THING OF THE WEEK

FRIEDKIN OUT… Everton men’s first team will have to wait until the second matchday of the season to play its first Premier League game at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, but fans will have the chance to see the Toffees in action before then in a fixture that – as pre-season friendlies go – is pretty mouth-watering. Italian giants AS Roma – who, like Everton, are owned by the Friedkin Group – will make the trip to Merseyside to visit Everton’s answer to the Colosseum.

Credit: Google Earth

PUBDATE… For those eagerly anticipating an update on the flimsy pub situation in Preston, we have one for you. The council-owned Tithebarn pub, as has already been established, is in a sorry state and needs knocking down in the interests of public safety. The city council this week approved that work in principle at a meeting of its cabinet. A report at that meeting also highlighted a failed attempt to save the pub. Preserving Preston’s Heritage Community Interest Company (CIC) asked the council to grant it a 999-year lease on the building so that it could “refurbish it and repurpose it into a heritage centre”, the report states. However, the council has rejected the request reiterating that the building is “beyond repair”. Bullet dodged.

Andy Burnham and Bev Craig are in Japan this week drumming up business. Credit: Jaison Lin on Unsplash

VINEGAR… A trade mission to Japan started well for Greater Manchester, which secured a £17m investment from a vinegar company before the plane even touched down. Mizkan, which makes Sarson’s vinegar, plans to use the cash to upskill staff, expand and refurbish its facilities in Middleton, and develop new products. GM Mayor Andy Burnham and Manchester City Council Leader Bev Craig are visiting Tokyo and Osaka this week to drum up business for the city region and, presumably, eat a load of sushi.

WEIR ALMOST THERE… The transformation of the long-derelict Weir Mill in Stockport is nearing completion and fresh imagery has been revealed as the project enters the home straight. It goes without saying that the site looks a hell of a lot better than it did a few years ago, but there is still a little way to go before it resembles the CGIs that made people swoon back when the project was in its infancy.

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An earlier iteration of the scheme was refused by the council. Credit: via planning documents

GLASS… Sainsbury’s has tried for a second time to convince Blackpool Council to let it erect a sculpture-cum-security fence at its store on Talbot Road. The supermarket had plans for an undulating sculpture outside its huge glass-fronted store rejected by the local council last year on account of its appearance.

This was a blow to Sainsbury’s, which wanted to use the sculpture as a barrier to vandals. The store has accrued “unsustainable costs” associated with having to replace the smashed glazing. A revised application has now been submitted to the council for consideration. Let’s hope this one is more favourably received; last time the authority said the structure would be “significantly detrimental to the appearance, character, and quality of the building”.

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