“Good points Dave, but it seems that enterprising retailers are about; I see the old florist is to become a milkshake & smoothie bar. Yum-yum-yum and hurrah, say I!”

“I wonder if this fight will in hindsight be seen as such a good idea in 12 months time. If the unit is taken up instead by another retailer, preferably a specialist that draws people to Moorland Road who then take advantage of other shops then I think it will prove to be a good thing.

On the other hand if the unit remains empty, or in some way detracts from what is there or competes with existing stores in a way that weakens both, then it might have been better to allow this change of use.

It may be the case that Pullin Knight expect to benefit more from passing trade generated by others than they expect to generate in their own right for others to benefit from, but it is also true that something is better than nothing particularly if Tesco does come to fruition and Moorland Road needs to retain its atmosphere of being open, active and vibrant. In the current climate it may be a big gamble hoping that somewhere is a retailer just waiting for a vacant unit.”

“In a recession we should be encouraging small businesses not hindering them. Usual storm in a teacup nonsense - bit like western riverside, look how many jobs that would have created if the council could get their act together. Please lets encourage enterprise!”

“Sorry JM but you have misunderstood the situation. The estate agent is NOT relocating within the same street. It wants to relocate TO it and be one building away from its other one. As to the renaming of a local pub. I did, with others, fight to save it from becoming housing. Having 'won' this we did not then expect a local couple, who had never helped to save the pub, to change its name when they took over its management. Changing its name had absolutely no bearing on its success or failure, that was up to the managers. This pub has now been closed for about 5 months and is rumoured to be for sale!! As to your '......in what capacity does she speak...', I speak as a concerned local resident who does not want to see the demise of Moorland Road. If you do not go along with this that is fair enough, but you do not have to be so thouroughly nasty just because I picked up on a point of yours. Thank you JC and Wolf for your comments, made even more pleasant as I do not know you!”

“Ah, not the last speaker then, last but one...”

“I agree with the last speaker. Well said, Wolf.”

“When are they going to close down The Livingstone? Awful place and the clientelle are ghastly. The smell too!

On two occasions I've seen people stumble out of there mid-afternoon and throw up. On many others I've seen full-on slanging matches between the punters, inclduing one where a very drunk middle aged woman stumbled onto the road and fell over, still shouting the odds.

Whoever listed it wants their head looking at.”

“JM, this is a rather unwarranted attack on a genuinely public-spirited citizen and someone you obviously do not even know - although it is not altogether surprising in view of the many other comments you leave on this site. I feel an apology for the "self-interested busybody" would be appropriate.

Moorland Road is indeed an asset to be defended. We do all our shopping there, and we run a B&B - so it can be done. We buy all our bacon and sausages as well as meat for private consumption from Banables, arguably the best butcher in Bath. It certainly costs a bit more than supermarket rubbish, but our guest and we appreciate the superior quality. Francis DIY is our first port of call for all DIY and hardware needs. Harry's bookshop has knowledgable advice on books, And the Scala has an excellent choice of Freetrade and organic products.

But what money cannot buy is the great community spirit. It is heartening to see locals meeting and chatting in the street, and most shopkeepers know their customers and have a good word for everyone.

So I am with June on this one. Moorland Road in its present form is the main reason why I would not consider living in other areas of Bath.”

“June may have slapped my wrist, but with more people like her, Britain would be a far better place, with more independent shops, and less soul-less corporate giants.
Sadly we have a useless Council that has no principles whatsoever, as evidenced by Southgate, the bus station, and shortly, Bath Spa. The Bristol Roads are so congested that they must waste millions on BRT, but not so congested as to refuse a Tescos, which will create 5 times as much traffic as BRT removes.”

“Who is June Player and in what capacity does she speak, because there are an awful lot of "I"s in her comment below. Is she an official representative of Moorland Road traders or just a self-interested busybody who has so far tried to stop any change at all taking place in the area, including the renaming of the local pub? If the shop and estate agents are both relocating within the street then where is the problem? Technically it will still be a retail outlet in the broadest terms - or don't estate agents sell houses any more?”