days as well. You were impressed by the size of the building, the space, the people and what went on in them. You went there to worship. Now, supermarkets fulfil much the same objectives, and have almost themselves become places where we worship consumerism. "Helping you spend less every day" means "helping you spend more every day". This image is of the first day's steel erection. The similarities to Stonehenge are striking in a number of ways. Is it a coincidence, then, that construction started on the Summer solstice?

2010-06-17T21:31:00.009+01:00

Sorry for the absence - big problems with the PC. It's been at the mender's. Does having to download a new RAW CODEC (among other things) mean anything to anybody? Anyway, another visit to the site on Tuesday 15 June after an absence of nearly four weeks sees big progress: a start by DCC on reconstructing the northern end of Bridge Street; a new retaining wall for the A61 link road; Footings in for the new Tesco store, with a start on steelwork expected next week; steel frames in and cladding under way on the small factory units at Lower Mantle Close; most muckshifting now completed. Here's an image looking away from town in Bridge Street, near where Sorrells used to be. More on Flickr.

2010-05-26T22:14:00.006+01:00

I've recently received images from two authors. First, through GMI, Marisa Cashill climbed the tower of the Adult Education Centre on 17 May and captured this panorama of the site. Thanks, Marisa. Click on the image to enlarge it. Second, Elaine Kirk lent me a number of photos taken in December 2002 of the Biwaters site. They're on my Clay Cross Flickr group page.

2010-05-10T16:42:00.001+01:00

Today I'm nearing the end of putting together a whole new batch of images to send off to GMI. It seems as though I took loads in January, February and March, but then that's been useful. I have sometimes looked back and thought that I should have taken an image from a particular location. Thing is, you can't often tell where the important places will be, except in retrospect. I'm trying to do three things. First, keep landmarks in the background of as many images as possible, so that I can come back later and shoot at the same spot after it's changed. Second, keep shooting at as many different places as possible. Third, throw nothing away.

2010-05-08T23:31:00.006+01:00

A tour of the site yesterday saw various amounts and types of piling going on. The vibro piler was in action on the main site. Over by Derby Road the traditional auger machine was being rigged ready for action, and it was working as I drove past today.
I get to talk to a lot of people, sometimes from inside the fence. A group of ladies posed for the camera. The guys running the vibro piling rig wanted to know what the chimneys at the side of Bridge Street were for, so I treated them to a very potted history of Clay Cross. The auger machine crew were from the Wakefield area.I met a man taking photographs from Bridge Street with a compact camera. He said he'd been to the open day and seen my images - nice. He didn't have access to the web, though. A man who lived round the back in Egstow Place said it was good not having the pallet yard any more, since it often caught fire. He quite liked the gabion wall. Next visit to the site will be at the end of May, but the blog will continue - lots to catch up on.

2010-04-29T23:45:00.007+01:00

I now know all about vibro piling. It's highly sophisticated, computer controlled, made in Preston, and here is the rig (above). One of apparently two such units in the world was on the Lower Mantle Close site today, and I got a guided tour. I'll be going back tomorrow to see it doing it's business. It's working on ground stabilisation (most of the site is made ground) prior to starting work on new workshop units. See http://vibro.co.uk/

2010-04-26T15:43:00.009+01:00

Another new view - this one from Bridge Street looking sort of north west towards the A61, and you can now see the houses on the main road. This is more or less the line of the new link road which will join Bridge Street with Derby Road.

Another visit to Clay Cross today, this time with some GMI people. I gather a number of you follow the blog regularly - It would be great to know who you are! Please get in contact. I'll be visiting the garage and the tyre dealers in Bridge Street, probably Thursday, to do some shots of how they are before they move round the corner to Lower Mantle Close. Work is about to start on some new light industrial units there, for them to occupy. And there's a rather large piling rig on site.

2010-04-25T23:42:00.004+01:00

I've added some images from last week to Flickr. It seems you never know who might be reading this! So here's some good GMI publicity. On Flickr, I particularly like the silhouette.

2010-04-19T23:16:00.007+01:00

Another walk round the site last Friday 16 April. Activity continues, with removal of the tip material nearing completion. Ground stabilisation continues (above is one of the holes into which cement has been pumped; the pipe is about 4 inches in diameter). Some drainage work is under way. Most significantly, work is under way on bringing the ground levels between Bridge Street and the A61 up to formation, ready for the new road. I followed two lorries off the site, curious. Full of spoil material, they headed for the M1 and then north from junction 29...
All the images made on that day contain no aircraft con trails in the sky. Aircraft were grounded because of the Iceland volcano. On the site, dust was now a problem, with road sweepers damping down dust on the roads.
I dropped in on the former Biwater site. It's now designated a quarry, since they're taking coal and sandstone out. I'm hoping to do a proper visit later this week.

2010-04-11T21:14:00.008+01:00

My most recent visit to the site was on Friday 26 March, a gap of two weeks. I've posted some images on Flickr. Progress is continuing rapidly. By 26 March, most of the spoil heap had gone. Most of the site had been levelled to formation, and ground stabilisation work was under way. At the back of the site, a gabion wall was going in behind Egstow Place. Old buildings had completely gone. The chimney stood on its own, surrounded by a Heras fence. And setting out had just begun on what looked like an access road. Not bad progress for the worst winter in recent years. And of course lorry on lorry, loaded with spoil, was still leaving the site via the wheel wash.
My next visit will be Friday 16 April, when I'll try not to fall down any holes.

2010-03-22T23:56:00.009Z

Clay Cross Photographic Society member Simon was walking his dog at 08:45 on the morning of Monday 8 March. Nothing much in that... except that he was in Bridge Street, and captured this image of the demolition of Sorrells yard and the Spiritualist church. Thanks, Simon.

2010-03-16T20:33:00.003Z

I've now scanned around ten images of the Biwaters foundry, visited by Clay Cross Photographic Society members sometime (I presume) in the late 1990's. They're on the Flickr site, and I've included my favourite in this blog. Thanks to John Weeks for lending me the prints.

2010-03-15T23:34:00.002Z

John Weeks and Sheila Rayson from Clay Cross Photographic Society have lent me some wonderful images of Clay Cross, including some of a Society visit to the Biwater site when it was still operational. I'll be scanning them and posting them over the next few days. Thanks both.

2010-03-09T21:18:00.004Z

I'd heard Sorrells and the spiritualist church had been demolished, so I went down early this morning. And there they were. Gone. Also, you could see across from Bridge Street to the Methodist church on Market Street, which you never could before. About a quarter of the big spoil tip has gone, presumably down to the Biwater site. I met a bloke from Ireland who was working for a site contractor. He said he was going back to ******* Ireland after, because there were no ******* jobs in England now, it was all Poles and Lithuanians, it was ******* Thatcher's fault, destroying the ******* working class.

Open Day press article

2010-03-05T18:54:00.002Z

Peter Maris makes the paper. Derbyshire Times article, 4 March 2010

2010-03-04T22:14:00.002Z

I was asked to do a short presentation on the photography project to the Clay Cross Community Partnership this evening. I didn't realise I'd be talking to nearly 50 people! Nonetheless, I explained what my involvement was, and showed a few images, as well as putting up a small display of prints. I'm still amazed at how positive everybody's being.

Open day images

2010-02-27T23:24:00.005Z

I've now posted a few images on Flickr of the successful open day held yesterday at the Clay Cross Social Centre. I have particularly to thank the two (by then) very tired individuals applauding (left) Cliff Williams' local history talk at the end of a very long day - Carolyn Lord and Peter Maris. Without them this blog, and my photography project, would not be happening.

Open Day, 26 February

2010-02-26T22:52:00.005Z

Well, everybody must have been pleased. From 12:00 onwards there was a constant stream of people at the Clay Cross Social Centre - school groups, families, everybody really. There was stone painting, an image wall, local history photos, all sorts. And in the evening, a fascinating slide show on local history from Cliff Williams. People from GMI, Tesco, local councils, Peak FM, the Derbyshire Times, all came along to give their support. Well done Clay Cross. I'll do some images, but not tonight. And finally, thanks to the Clay Cross kebab & curry house, Eyre Street, for finishing the night off with the best curry in the area, in my humble opinion...

The Ashover Light Railway

2010-02-20T22:49:00.008Z

Above: line of the ALR, about 1/4 mile west of Derby Road, looking east.

The Ashover Light Railway came into operation in 1925, mainly to carry minerals to Clay Cross from the Clay Cross Company’s own quarries at Ashover, Fallgate and Milltown. It remained in service for over 20 years, connecting Ashover with the main line railway at a point north of the Clay Cross tunnel. Currently, the Ashover Light Railway Society has its own website, see quick links.

2010-02-19T19:17:00.010Z

Clay Cross from the south west, sometime around the 1930s I would guess. The northbound A61 runs from bottom right to top left. The development site is in the far top right corner. Image courtesy of Neil Wilson.

2010-02-19T19:06:00.002Z

Cold, with snow in the air today. Trees and bushes are turning into tree stumps and piles of logs, which then disappear, leaving bare ground surrounded by Heras fence. The line of the new link road can now be clearly seen from the A61 south of the petrol station. Site clearance is also under way opposite Sharley Park.
Neil Wilson has contacted me. He lives and works in Nottingham now, but has a detailed and fascinating website about Clay Cross history and genealogy. I've added a link to it (and nicked an image...) Thanks, Neil.

2010-02-14T00:00:00.006Z

The market, Saturday morning.

2010-02-13T23:41:00.002Z

Two projects today. First, watching the demolition of the MSE factory down the end of Bridge Street. I couldn't get too close: too dangerous. But standing in Bridge Street was good enough. The whole thing came down with one JCB in about 4 hours. How many thousands of working days were spent in that building?
Second, some street photography. Saturday is market day, but there are only a dozen or so stalls now, tucked up near the social centre. Arthur, a Clay Cross PS member, was out shopping. He'd been ill, not seen him for a while. He said that John was in town, headed for the Methodist Church centre for a cup of tea. I met him there, with his wife and sisters, for tea and a ginger biscuit. John knows most people. He said he didn't want the social side of Clay Cross life to go with the new development. Popping in and out of shops, meeting people. I said I thought it might.

2010-02-12T17:41:00.006Z

Most of the images I've made on the site before today are now unrepeatable. This afternoon, muckshift was well under way, with most of the site cleared of vegetation, including the bit between Bridge Street and the A61. The large factory unit at the south end of the site will start coming down tomorrow. There's a wheel wash, and a sweeper keeping Bridge Street clear of mud. It was overcast and cold, and I was about to head for home - and then the sun came out.

Clay Cross Photographic Society

2010-02-08T22:39:00.002Z

If you're a member of Clay Cross Photographic Society, welcome! I'd welcome your support. Post to the blog, or post images to the Flickr group, or both. This project is as much about the people of Clay Cross as the building work. By contributing, you're adding to the historical record.

2010-02-06T20:37:00.002Z

There's a bit of cardboard fixed to the fence outside Sorrells coal yard in Bridge Street. It reads "Williams Fuels taken over our work, 200 yards on left". The first sign of the times.
I visited the site today, courtesy of David, the site agent. It was cold, wet and foggy, not ideal for photography. Large JCBs were making short work of a former yard full of old pallets. They were also looking for high voltage underground cables. A lot of the vegetation had gone. Demolition of a big factory unit will start next week, apparently. One of the JCB drivers was from Rotherham.

2010-02-03T20:49:00.000Z

It was cold this afternoon. Early closing in Clay Cross is a Wednesday, and I wanted to see what was going on in the town. Surprisingly, most of the shops were open - the butcher's, supermarket, post office, chemist and of course the pubs. One day I'll count how many pubs there are. Interestingly, looking at some of the shop opening hours, a lot of them close around 3 pm on a Saturday.
So life was going on pretty much as a normal day. A brewer's dray drew up at the top of Market Street, and stopped all the traffic. People were getting on and off buses. The car parks were about half full. So there we are.
Round the corner on the development, there was a lot of activity. I counted five large tracked excavators shifting earth. Heras fencing had gone up at the roadside on the A61. And Sorrells had finally been vacated.
I met a woman who said she was from the Derbyshire Times. She was shooting some "before" video for the paper's website, I think. Nothing at all on the website about the development as I write.
Then it started to snow.

Clay Cross Flickr Group

2010-01-31T19:38:00.000Z

The group has five members already, with 22 images posted. Thanks to everyone. Keep them coming. My next trip to Clay Cross will be Wednesday afternoon 3 February - early closing. I wonder if Clay Cross will be able to afford an early closing day once the new development is up and running?

Clay Cross Flickr Group

2010-01-27T23:21:00.001Z

I've now created a Flickr group for this project - see http://www.flickr.com/groups/claycrossderbyshire/. I hope as many people as possible will post their Flickr images of the town, both past and present.

2010-01-27T22:48:00.000Z

Some random recent comments from local traders and residents:
"Welcome to Beirut"
"We're celebrating our 30th anniversary next month - I wonder if we'll be here next year"
"A lot of traders are very nervous"
"Clay Cross is dying on its feet - we need this development"
"Someone got beaten up outside a pub here the other week, just because they weren't from the Cross"
"The market here used to take up the whole of Quik Save car park - now it's just a few stalls"

2010-01-25T20:30:00.000Z

First, a bit of history; I got involved in all this through Clay Cross Photographic Society. Part of the planning consent for the development is creation of a public art project. Public Artist Peter Maris is heading this up. CCPS were asked to contribute some images to an exhibition/ consultation in Clay Cross in December. I put some of my local images in - in particular, "Two Wrongs Make A Riot". Peter saw them, liked them, and approached GMI to see if they might want to use me for this project. Two draft project briefs and a load of emails later we had an agreement. My first site visit was last Friday.

Now, I live in Tupton, and have done since 2000. The transition from Sussex, where I lived before, was quite a culture shock. It also coincided with the closure of the Biwaters site. I remember, on my first shopping trip to Chesterfield, seeing the demonstration outside the town hall. Since then (and of course before that) there has been much talk of redeveloping Clay Cross town centre, and it seemed that all schemes were designed to come to naught, particularly with the recession. But now here we are, JCBs on site, Heras fencing all over the place, and all of a sudden it's serious.

So much so that it's been a rush over the last few days. My initial brief has been to record the site and the town centre in the state it's in now, before serious work starts. For example, both the Spiritualist Church and Sorrells yard are due to go very soon. I was fortunate enough today to get access to both, and now have a large number of images to record what will soon be gone.

But this project is about more than buildings and street corners. It's about businesses and people. I've been able to make contact with quite a few local businesses. Also, a number of people have come up and asked me what I was doing, and many of these encounters turned into interesting conversations along the lines of "when I was a lad...". I hope to maintain this contact, to see how these people and businesses change over the next 12 months. And of course you may be reading this blog in which case your comments will be welcome.

Welcome to the Geoff Hicks Clay Cross blog

2010-01-24T22:39:00.000Z

In January 2010, work started on a major redevelopment project in Clay Cross town centre. GMI Property Co. Ltd. have asked me to create a photographic record of the development, and how it changes the landscape, culture and people of the town. This blog is likely to be a diary of my activities over the next year or so.

For more information on the development see www.gmiproperty.com/project_detail.asp?P R_ID=329 (GMI) or www.claycross2020.org.uk/whats-the-plan/ town-centre (North East Derbyshire District Council).

I've also created a Set on Flickr, where you will find a selection of the images I produce. See http://www.flickr.com/photos/rockhunter/sets/72157623274375082/