Hidden Glasgow - a fresh concept ?

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Hidden Glasgow - a fresh concept ?

Postby Sharon » Wed Dec 29, 2004 7:43 pm

I think perhaps it is time that HG got a little more actively involved in what happens in Glasgow.

It is us that live and work and play in the city, we should be making our opinions known. Especially as we have the means at our disposal to do so via the website.

It been much talked about - idly over a beer usually - but perhaps it is time that those that actually make the decisions about what happens were made to listen to our collective voices.

When I started Hidden Glasgow it was out of a spirit of discovery and a way of connecting with the city. The forums came later as a way to meet up with like-minded people who were also truly interested in Glasgow and ALL that is contained in it.

Three years on; it’s time to take stock of where we are now.

The first question that’s been of concern to me, "What is Hidden Glasgow?"

It started off as a few people, curious, exploring the traces of the remaining industrial and abandoned Victorian heritage and hunting down anything a little out of the ordinary. As the population of the forums grew, the number of projects grew and a process of documenting the city in an informal way began. This in turn has developed into a large collective of "observers" who are contributing to a wide ranging photographic survey of Glasgow. Previously unmentioned, this is how I see us currently.

Which then poses the second question "What should Hidden Glasgow become?"

This is a much harder question to answer and it been much talked about - idly over a beer usually. As a group its becoming increasingly clear that there is a feeling of helplessness as landmark buildings are so efficiently eradicated from the city landscape only to be replaced by ill informed and soulless generic structures.

So perhaps it is time that those that actually make the decisions about what happens were made to listen to our collective voices and that we are no longer merely documenting what happens but taking an active role in the shaping of what Glasgow becomes.

So, the aim? To make Hidden Glasgow a voice that IS HEARD and referred to not just by the councillors, but also the planners and architects. They would all benefit from making more informed and reflective decisions.

Ahhhhhhhhhh, that’s the ideal anyway. Given that you can't actively make people come and read the website, other more visible actions should also be taken.

This doesn't cover the whole range and philosophy of what HG is all about, but it’s a starting point for discussion.

Ok, the floor is now open. Discuss.
Last edited by Sharon on Wed Dec 29, 2004 7:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby Fossil » Wed Dec 29, 2004 7:47 pm

I total agree with all you’ve said Sharon…

I volunteer

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Postby cumbo » Wed Dec 29, 2004 8:15 pm

Hear Hear Sharon
I'm with you.
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Postby turbozutek » Wed Dec 29, 2004 8:19 pm

Will there be pretty girls ?

Count me in if there are pretty girls...

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Postby Sharon » Wed Dec 29, 2004 8:23 pm

There will be me. This is another question actually. One much more trivial... but why does HG attract so few women?
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Postby Maryhill Lad » Wed Dec 29, 2004 10:17 pm

Sharon,
OK I'm new in here but I've had a good browse about and cant help but feel the enthusiasm of all the people on here. Dare say you started as HIDDEN Glasgow, but when you read the forums its so much more. I think the Hidden Glasgow aspect is a fascinating side to it and it was what intrigued me to browse the site but everyone on here loves and feels proud of their city whether its hidden or not. So maybe it needs to branch out ? Although, arguably the forums are already doing that ?

I see HG as a living history of my city. It has loads of past history that pre-dates many of us ( and I love it ) but it also caters for modern historians who monitor the changes in the city. Maybe thats where we need to work out where HG goes. Should it be an activists group seeking to preserve the past.........I hope not because that will marginalise it I fear. Should it just lie down and accept every change ............. I think not either otherwise HG's very reason for existence has gone. So thenmaybe its a middle ground. Should HG be a forum for anyone interested enough in their city to just care whether that be by researching the past or documenting the here and now. We can all contribute in some way. Even the encouragement of a photographic record of everything about the city is a worthwhile task.

So perhaps its an amalgamation of historians, preservationists and those who just plain love their city.

OK, I'm using the scroll bar which tells me I'm rambling, so time to shut up. However, either way, I think this is a great site and you should be encouraged to continue in some fashion.
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Postby DMcNay » Wed Dec 29, 2004 10:32 pm

My main feeling is that we should be doing more to voice our opinions on the needless demolition of some of these buildings, and I think that it is up to us to try and organise ourselves into a group that is capable of, if not changing things, at least making our voice heard and highlighting this issue.

The thing that occurs to me is that we need to make these things less HIDDEN and more visible to the ordinary passer-by. Hghlight them before there are gone forever.

To my mind, that would not be so much Hidden Glasgow as Endangered Glasgow.

Time for a name-change perhaps? :)
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Postby Maryhill Lad » Wed Dec 29, 2004 10:39 pm

Endangered Glasgow ... I like the sound of that. I think everyone can buy into that in some way.
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Postby dazza » Wed Dec 29, 2004 11:00 pm

I have been thinking about the pros and cons of running a local Buildings Presevation Pressure Group for some time now. The destruction of Elgin Place Congegational Church has angered me so much that i feel we definately cannot sit back and merely watch any longer.
As Sharon herself has commented, the built environment we live and work in affects us greatly, and i for one do not want to live in an identi-kit glass and chrome soulless city, which is what Glasgow is rapidly turning into.

I have thought long and hard about how to best go about organising such a pressure group, and i have many ideas on how best to realise our agenda and garner public support. That for the moment however is for another, perhaps less public, thread.
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Postby DMcNay » Wed Dec 29, 2004 11:38 pm

dazzababes wrote:I have been thinking about the pros and cons of running a local Buildings Presevation Pressure Group for some time now. The destruction of Elgin Place Congegational Church has angered me so much that i feel we definately cannot sit back and merely watch any longer.
As Sharon herself has commented, the built environment we live and work in affects us greatly, and i for one do not want to live in an identi-kit glass and chrome soulless city, which is what Glasgow is rapidly turning into.

I have thought long and hard about how to best go about organising such a pressure group, and i have many ideas on how best to realise our agenda and garner public support. That for the moment however is for another, perhaps less public, thread.


Any help I can give, let me know...
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Postby deebers » Thu Dec 30, 2004 12:32 am

I think it would be a good idea if you could write a regular column in the Herald or Evening Times, i.e. discuss the hot topics within the forums.

Maybe send a few sample articles to the Editors and see what they say. You can have a link to your website in every feature. The article could be written by Hidden Glasgow as opposed to just one person.

The more people who come to the website and post represents a louder voice from Glasgow people.

It is important to voice our grievances and Glasgow City Council should listen to its residents.
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Postby scotia47 » Thu Dec 30, 2004 10:04 pm

Not a bad idea deebs. :) I also agree that the site should take on a more pro-active stance. Is it just me, or did they manage to declare that church unsafe and flatten it in a remarkably short amount of time? Having a newspaper column would be a great help in [cliche]spreading the word[/cliche].
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Postby duncan » Fri Dec 31, 2004 11:32 am

This is a great idea, HG should be recognised as a local pressure group, speaking up at planning meetings, asked for quotes by journalists, etc. There's enough expertise and variety of backgrounds/education/experience etc... presumably the mods or some kind of committee could come up with statements or whatever as required, with input from everyone else and final say from Sharon?
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Postby turbozutek » Fri Dec 31, 2004 11:35 am

duncan wrote:This is a great idea, HG should be recognised as a local pressure group, speaking up at planning meetings, asked for quotes by journalists, etc. There's enough expertise and variety of backgrounds/education/experience etc... presumably the mods or some kind of committee could come up with statements or whatever as required, with input from everyone else and final say from Sharon?


I hate to be the lone cynical voice of doom, but when is our moderators meeting planned for again ?

March this year was it ?

Apathy - too strong to overome, even for the people who give a sh!t.

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Postby DMcNay » Fri Dec 31, 2004 12:08 pm

Apathy allows the council to demolish buildings.

Do we want that? Do we fcuk!

So let's get off our asses people!

I'm not sure if a newspaper column is such a good idea. For one very good reason: a newspaper just won't let any old person write a column for them.

How would we go about getting this column? What paper? Who would write it? Who would read it? How would it change anything?

I like the idea of a group of us who feel strongly enough about this getting together to discuss it more. If I had the time, I'd organise something. My free time is limited as it is, but I'm willing to chip in some suggestions if someone organises a get-together.
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