People have shared their memories of a shopping centre which was once Europe’s biggest – but is now “barren”.
Shopping City in Runcorn first opened its doors in 1972 and was supposed to be the heart of Runcorn’s New Town. It was the biggest indoor shopping centre in the country and Europe and was the main hub of Runcorn’s brand new wheel.
The shopping centre had sky walkways linking it to the hospital, courts and the surrounding modern estates. In its early years, there was huge footfall with people coming from nearby Liverpool and Manchester to shop there.
READ MORE: Fred. Olsen launch cruise sale with holiday destinations from Liverpool
READ MORE: We are looking for Liverpool’s cutest dog in our new contest
However, despite it being renovated 10 years ago, many of the units now stand empty. All the big shops that used to attract people to the centre, including Woolworths and Littlewoods in the 70s and 80s, and more recently Tesco and The Range, have all closed down. The Range shut its doors just a year ago.
After the ECHO published the original story, many people have since shared their memories on Shopping City. Writing on the ECHO’s What’s On pages Sandra Smallwood said: “I used to live in Runcorn in 1977, my ex husband was a shop manager in Mackays it used to be a brilliant place. Such a shame.”
Vivienne Mccashin – Keech added: “My mum managed the city in the 70s. There is so much space there, massive bingo halls, two screen cinema all unused. I love that we call it the ‘city’ and when we travel into Liverpool, we say ‘goin town’.”
Kayleigh McAnaney also said: “This is sad to see, people from around here will have complaints unfortunately. As years ago this was such a busy place, Woolworths, Littlewoods, WH Smith, Tesco, Kwik Save, Adams, a market area, pet stores, fads, Ethel Austin etc.
“But like most things, they come and go. But the sad fact is life is moving on, costs go up and we’ve lost things along the way. Now it’s coffee shops, vape shops, pound shops etc. It’s the way the world is. So sad. I still use this place and will continue to do so, but it is sad to see there is nothing there like before.”
Other people said online shopping was one of the reasons for the decline. However, others said there are still “plenty of shops”.
Sharon Sansbury said: “Even Wilkos has been taken over by Poundstretcher. There’s a lot of positives about Shopping City and I still think it’s a great place to shop with free parking. I do miss Cineworld though. Such a shame we lost that.”
Receive top stories on everything going on in Merseyside including events, shopping and food and drink through our newsletter by signing up here