Send us your news tips, photos and videos Text LT and your message to 80360 or click here for more ways to contact us »
REGISTER NOW TO POST YOUR COMMENTS ON THESE STORIES
It's free and only takes a few seconds. Click here to go to the registration page.
6:36pm Monday 14th April 2008
FIVE hundred people have signed a petition opposing plans for a new takeaway in Darwen town centre.
A planning application has been put to Blackburn with Darwen Council for permission to the change of use of 227 Duckworth Street, formely Turneround Insurance, which is now vacant.
Christine Curley, whose family have owned The Wine Shop next door for 44 years, started the petition after receiving official notification of the plans a week ago.
Mrs Curley said: "We've had 500 people at least sign the petition, and that's without even trying.
"People have seen it on the counter when they've come in and put their name down because the town is full of takeaways already.
"They are all saying 'oh no, not another' - even pizza delivery people have been saying enough is enough.
"Darwen has got good little shops and we need to make it a proper little market town.
"It is the only way we will survive against the competition from big towns.
"Takeaways cause rubbish and mess and they have their shutters up all day.
"It doesn't entice people into the town - it's bad enough not having shop windows for people to browse in.
"We need to increase footfall along the street and shutters will not help.
"I've had new product reps come to see me at the shop and they've commented, 'Does nobody in Darwen do their own cooking?' "We've only got 21 days to put an objection to the council, but with the amount of signatures already collected, it shows the strength of feeling around here.
"Any more food places opening around here is bad news.
Last week, local businessman Tim Melia called on the council to act before the town was "left with streets full of hot-food takeaways and empty units ripe for vandalism and graffiti".
Alli Reza Abdeshahian, from Manchester who has lodged the application, said he was unaware of the petition.
He said: "I am confident that the application will be granted.
"There is nothing else viable on that road apart from food or amusements because of the road layout. Cars cannot get down.
"People should be taking it up with the local council, not blaming me.
"I want to bring something different to the area - I am thinking of having Spanish or Italian food there.
"I am trying to make jobs for people and bring trade to the area."
simon, chorley says...
7:58pm Mon 14 Apr 08
Please No More, Darwen says...
8:04pm Mon 14 Apr 08
jane, blackburn says...
8:25pm Mon 14 Apr 08
paul, blacburn says...
8:46pm Mon 14 Apr 08
Grammar, says...
8:53pm Mon 14 Apr 08
paul wrote:Learn to spell and use grammar in the correct way before ranting, you northern twerp
who gives a toss what Jamie Oliver would say.Since when has he ruled our lives, he,s just a self publicising little southern twerp
Gabs, says...
9:17pm Mon 14 Apr 08
WayneKerr, says...
10:17pm Mon 14 Apr 08
Darrener, Darwen says...
11:03pm Mon 14 Apr 08
ex darwen, lancs. says...
12:06am Tue 15 Apr 08
JJ, Darwen says...
8:10am Tue 15 Apr 08
boycott, stockport says...
8:12am Tue 15 Apr 08
Not a Darrener, Blackburn says...
8:22am Tue 15 Apr 08
Realist, says...
8:50am Tue 15 Apr 08
Darrener wrote:Yep - you've just got an estate full of scottish smackrats!
Plus side at least Darwen doesnt have as many eastern friends living here unlike Blackburn. There will never be a mosque built in Darwen ha ha ha more take aways please. Vote ENGLAND FIRST!!
boycott, stockport says...
8:58am Tue 15 Apr 08
Concerned Darrener, Darwen says...
9:07am Tue 15 Apr 08
Unconvinced, Darwen says...
9:13am Tue 15 Apr 08
darrener, Darwen says...
9:24am Tue 15 Apr 08
boycott wrote:Where is Fishmoor? oh yes, in BLACKBURN ha ha ha you numpty!
Darwen is an overspill of the Fishmoor estate. A fair few Karen Mathews types live there. I bet they have a Farmfoods and other 'low-end'type retail outlets for all the in-bred idle scratchers who consume drugs and takeaways in equal measure
ann harwood, darwen says...
1:25pm Tue 15 Apr 08
boycott, stockport says...
1:48pm Tue 15 Apr 08
TJCB, Blackburn says...
3:01pm Tue 15 Apr 08
s, darwen says...
3:13pm Tue 15 Apr 08
Darrener wrote:another example of people moaning about nothing hes only trying to earn a living better than scounging from the dole like most of you,you dont complain when your eating our kebabs and riding in our taxis,as for the women who as started a petition its not that hes selling wine and hes going to put her out of business,typical english always complaining about something,you say we all come here and take your jobs but you dont want to work this country was a dump before we came here and look at it now one of the richest countries in the world,because of the hard work immigrants do here for low wages,i cant even get a tradesmen to do some work at my house because you all rip people off 25 to 30 pounds an hour for a plumber you say we speak in our own language all the time but i ask you if you were to move to another country what language would you speak in to your family,also if there are no independant shops anymore then the big multiples will take over like they have in most towns and sell you crap food that tastes like s**t.women get a life at least hes selling food and not p**s like you are.
Plus side at least Darwen doesnt have as many eastern friends living here unlike Blackburn. There will never be a mosque built in Darwen ha ha ha more take aways please. Vote ENGLAND FIRST!!
GP, Darwen says...
3:19pm Tue 15 Apr 08
AM, says...
3:35pm Tue 15 Apr 08
JK, BURNLEY says...
3:41pm Tue 15 Apr 08
s wrote:Well said 100%
Darrener wrote: Plus side at least Darwen doesnt have as many eastern friends living here unlike Blackburn. There will never be a mosque built in Darwen ha ha ha more take aways please. Vote ENGLAND FIRST!!another example of people moaning about nothing hes only trying to earn a living better than scounging from the dole like most of you,you dont complain when your eating our kebabs and riding in our taxis,as for the women who as started a petition its not that hes selling wine and hes going to put her out of business,typical english always complaining about something,you say we all come here and take your jobs but you dont want to work this country was a dump before we came here and look at it now one of the richest countries in the world,because of the hard work immigrants do here for low wages,i cant even get a tradesmen to do some work at my house because you all rip people off 25 to 30 pounds an hour for a plumber you say we speak in our own language all the time but i ask you if you were to move to another country what language would you speak in to your family,also if there are no independant shops anymore then the big multiples will take over like they have in most towns and sell you crap food that tastes like s**t.women get a life at least hes selling food and not p**s like you are.
Ian the Beancounter, Darwen says...
4:13pm Tue 15 Apr 08
s wrote:What a load of absolute crap! This has nothing to do with whether or not the shopkeeper will sell wine and compete, nor is it anything to do with race, colour, culture or religion! So keep that right out of the debate. The simple fact is that there are already too many greasy, tatty take-aways in Darwen and you only have to look at the proliferation of rats at the back of the buildings to realise just how much damage is being done to the area. There is no way that all these shops can be making an honest living when so many are selling the same thing at the same price - there's no competition. It is commonly known that some of them are simply a means of laundering money.
Darrener wrote: Plus side at least Darwen doesnt have as many eastern friends living here unlike Blackburn. There will never be a mosque built in Darwen ha ha ha more take aways please. Vote ENGLAND FIRST!!another example of people moaning about nothing hes only trying to earn a living better than scounging from the dole like most of you,you dont complain when your eating our kebabs and riding in our taxis,as for the women who as started a petition its not that hes selling wine and hes going to put her out of business,typical english always complaining about something,you say we all come here and take your jobs but you dont want to work this country was a dump before we came here and look at it now one of the richest countries in the world,because of the hard work immigrants do here for low wages,i cant even get a tradesmen to do some work at my house because you all rip people off 25 to 30 pounds an hour for a plumber you say we speak in our own language all the time but i ask you if you were to move to another country what language would you speak in to your family,also if there are no independant shops anymore then the big multiples will take over like they have in most towns and sell you crap food that tastes like s**t.women get a life at least hes selling food and not p**s like you are.
s, darwen says...
4:40pm Tue 15 Apr 08
Ian the Beancounter wrote:its the truth not crap just no one has the balls to admitt it,would you rather see the shops empty and the town looking like a ghoust town,at least he will be paying rates to the council.
s wrote:What a load of absolute crap! This has nothing to do with whether or not the shopkeeper will sell wine and compete, nor is it anything to do with race, colour, culture or religion! So keep that right out of the debate. The simple fact is that there are already too many greasy, tatty take-aways in Darwen and you only have to look at the proliferation of rats at the back of the buildings to realise just how much damage is being done to the area. There is no way that all these shops can be making an honest living when so many are selling the same thing at the same price - there\'s no competition. It is commonly known that some of them are simply a means of laundering money.Darrener wrote: Plus side at least Darwen doesnt have as many eastern friends living here unlike Blackburn. There will never be a mosque built in Darwen ha ha ha more take aways please. Vote ENGLAND FIRST!!another example of people moaning about nothing hes only trying to earn a living better than scounging from the dole like most of you,you dont complain when your eating our kebabs and riding in our taxis,as for the women who as started a petition its not that hes selling wine and hes going to put her out of business,typical english always complaining about something,you say we all come here and take your jobs but you dont want to work this country was a dump before we came here and look at it now one of the richest countries in the world,because of the hard work immigrants do here for low wages,i cant even get a tradesmen to do some work at my house because you all rip people off 25 to 30 pounds an hour for a plumber you say we speak in our own language all the time but i ask you if you were to move to another country what language would you speak in to your family,also if there are no independant shops anymore then the big multiples will take over like they have in most towns and sell you crap food that tastes like s**t.women get a life at least hes selling food and not p**s like you are.
removals R me, my front room says...
4:51pm Tue 15 Apr 08
Ian the Beancounter, Darwen says...
5:02pm Tue 15 Apr 08
removals R me wrote:Might I suggest that you visit The Wine Shop before making such comments.
so a owner of a grotty offlicence thinks a grotty takeaway would lower the tone?
laura, pluto, says...
5:10pm Tue 15 Apr 08
Barry Sheep, Derbyshire says...
7:47pm Tue 15 Apr 08
Barry Sheep, Derbyshire says...
7:53pm Tue 15 Apr 08
asif khan, Blackburn says...
9:14pm Tue 15 Apr 08
Blofeld, London says...
9:33pm Tue 15 Apr 08
last man standing, darwen with an e says...
10:53pm Tue 15 Apr 08
392, says...
11:25pm Tue 15 Apr 08
s, darwen says...
12:32am Wed 16 Apr 08
laura, pluto wrote:well said
Good God you lot, anything for an argument!! Calm down, half of you don\'t even grace the town with your presence so why do you actually care? Darwen needs a decent newsagents, shoe shop, stationers, etc etc... but then again, people still need to eat and it\'s their choice what they eat! there are plenty of supermarkets to buy food to cook at home so get off your high horses and leave them alone!
Steve, Darwen says...
2:20am Wed 16 Apr 08
Blondie, says...
8:27am Wed 16 Apr 08
Darwen resident, says...
11:21am Wed 16 Apr 08
removals R me wrote:The wine shop is not a 'grotty off-licence'. It's a well stocked family run shop which has lots of wine/liquor presentation boxes, suitable to give as presents, at the back of the shop. It's certainly a far cry from the 'Bargain Booze' shops which seem to be on every street corner in Darwen.
so a owner of a grotty offlicence thinks a grotty takeaway would lower the tone?
Patricia Tatchell, Huddersfield says...
1:53pm Wed 16 Apr 08
s, darwen says...
2:49pm Wed 16 Apr 08
Anon, Unknown says...
3:58pm Wed 16 Apr 08
s wrote:Well if you stayed in your own country
the person who is opening the takeaway should think twice what he is doing, he is only going to take business away from the other takeaways thats the problem with us asians if we see another person doing well we want to open the same business,its not a bad thing but to open where their are so many allready is a bad thing so please brothers wake up and stop damaging other businesses.
s, darwen says...
4:18pm Wed 16 Apr 08
Anon wrote:you are full of sh*t, we stayed in our own country,what a load of crap i was making a honest point even though i am asian,most of us are born here and it gives us as much rights as you,and anyway foreign muck what are you talking about asian food is the most popular food in this country,if you dont like our food why do you all eat it so much,as for chippies i love them myself but if people prefer to eat asian its their choice,last point you always say go back to your own country,when you are all from scandinavia if you dont beleive me check your history pall you dont own this country at all and anyway you owe it to us, you ruled our country for 200 years and you robbed us of everything.
s wrote: the person who is opening the takeaway should think twice what he is doing, he is only going to take business away from the other takeaways thats the problem with us asians if we see another person doing well we want to open the same business,its not a bad thing but to open where their are so many allready is a bad thing so please brothers wake up and stop damaging other businesses.Well if you stayed in your own country and didnt use these businesses for Money laundering and whatever else you get up then we would not have this problem!! its true what happened to the tradtional BRITISH chippy!! who wants all of this foreign muck!!
Blofeld, London says...
11:33pm Wed 16 Apr 08
s, darwen says...
9:50am Thu 17 Apr 08
Blofeld wrote:thank you blofeld for your comment its good to know there are some decent people out there,and not all narrow minded, i am a british asian and proud to be british.
Well said s, darwin. Britain has a shameful past. And its a shameful place now. I am with you on this one and am going to emmigrate at the first opportunity. I have a friend from Pakistan and he has invited me to stay for a holiday in northern Pakistan by the mountains and he says it is beautiful and i have seen it too on that Michael Palin show. He says there are no pubs though.
Ella, Blackburn says...
10:28am Thu 17 Apr 08
laura, pluto wrote:Darwen categorically DOES NOT need a decent Newsagents. It already has the BEST newsagent in the world. I'm from Bolton and I work in Blackburn, and have various meetings in Darwen. I always call in at the newsagents on opposite the tattoo shop, it does everything from pick & mix, chocolate covered bananas, samosas, spring rolls - it's fab! And before you think i'm a fat cow, I go to the gym every night after i've indulged! People - start taking responsibility for your own eating habits. Have a dirty take-away or a chocolate covered banana but eat healthily the next day and go to the gym. It's not rocket science
Good God you lot, anything for an argument!! Calm down, half of you don\'t even grace the town with your presence so why do you actually care? Darwen needs a decent newsagents, shoe shop, stationers, etc etc... but then again, people still need to eat and it\'s their choice what they eat! there are plenty of supermarkets to buy food to cook at home so get off your high horses and leave them alone!
spudzy, Darwen says...
2:31pm Fri 18 Apr 08
Add your comment
Register for a FREE Lancashire Telegraph account and you can have your say on today's news and sport by adding comments on articles we publish. The best comments may even get published in the paper.
Please register now or sign in below to continue.
Enter your postcode, town or place name
Health, Darwen says...
7:40pm Mon 14 Apr 08