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After several years of rumours that the city centre was likely to be developed; Land Securities and Exeter City Council delivered their bombshell in August 1998 - when many were on holiday - and giving only a few weeks for comments before going for planning permission. A group of us - local business people, shop owners and ordinary citizens - met and formed Exeter Peoples Choice, with the help of a few seasoned campaigners from other groups as our consultants. We wrote letters and started a petition calling for a Public Inquiry. Within a couple of months we had thousands of signatures, and in October 1998 delivered over 3,000 letters of objection to the planning department. We made a HUGE red heart and wrote on it "Save the Heart of Exeter" and put the letters in this. To date (June 1999) we have almost 20,000 signatures on our petition. The Express and Echo have been particularly good with the coverage and have always printed our letters, frequently adding a photo of Exeter or Princesshay. We have also had coverage with Radio Devon, Spotlight SouthWest and WestCountry TV, and in the Western Morning News, Exeter Flying Post and many other local publications. At Christmas we flooded the city with Christmas cards showing the City Centre attacked by bulldozers and Father Christmas running away with the message - "Christmas 2000, Sorry Santa - Exeter could be closed". With this went a poster - and a 2 page letter detailing all that is threatened and what we are fighting for. (This was also sent to all Exeter's councillors). The hope from us all is to refurbish not demolish - to bring people, unusual events and activities into our beautiful city. Not an anonymous shopping mall to compete with our Cathedral and send us on a path to look like so many other city centres that have been demolished. The overwhelming discovery was the lack of understanding about what Land Securities had planned - so many people have said "I had no idea it was so vast, destroying so much" This is a campaign that allows no let up. We meet every Monday evening and keep as high a profile as we can, and increase awareness of what might happen to Exeter. We need as much support as possible.
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