[aidanorourke]

It will be a long time before Manchester is like cities where people, including families, are at the heart of the city. I'm thinking of many cities on the continent, as well as New York.

The 'apartment revolution' of the city centre is quite a phenomenon, but it's uneven. There ought to be a continuous belt of residential areas fanning out from the city centre and beyond, but there isn't.

Another thing is the public transport. if you live in Ancoats and want to visit a friend in Greengate, Salford, what public transport is there? Or the Green Quarter, bottom of Cheetham Hill Road, travelling to the apartments off Whitworth St West, near the Medlock.

No underground railway with a nice oily coconutty smell wafting up from under the ground. No nice municipal tram wending its way through the streets. The shortest way is to leg it. Or maybe ride a bike.

Part of the mix for a successful central city is there, but part of it is missing, but without all elements present, it just isn't going to work.