East Riding of Yorkshire Council has responded to concerns raised by the public and traders in Beverley by postponing maintenance work planned for the footways around Saturday Market until the spring.
Instead, it is likely a similar scheme planned for North Bar Within will be brought forward. The council is consulting business representatives and St Mary’s Church and will now carry out face-to-face consultation with individual residents and tenants in North Bar Within.
Nigel Leighton, director of environment and neighbourhood services, said: “The council was mindful of the concerns of both the public and businesses during the current difficult economic times and the revised plans, subject to further consultation, would be more helpful to shoppers taking advantage of the free parking available in the run-up to Christmas.”
The scheme, in the first instance, would include replacing existing precast concrete flagstones outside St Mary’s Church with York stone flags to enhance the town’s heritage and appeal to visitors. Areas of footway in front of shops and businesses will not be repaired until after Christmas.
Nigel added: “The work will be carried out in small areas at any one time, further reducing any disruption and will not coincide with any major events such as the the Christmas Light switch on 30 November or Festival of Christmas on 11 December. Christmas is one of the busiest shopping periods of the year and this is why we will not undertake any works in the front of shops until the New Year.”
Ben Gardiner, chairman of Beverley and District Chamber of Trade, said: “I appreciate the council has responded to traders concerns by postponing the works in Saturday Market. The last thing Saturday Market businesses need at the most crucial time of year is for pavements to be up. By undertaking the work in Spring any loss will be reduced when the business is quieter.”
Work will start on North Bar Within as soon as consultation has been completed.
