IT is as synonymous with false dawns and failed revivals as it is legendary rock concerts, a century of bargain hunting and dodgy dealers in contraband goods.
But new plans have been unveiled to transform Glasgow's notorious Barras area into one of the city’s ‘must-visit’ neighbourhoods, with the hope the "shabby and underwhelming" district can become an events and cultural quarter.
And for the first time, the civic authorities have hinted that the future of the Barras may not be the market which has operated on the site since the early 20th Century.
With £6million currently being spent on physical improvements to the area, which lies just east of the centre of Glasgow, around five times that will become available over the next few years as part of the £1billion City Deal scheme to boost the west of Scotland economy.
Key to reinvigorating the Barras, a new report released next week claims, is using the area's connection with music as a platform, along with its increased popularity as a location for artists.
Along with the Barrowlands, a key stop-off point for touring rock bands for decades, two new venues in the immediate vicinity are integral to future plans.
Barras Art and Design (BAaD), which bills itself as "a venue, a studio, a retail space and a creative hub", has converted one of the old market sheds and is home to two record labels, while the nearby St Luke's venue, a convert church, is also home to a bar and restaurant.
The report states: "These mean more opportunities for music and performance. In the wider area around the Barras, music-related outlets emphasise that music is one of the key and most popular elements emerging in the area."
The city council report is also keen to push the area as being increasingly popular with visual artists, with one studios planning to open a base in the area later this year 2016 and another now operating from the centre of the market area.
But it warns: "The area still lacks vibrancy when venues are closed or during the week when many businesses seem to operate from behind roller shutters, offering nothing to the street in terms of atmosphere and activity.
"Weekend markets and stalls are much quieter than they were in decades past. Few of these animate the streets of the area and there is little or no evidence of the development of cafes or coffee shops in the area."
As a solution the report recommends "more co-ordination and programming of events, creating a 'city events quarter', a Barras Festival, a marketing/events coordinator".
It states that as shopping habits had moved on, rebuilding the Barras as it used to be was not a viable way forward but advises not to "give up on the markets yet".
Other proposals include a potential new Barras Museum/Heritage Centre, art-related public realm projects such as street painting, a Barrowland Square where the popular art work by acclaimed artist Jim Lambie at a nearby temporary park could be moved to.
It also recommends the railway bridges at the Gallowgate "get special treatment to highlight entering the Barras area (involving) Barras advertising or light installations on the bridge".
Council leader Frank McAveety said: "The City Deal has given us a much greater scope to drive forward our plans for the Barras and the surrounding area.
“We now have £27m earmarked to undertake a whole range of works around the Barras and the wider area."
Council SNP leader Susan Aitken added: "The area round about the Barras has been neglected for decades, with investment and regeneration nearby never quite reaching there.
"Any ideas to revitalise the area are to be welcomed, and there is much in this latest Masterplan that is potentially exciting, though I doubt Glaswegians will be impressed by the hints that there may not be a future for the world famous market."
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