LIKE 70,000 other Boltonians, I signed the petition calling on Bolton Council not to close Bolton’s traditional Market Hall.

It was unsuccessful and The Market Place – already a major presence through the retail development including Debenhams which opened in 1988 – became a huge shopping centre with individual retail units.

Since then, there has been a general feeling of resentment by many local people that our feelings were not taken into account; history was chucked out of the window.

Now, however, I really think we need to finally move on. Many times, I’ve heard people in restaurants, cafes, pubs and shops grumble about Bolton town centre, often focusing those moans on the old Market Hall. The Bolton News has featured scores of comments on this subject over the years and it continues today in print and online. But a visit to The Market Place last week finally brought home to me how important it is not to cling to the past, and how vital it is to embrace the future.

This centre is now a vibrant place providing stores of all kinds. True, many are household names, chains with premises in shopping centres from Newcastle to Norwich that have a uniform look and offer. There are none of the wealth of independent stalls that once made the Market Hall such a great place to visit – no family butchers, cheese stalls, haberdashers, “pot” Baileys, tea vendors or umbrella sellers.

What there is now, though, is a comprehensive choice of restaurants and cafes, especially down in the newly-developed Vaults. There are family stores and famous names where you can buy items you might see advertised on TV or spot online first and want to view in person. Shortly, there will be a big, glitzy addition – The Light Cinema Experience – bringing a cinema back to the town centre, this time with 1,200 seats across nine screens. So it will be easy to park, enjoy a meal and go to the cinema to see the latest films all in one place, which is a real attraction especially for women on their own or families with young children. We simply have to accept that the retail experience has changed. And with it, our town centre. We may not agree with all the decisions made here, but it is vital that we now recognise that this is Bolton in 2016 – and support and enjoy it.