Last updated 19:37, Thursday, 21 February 2008

HIDDEN away in a corner of Workington is a little reminder of how the town used to look.

Just yards away from the regenerated town centre, Portland Square lives on as a testament to the painstaking work of craftsmen who laid the area 200 years ago.

Described as a Georgian gem by Baroness Gaitskell, Portland Square - with its beautiful old cobbles, impressive grade-two-listed obelisk and Workington's oldest pub - remains a historic haven amid the hustle and bustle of town centre life.

Now we see there are plans to rip up the square because highways officers say the cobbles have become a danger to pedestrians.

Campaigners angry at the proposals say they can't remember anyone ever tripping up and injuring themselves on the stones.

They are also annoyed that such an important part of Workington’s history hasn’t gone out to wider consultation.

Health and safety has to be acknowledged, and no-one is suggesting that we should live in a time-warp.

Most would recognise the need for Workington to move with the times - just look at the revamped town centre.

For this, council bosses should be applauded for the modern, up-to-date shopping centre boasting high street names.

But modern developments can and should live alongside our traditional heritage if town centres are to remain rich and diverse.

Cumbrian County Council wants to replace the cobbles with a new skid-resistant, level surface which it says will not be a danger to pedestrians.

By all means make Portland Square safe, but has anyone looked at the alternative of lifting the cobbles, levelling the surface of the ground, then re-laying them again?

This possibility should be examined as a matter of urgency before any further steps are taken to rip out the heart of this community.

If there is a need to level the ground let's takr up the cobbles, make the ground even then replace the original cobbles rather than......