Independent businesses on Leeds city centre street complain as building works start again after 'four year saga'

Surfacing work started on Central Road recently after the street, which features a strong cast of independent businesses, was forced to endure years of disruption from the development of a student accommodation block in place of the former House of Fraser store.

Businesses have complained that the works have gone on for “way too long” and have resulted in significant drops in footfall; adding that the recent developments on the road have caused further disruption.

The years of disruption was seen as a direct cause of a number of closures on the road, including Mrs Atha’s and the Brownhill & Co. pub.

Leeds City Council has said that the current works are the last stretch of development and, when completed, will “greatly improve the retail environment”. It said that the works involve creating more room for outdoor seating and the installation of new streetlighting.

But as they got underway last week, Japanese restaurant Little Tokyo issued a statement saying that they and other independent businesses are “always the ones taking the hit”.

The restaurant called on customers to come and support them as “people don’t want to walk down here when there’s trucks and lorries driving up and down it”.

Upon visiting, business owner Then Siow said that the works had caused “a lot of trouble” for the restaurant, which has been open for 27 years.

The development of The Store House resulted in them and other businesses on the road removing their outdoor tables and saw a significant drop in footfall on the street.

Mr Siow said: “When House of Fraser was open it was very busy. The footfall was amazing. We would have a lot of visits from tourists visiting the city.

“But the work was very loud and dusty.”

The current resurfacing works are being carried out directly outside the front of stores, resulting in some of the entrances being blocked off and some store being unable to open.

Mr Siow said: “There’s only one entrance now.

“They are putting the concrete in but it’s been very slow.”

The development of The Store House was completed in October and the work to resurface the road was postponed to allow the businesses to make the most of the festive period.

This was welcomed by those on the street, including at the comic book and gaming store Travelling Man. General manager Khalid Morton said: “The council don’t allow disruptive works in December which came as a blessing.

“We definitely took advantage of it. It’s been a life-saver. It was nice to see everyone coming through the doors.”

He added that the current works have resulted in less passing trade again as the street “doesn’t look safe”. He said: “If they had put this up during Christmas then no one would have come down here.

“It’s not easy when they rip up the front path that leads to your shop. Luckily we have two entrances.”

They and other businesses on the street said that the development of The Store House - the 369-bed student accommodation - went over schedule and led to strong disagreements between the developer, businesses and the council.

Mr Morton said: “They are so far behind. This work was meant to be done by last October.

“The relationship between the businesses, council and construction site people definitely worsened as the job went along to the point where we went from having weekly meetings to having no communication at all and not knowing what is happening which is frustrating. Things would happen and we’d just have to deal with it.”

He said that it was a new team carrying out the resurfacing works and that communication had so far been better. He said: “To their praise the council have been coming in to speak and are getting our feedback.

“Now it’s the waiting game. When the road is laid that will be the actual end of it and we will see if any more issues arise.

“Hopefully this is the end of the four year saga.”

Mr Morton said that the works had “definitely hampered” the business financially but praised the support of the store’s customers, saying: “On the first day these works started they blocked the door so I put a post up letting people know and people came in just for the sake of showing they have stuck with us.

“We’re very lucky we’ve got a good customer base and that’s what’s kept us going.”

He added that there is a great deal of comradery among the various businesses on the street, saying: “We’ve lost some great businesses on this road. It’s difficult for the new shops that have opened but we all do what we can to help each other.

“They have signed up and now they are part of the street. It’s all about supporting each other.”

A Leeds City Council spokesperson said: “We continue to recognise the important contribution that independent businesses, like those on Central Road, make to the local economy and the unique character of the city.

“Although the demolition and rebuild of the former House of Fraser building is not a council project, it is very close to completion as it enters the last few weeks of works on what has been a 3-year scheme.

“The remaining work involves the completion of the resurfacing on Central Road, which will greatly improve the retail environment for all businesses once it is complete, including creating more room for outdoor seating for businesses and the installation of new streetlighting.

“Since construction began, we have been in constant dialogue with businesses on Central Road and the developers, setting up and attending stakeholder meetings to discuss how the council can help over the life of the project.

“We are pleased that new businesses have already opened on Central Road, and we remain keen to support them.”