AT last Monday’s meeting of the finance and governance committee at Salisbury Guildhall, a member of the public made an impassioned speech and asked the committee to remember the notorious Salisbury ‘road to nowhere.’

Our photograph this week is from 1966 and shows a model of the proposed elevated road looming over Gigant Street and Culver Street – I am sure you will agree that it is with some comfort that this never came to fruition!

I have previously written in this column about the redevelopment of New Street where centuries of buildings were demolished in a mater of weeks. So it is rather interesting to return to1966 and a meeting at the White Hart Hotel where the mayor (Ald WE Glazbrook) gave a speech regarding the planned redevelopment of the city.

“Salisbury City Council will do everything in their power to create a new city without tears” he said, “we are fully conscious on the Salisbury City Council of the pride of place that this city will always have in the hearts of its citizens. We all know that we must advance, that there must be redevelopment – but the council will not say yes to pulling down old parts of the town until the buildings are of a suitable type. Whatever happens, you can rest assured that we shall do what we consider to be the best both for the motorists and for the ratepayers of this city.”

The mayor’s speech was prompted by remarks made by the previous speaker, Mr LT Stephens, who proposed a toast of the City of Salisbury. He asked the mayor to be very cautious before removing all the old buildings.

“Let us have progress, yes,” he said, “but not at any price.”

Once the buildings were removed we would never see their like again.

n The infamous ‘road to nowhere’ remained half finished for many years eventually being demolished in the 1980s. Its legacy can be ‘admired’ by a visit to the Culver Street car stack.