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Mere is a civil parish and linear village along the A556 road in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, North West England, about 7 km (4.3 mi) south-west of Altrincham. Bucklow Hill is at its northeast end, and the Mere crossroads is at the southwest end. The village of Mere is about a mile long and has a varied stock of housing. Most houses are large and have ample gardens leading down to the lake; these are along the inner sides of a triangle formed by the A556, A50 and A5034 roads. Inside the triangle is a lake after which Mere was named, and the golf and country club.[1] Mere is considered highly affluent due to its very expensive housing and along with Wilmslow, Bramhall, Halebarns and Altrincham is considered one of the most expensive towns to live in in Cheshire. Many homeowners are famous for owning expensive cars such as Jaguars, Bentleys, Mercedeses and Lamborginis.
The village of Mere has two hotels (The Swan, and Mere Court Hotel), a filling station (Orchard Service Station), and two car dealers (Bucklow Hill Garage and Parkside Cars). At Hoo Green (about a kilometre west of Mere) is a hotel called The Kilton, and a post office which also functions as a newsagent and grocer. Knutsford and Altrincham are the nearest towns where a broader range of shops can be found. The Parish Club has facilities for bowling, cricket and snooker. The Mere golf club contains some of the top players of Cheshire and is highly expensive to attend.
Motor traffic is however a considerable problem here: on the A556, one of Europe's busiest highways, about 60,000 cars travel through Mere each day. The residents have long petitioned for a bypass and in December of 2008, the Government agreed to build one. This is due for completion by 2015. There are two alternative planned routes, both western bypasses on the A556:
Travel around the village has been made more complicated in recent years by the erection of "no right turn" signs at the Mere crossroads and on Bucklowhill Lane (runs into Bucklow Hill from Hoo Green, from a little south of west). This restriction will be removed when the bypass is completed.
There are two halls in Mere: Mere Old Hall dates from the Regency period and has some decorative features in that style. Mere New Hall was built in 1834 and the architect used the style of the Elizabethan period. It is a brick-built mansion consisting of a medium-sized central block and a long L-shaped wing on one side. The central portion is symmetrical at the rear and has a porte-cochère at the front. The interiors are also in the Elizabethan style.[3]
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