Kirkgate building collapse: Leeds Council could spend £700k on emergency repairs to historic street

Leeds City Council is planning to serve an urgent works notice on the owner of dilapidated buildings on Kirkgate.

The notice would give the council the authority to carry out structural repairs on the buildings, and recover the costs if company does not carry out the work itself.

There were dramatic scenes on April 12 when one of the buildings near the Corn Exchange caved in.

Nobody was injured in the incident, which led to an emergency services response and road closures. Kirkgate was closed and hoardings placed around the affected properties.

A council spokesperson said the authority was keen to press ahead with regeneration work in Kirkgate.

They said: “We are conscious, however, that the perilous condition of numbers 84 and 85 following the partial building collapse in April this year – and the ongoing closure of the road for related safety reasons – is having a negative impact on the area.”

The council said it had asked City Fusion Ltd, which owns 84 and 85, to carry out emergency structural works to prevent further collapses.

The company was also asked to carry out similar works on numbers 86 and 87, which were hit by fire in 2023 and were in a fragile condition, the council said.

The spokesperson said: “Furthermore, we have asked City Fusion to take steps to preserve the condition of another three buildings it owns on Kirkgate, numbers 88, 89 and 91.

“The company has so far declined to do the requested work.”

It means the council now intends to use statutory powers to serve an urgent works notice, which requires permission from the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.

A council report said up to £700,000 in capital funding would be allocated to provide cashflow to carry out the works if the owner defaults on the notice.

The report said: “In the event that the council has to carry out the works, it will seek to recover the costs from the owner.”

The report said several buildings on lower Kirkgate had not received regular maintenance for decades.

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It said: “There have been other incidents of structural failure and fires affecting properties in the ownership of City Fusion, including the First White Cloth Hall which was partially demolished in 2011 following the collapse of the neighbouring 101 Kirkgate.”

Kirkgate, which means Church Street in Old Norse, is the city’s first street and has medieval origins.

The report said: “The south side of lower Kirkgate, including the properties that would be the subject of the urgent works notice, is particularly rich in heritage and has probably the most complete run of 18th century properties in the city centre.”