Whilst driving I was much saddened to view the high count of empty shops boarded , shuttered or otherwise left to decay. This was not abandoned area of a war-torn city, the rout I was driving was Clarence Place. Lest we forget, it is the part of the City that we annually honour our war dead; the Cenotaph being the one structure standing that I was not ashamed of. I question those responsible that have allowed a prime piece of real-estate to degenerate in this way; particularly as it is the gateway to our city. I do not reserve my vitriol for the council planners when it is clear that the private landlords of these buildings have put profit before the people who have to live there and overlook such desolation. Clarence Place was a once thriving area with high class shopping and entertainment which has now become an embarrassment. I challenge the people responsible to return it to its former glory; an area we can all be proud of.

M Richards

Aberthaw Road

Newport.