Having read all the letters regarding Blackburn Town Centre regeneration, having lived in Blackburn all my life, when I was about seven years old. I remember old Blackburn as it used to be.

I used to watch as they put up the Easter Fair on the old market cobbled sets.

I remember the old buildings, with all the architecture and fancy stone work. Thwaites Arcade, the Market Hall with its clock and other buildings too numerous to mention.

There was a market that couldn’t be touched for miles around. Blackburn in general had character back then.

People would come from all over the country just to shop there.

There were market stalls that stood the test of time. But not so today. Because of the high rents and lack of customers, there is hardly any stalls left in the market hall.

Why does the council think that by moving the market it’s going to solve the problem.

Who would have thought Mercers would have gone to the wall after 15 years of trading. Again, it’s lack of customers.

Back in 1964 was when the rot set in. OK, they built a new market complex and moved the market.

But it was at the expense of most of the old buildings.

They should have renovated and cleaned up the stone work. But too much was bulldozed and that’s when Blackburn’s heart stopped beating.

Blackburn is now a town centre most people want to drive through as quickly as possible. Darwen Street is just a mass of takeaways.

Blackburn will never be the same again with the market as it was and all the old shops back making a profit.

Its a crying shame that some people at the top unfortunately call it progress.

B NIGHTINGALE, Ramsbottom Street, Accrington.