THE debate about the future use of the former Radcliffe Times print works in Church Street is a useful one, though I disagree violently with the suggestion of trader Mr Higginson (Radcliffe Times, August 22) that refugees are the "dregs" of society,

Mr Higginson's suggestion that the building be used as a museum is a way of preserving one of the few structures in the town that has any architectural character. We have lost the town hall, which was once proposed as a museum, the old civic hall, the former adult education centre, and even One Stop.

Rather than lose another building, consider what could be achieved here, despite the neglect that it has fallen into.

The frontage contains a very significant name, which in today's marketing world is called branding. The very name Radcliffe Times carries a great deal of trust in the town; much more than anything that council officials could devise. Rather than a trendy, meaningless acronym like "Oasis", the building could be called Radcliffe Times because it could encapsulate both the times that Radcliffe has gone through and its future.

No-one from the council has actually said what is in their plans for a museum (just like the Greenwich Dome, the building comes first), and many museums, including Bury's, are often empty. But if we must have a museum then this building could give space to some of the myriad treasures from the Radcliffe Times archives. Properly displayed, and perhaps adapted for audio-visual or computer-generated exhibitions, they could be the living equivalent of the newspaper's Days to Remember page. This would be something to attract both an older generation, who may have lived here all their lives, as well as a younger audience which knows little of the past.

Other parts of the building could be used for activities to keep kids out of trouble and develop their skills for the future. Today's youngsters don't want the same kind of fun as their parents 30 years ago, so anything that smacks of it being run by youth club leaders should be avoided, but a one-stop centre does seem a great idea (they would have had a lot more space to let off steam in the old One Stop, but that is another story).

Anyway, using the building makes a lot more sense than the council's idea of a "marketmuseum". Their plan to mix memories and mushrooms, art and tomatoes is all the more ridiculous the more that one thinks about it. And the Radcliffe Times building would cost a lot less than £6 million. Such a scheme would help revive the Church Street end of town which has suffered even more than the precinct with the closure of the East Lancs Paper Mill.

It is time for the council to drop its plan: the market is dead, nobody wants another restaurant, and there is a better potential home for a museum.

Are our councillors brave enough to admit their mistake or will this turn out to be another fiasco like the plan for Radcliffe crematorium?

RADCLIFFE RESIDENT