The petition you have all signed about the development plans for the Gay Village is due to be "discussed" in Manchester City Council's Executive meeting next Wednesday 27th June, a day before Planners have been told to approve an inadequate design without public consultation. Of course, the public report is not out, as it seems the only priority for the leadership and planners is rushing through to the hotel can be granted permission even though it did not consult people properly and sets a bad start for the long let down area. See http://www.manchester.gov.uk/meetings/meeting/3293/executive/attachment/25311 Our petition has not been acknowledged and nor have concerns about the inadequacy of the process for the development plans. We need to insist we are heard. Please keep asking people to sign the petition and demand the Gay Village are listened to and consulted with. Most irksome to us is the pushing through appalling 55 Portland Street where there were NO consultations, which should be grounds to turn this down, come our inadequate leaders and planners. Leese lied about the processes to the area. 11,500 petition was ignored and the Portland Village mess lays ahead with our appalling leadership. Concerningly, as crime figures rise in the Gay Village a friend who is high up in the voluntary community writes about how the area is being treated: "Last night on canal street was frightening to many, The junkies and dealers of Piccadilly gardens have moved in and the authorities know about it, but come up with the excuse that they have nowhere to move them on to. This is NO excuse, its no more than human fly-tipping, which is ruining the nightlife economy and affecting the business that operates in it. The village has the reputation of being a safe space where people can be themselves, so if you introduce crime, you can object to late licenses, thus shutting down the Village economy to make way for redevelopment. This is commonly known as social cleansing. MCC we may be tolerant and accepting but we ain't stupid". Today, the safety barriers for Canal Street are months late, with the inadequate City Centre Spokesperson excusing this, despite cars going up and down the Canal Street shouting abuse at people. All we see are more inadequacies, excuses and stonewalling even before appalling SRF likely to be granted at executive next week, on top of the inadequate NO consultation hotel. The Gay Village abandoned many ways. It feels totally intentional and its future remains very much under threat with inadequate and if complicit Councillors do not speak up about the widely despised development plans for "Portland Village" that has excluded many, to be pushed through by the motives and implicit prejudices of the few. #PiccadillyWard #GayVillage