THE owners of Blackburn's rundown Lord Square were today urged to pull down the unsightly mess and keep pace with changes in the town centre.

The call for action, from Coun Ashley Whalley, executive member for regeneration at Blackburn with Darwen Council, comes after years of the council lobbying owners Standard Life for action.

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Blackburn with Darwen Chamber of Trade, East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce, opposition councillors and MP Jack Straw today all agreed that the area needs urgent renovation work.

But some Lord Square traders said demolition was not the answer: they had already carried out work to improve the area, and one said the council was still not doing enough to bring people into the town centre.

Standard Life said it would not be able to afford to carry out extensive work on the site until more people began shopping in the town -- but said it hoped the council's town centre improvement plans would make this a possibility.

Coun Whalley said he felt the square - a main link between the public transport interchange in Blackburn Boulevard and the shopping centre - was beyond minor repairs and that part of it needed to be rebuilt from scratch.

His comments come at a time when the square is nearly full for the first time in years, with all bar two of the 18 units now full.

As long ago as 1996, when the rest of the shopping centre was refurbished, there were calls from the council for new plans for Lord Square to be drafted.

There were several high-profile departures from the square, including Xceptions, which held the largest unit on the site, and the Ministry of Vinyl in 1997, which led to more shops leaving.

Councillors claim they were even shown plans for the new-look square, one of which would cost £18million to bring to fruition and included covering it over.

Town Hall bosses said they hoped the square would become the catalyst for development elsewhere in the town, but then Standard Life said they were putting plans on hold and just improving the area. Improvements included blacking out the windows of empty shops.

Coun Whalley said: "We had hoped Lord Square would be the catalyst for everything else.

"It will now have to be the other way round. In my opinion, it needs demolishing.

"The lift shaft which goes up to the old Cav needs to come down, and something needs to be done to the underpass. It needs totally revamping.

"Standard Life presented an £18million plan last year to revamp it then withdrew it.

"We are happy to work with them but it is their responsibility."

Last year, Coun Whalley pledged to shame Standard Life into action by making projects such as the pedestrianisation of Church Street a success.

Ron O'Keefe, president of Blackburn and District Chamber of Trade said: "Lord Square is looking better at the moment and that is only because it is fuller.

"But it does need a lot more work doing to it. For example, the ramp which goes up to Hampsons and WH Smiths is unsightly, as is the lift shaft.

"If lighting was installed in the underpass, I am sure it would look a lot better.

"It is more of a case of improving it rather than demolishing it, and I am sure that can be done by the company in time."

Michael Damms, chief executive of East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce said: "A thriving town centre is very important to attract good white-collar jobs, but it can be a chicken-and-egg situation because you often need the white-collar jobs to get the big firms in.

"Blackburn with Darwen has been very innovative in securing the Capita contract to bring in those white collar jobs and hopefully the town can build on that.

"If Standard Life aren't setting the pace, then an organisation like the council, which has shown how dynamic it can be, should see if they can do something with it."

Ray Goldstone, from the Blackburn Market Tenants Association, said: "There are some good businesses in there at the moment and I am not sure how they would react to having to move.

"But if things are done to improve it, we would welcome it because it would benefit the market as we are so close to it."

Blackburn MP Jack Straw said: "I am concerned about the state of Lord Square and will take it up with the owners. I fully support the council in their belief that it needs to be upgraded.

"If the rest of the town centre is being improved, Lord Square needs to be improved as well."

Mike Hannigan, retail investment director at Standard Life, said: "The overall action plan for the town centre could pave the way to the redevelopment of Lord Square.

"We have spent 18 months trying to find a viable solution for the square. The rent return wouldn't justify the expenditure.

"If the town attracts more shoppers, we may be able to charge more rent and that could lead to things changing.

"We are committed to Lord Square."

The leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, Coun Bill Taylor, would only say: "This council is working with partners from all sectors to ensure that we have a town centre that our residents, and people from all over Lancashire, feel provides them with a place to shop, visit, play and work."

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