The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Street furniture ‘killing business’, say retailers
PERTH: Shopkeepers appeal to local authority to remove ‘parklets’ from streets
High Street shopkeepers claim their takings have dropped by as much as 80% after council chiefs pedestrianised the road and installed a series of wooden “parklets”.
More than three-quarters of businesses on the recently transformed thoroughfare are now demanding Perth and Kinross Council reopen it to traffic.
The move to install parklets and street furniture in the city centre began earlier this summer as part of a £1.1 million scheme to make the area safer as lockdown restrictions eased.
The programme, which began on George Street with street furniture placed over parking spaces and loading bays, was extended this month to include the top section of the city’s High Street connecting Scott Street with North and South Methven Street.
However, within just a couple of weeks of the latest installation, business owners have reported a drop in takings of as much as 80%.
Some have complained individually to council bosses about banning traffic and filling parking spaces with wooden seating areas.
But an open letter to Perth and Kinross Council has now been signed by the majority of shopkeepers who operate along the road.
The petition was started by Mobile Solutions manager Imran Javid, who said the “beauty of the street” was the ability to stop for five minutes in the parking spaces to nip into one of the stores.
Addressed to the council’s planning department, the letter asks that the planters blocking spaces are removed and a consultation process is then started.
The letter reads: “We are seriously concerned about the impact of these measures on our businesses, which are still trying to recover from lockdown.
“We have already been badly affected by the lockdown and we do not think yourselves or elected members realise the difficulty local shops are facing with this road closure, which many of us objected to but our objections seem to have been ignored.”
Imran has run his mobile phone business for three years and has seen takings fall by more than two-thirds over the last two weeks.
He added: “The beauty of this street is the ease of shopping here. This is killing business for us. Our customers park outside for five minutes and everything is handled quickly. We’ve lost that now.”
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We are seriously concerned about the impact of these measures on our businesses, which are still trying to recover from lockdown
City centre councillor Chris Ahern said the project was paid for with Scottish Government funding and expects the wooden infrastructure to be painted.
The Conservative is unhappy with the pressure put on council officers to spend the cash.
He said: “The measures were decided during executive powers. When I was made aware of the plans, I did immediately raise some objections, especially with concerns over disabled access to the shops and also access to the North Church for funerals.
“It would appear that once again the Scottish Government are acting without thinking, and asking local authorities to put in measures without thinking about the effects these will have on local businesses.
“I have been in contact with a number of the businesses and will be meeting some to discuss the issues with them.”
Perth and Kinross Council said public safety and the need to make more room for physical distancing were the reasons for the changes.
The local authority was also keen to help businesses manage queues outside their premises.