I HAVE read variously recently on subjects ranging from dog excrement in the town to what is one person's view of an unnecessary cacophony on Sunday morning.

I was born in Malvern but have lived in Australia for many years and now reside in Yorkshire, returning to my wife's place of birth. At the risk of stirring up another torrent of indignant letter writing, may I make a few observations.

Malvern is a tourist town with a history of providing the world with a pure drinking water and once, a spa treatment for rich people's ailments.

I visit Malvern only very rarely now, mainly to visit my family, and my parents' grave. I have to ask what is there now for the tourist to enjoy on visiting such a sad, run-down, anachronistic and dirty town?

The Winter Gardens building, a splendid old Victorian building has been defaced by a possibly well-meaning, but sadly mistaken refit. The face of the once beautiful backdrop of Malvern town has been permanently spoilt by the addition of a huge white monolith, a statement of bureaucratic and pecuniary arrogance. I will not dwell on the felling of several, beautiful and probably 'protected' trees to assist in the perpetration of the crime.

Meanwhile, in the bottom of the Link shopping centre, a scruffy old car sales building remains because of two (or is it three) trees residing in the footpath. For some reason these trees must remain. I fail to see the reasoning here, since the trees are poor specimens anyway.

Malvern town, and by this I refer to Church Street, is dying commercially, I cannot consider the addition of several charity shops to the town a commercial advancement, so how can Malvern council?

The hills themselves are designated an area of outstanding natural beauty and yet the mass felling of trees for commercial purposes continues, only to be replaced by more commercially valuable trees planted in neat rows. I remind the people of Malvern that in some areas of those hills, you still have ancient woodland, not for long it may seem.

I fondly recall long walks (in my youth) through bluebell carpeted woods on my way up to the obelisk at the Eastnor Castle end of the hills. I hope that has not been taken down to make room for a paper mill.

Be aware people of Malvern, the beautiful town that once justified the high property values is slipping from your grasp.

BARRY PEARSON, Brotton, Saltburn-by-the-Sea.