Crowds drawn to the demolition of Anglia Square

The long-anticipated demolition of a 1960s shopping complex is proving to be something of a tourist attraction after work finally began.

Onlookers and photographers have been visiting Anglia Square, a former shopping centre in Norwich, since its buildings started coming down earlier this month.

Demolition of the site's multi-storey car park, which was closed in 2012, started on 16 February as work ramped up to clear the site for 1,100 homes, as well as retail and leisure spaces.

Stuart McPherson, who has been photographing the site daily, said: "The crowds are there not because it's the demolition of something, I think it's the importance of Anglia Square to the people of Norwich."

Nearby roads were closed at the start of the month due to the work as part of the £350m revamp.

Carli Harper, cabinet member for finance and major projects at Norwich City Council, said the work was on target to meet completion targets, with roads set to reopen on 15 March.

The Labour councillor said: "It's an inner city site and we're managing this very, very closely but we know people are really interested in what's happening and it's inevitable with a regional project this size that people are going to want to come along and see for themselves what's happening."

McPherson, who has been photographing the site, said he had memories of going to Anglia Square in the 1980s and 1990s, describing it as a "little city".

He said: "It's been there all my life... I wanted to go down and photograph it so there are pictures for the next generations.

"Anglia Square in Norwich is a funny place... people have been waiting for something to happen. It's kind of closure for people."

He said people gathering at the site were from different generations, each with a different connection to the site.

"There's a core group of people, about 30 or 40, who I regularly see because the road where it's being demolished at the moment is quite a busy road," he added.

"There's a group of historians and photographers, we all know each other, we are out there daily. We see students walking past, people in their 80s - it's such a diverse and busy area that people are stopping and looking."

However, the disruption has impacted some businesses. Mark Blenkiron, owner of Dirt record shop on Magdalen Street, has written to Norwich South MP Clive Lewis to express his frustration.

He said he was considering moving premises or closing down due to takings being down by 80%, causing him to lay off three part-time members of staff.

"It has totally disrupted our business. The council/demolition firm has closed off the road to cars and buses for eight weeks... there is now no car parking for all the shops on Magdalen Street," he said.

Addressing concerns about disruption, Harper told BBC Radio Norfolk: "We've always known there will be a disruption to businesses, to the local community, of undertaking a project of this size and complexity... we are doing what we can to mitigate the impact of this work but it's inevitable but there will be some disruption.

"We are sorry for the disruption but you can't complete something of this scale and complexity without there being a bit of disruption, it is just an unfortunate consequence of something that ultimately will be really, really good for the city."

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