Poor Parnabys

It’s with a heavy heart that I see once again the Parnaby estate in Hunslet must bear the brunt of further ‘development’ in the name of progress or sacrifice to the motor car. The eyesore of what looks like landscape open heart surgery at the bottom of the estate where we played as children in the late sixties.

We witnessed the first wave of destruction when the ‘Leeds Motorway City of the 70s’ M1 was built tearing out the heart of the adjoining Westburys, demolishing beautifully built, at my guess Edwardian homes.

There is nothing of more value and importance in today’s society than the motor car nothing must be allowed to impede or stand in its way. Multi vehicle ownership has deemed it unsafe to step off a kerb or cross a street in every town and city in the UK.

It’s a misdemeanour to be a pedestrian now!

My guess is that this latest ‘Park & Ride’ will be little more than an eyesore, prove ineffective, and another sacrifice on the altar to the motor car.

My condolences to the Parnabys and not forgetting the genocide that was also visited on the nearby Stourton community again in the name of progress.

 

This post was written by Tony Callaghan

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Photo: Parnaby Crescent 1967 (demolished when the M1, now M621, was built). © West Yorkshire Archive Service, via leodis.net

 

2 Replies to “Poor Parnabys”

  1. Dear Tony,

    Thank you for your heartfelt article about the Parnaby’s. I grew up in the Parnaby’s and my parents still live there and have witnessed the changes you outline. You may also find my blog post about the ‘lost field’ which relates to the Park and Ride of interest. I have been involved in some of the meetings challenging the Stourton park and ride with members of the council and developers- notably this building work is costing in the region of £31 million – we could all have free bus rides for years for that. Here is the link to my blog . https://natureinleeds.blogspot.com/2019/12/lost-green-fields.html

  2. Hi Melanie
    Thanks for your feedback I lived and worked in London for over fifteen years and only returned to this area two years ago.
    The changes locally and to the area are radical and uncompromising and it is tough when one considers how lush and green the area was all those years ago.
    Thanks for the link to your blog I will certainly take a look.

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