17 Sep 2024
Over a number of years campaigners have attempted to clean up the alleyways that run off the Market Place in St Albans.
It has been an uphill struggle involving unsightly bins, refuse, and rats eating food left out in flimsy bags.
The aim has always been that these alleyways which are the “fossilised imprint of the medieval market” would be made more welcoming to citizens and visitors alike.
Walls would be painted including in some places depictions of St Albans past, and heritage panels installed. This is no different from other heritage towns in the UK.
The first alley way was Sovereign Way. A mural was produced by the well known artist Ant Steel relating to the celebrated bribery scandal of 1850-1851 as a result of which St Albans became notorious and resulted in national legislation.
Earlier this year an explanatory panel was produced to explain the mural. It had a modern design and has received favourable comments from visitors. Not any longer. Over the last few days it has been vandalised. In an attempt to remove it it has been forced from the wall on one side and badly damaged.
“We are having the damage assessed and it may mean that the panel has to be remade and certainly reattached in a different way”, said Dr John Morewood, President of St Albans and Hertfordshire Architectural and Archaeological Society who wrote the panel’s text.
“This act of vandalism may seem small in the bigger scheme of things. But a small group of individuals and organisations spend considerable time and money trying to make St Albans a pleasant place for people to visit.
“By attracting visitors who spend money in the city’s shops everyone benefits. I do not know who the idiotic offender(s) are or what they thought they wanted to achieve. Unbelievably there are no CCTV cameras in the alleyways (why not SADC?) so we will probably never find out. But we must not be put off for if we are what will be the next thing vandalised?”
