Future of cafe ‘is under threat’ due to roadworks
AFRUSTRATED County Durham cafe owner is worried about the future of his beloved business, due to roadworks opposite which he says are costing him valuable customers.
James Gardener created Bean Social on North Road in 2017, and although this year he should be celebrating his business’ fifth birthday, he is instead facing the prospect of closing down for good.
Durham County Council began regenerating their city centre bus station - directly opposite the shop - just before to the first Covid lockdown of 2020.
And although works were scheduled to finish in March this year, delays have forced the completion date to be knocked back until spring 2023. The virus forced James, like many business-owners, to lose essential trade and he was hoping to bounce back stronger than ever post-pandemic.
However the reconstruction of the bus station has not allowed him to do so - with him claiming many customers avoid North Road altogether due to crowds of public transport users and rows of buses.
The 39-year-old from Newcastle said: “If you pop yourself down to Durham, you’ll see the horror show that is North Road. The bus station came down about a year and a half, maybe two years ago and it was due to be complete this year.
“There’s been absolutely nothing done on it for the last three weeks it’s just an absolute joke. The way they’ve sort of staggered the buses is just a stranglehold on North Road - it’s just killed it.
“We’ve gone from being a very busy street to just a different wall of humanity. People are just milling around and waiting for buses, blocking the shop doors.”
He added: “When I’m speaking to my regulars, it’s basically a case of seeing them from two or three times a week to maybe twice a month. I’ll say stuff like ‘long time no see’ and they tell me that they’ve wanted to pop in but when they’ve got off the bus at the bottom of the road that it’s so busy with people that they don’t want to walk through it.
“Because of the crowds, it’s stopping a lot of people from walking directly into Durham - they’ll take another route. They don’t come through the main street anymore and it’s a compounding problem.”
Bean Social was designed as a place for all and it’s more than just a business to James and his clientele. It’s a widely accepting place for people of all walks of life, and has specialist equipment installed to help cater for those suffering mental health conditions - such as a sensory garden and sound-dampening walls.
While trying to find a solution to his lack of business, James has decided to call on generous members of the public to help him get by until things are back to normal. He has set a target of £10,000 to assist him in his businesses endeavours over the space of the next year or so, and has already achieved £6,486 thus far.
On the Crowdfunding page, James wrote: “We need to raise £10,000 in order to be able to sign the lease extension and keep us open beyond September. If we can’t sign the lease, we will close at the end of August. With the money raised, we would also be able to cover any unexpected expenses, such as machinery breakdowns, and also help us cover costs if we see a further drop in trade during the bus station construction.”
He has also called upon his local MP Mary Kelly Foy to assist him in his fightback against Durham County Council.
Craig MacLennan, Durham County Council’s transport and infrastructure manager, said: “We are sorry to hear of the difficulties Mr Gardner has been experiencing. Our economic development team is looking into what can be done to support him and other businesses on North Road, in recognition of its importance as a trading centre.
“The redevelopment of the bus station will provide a state of the art, first class facility that can act as a catalyst for the regeneration of North Road, helping local businesses by attracting additional investment in the area which has the potential to generate more passing trade.
“We have experienced some unforeseen issues with the project and difficulties sourcing some of the materials required for the work to be in keeping with the conservation area, but we are doing everything we can to minimise impact on local traders. Signs are in place to advise passing motorists that North Road remains open for business.”