A GROUP of independent business owners from Bexhill’s iconic Colonnade handed in a 4,800-signature petition to Rother District Council today (Monday), pleading for security over their future.
The traders, who run five small shops on the seafront, say they’ve been left in limbo after being told they must vacate the premises by September, so the council can carry out essential repairs costing more than £660,000.
While the businesses accept the need for maintenance, they have been told they must reapply to return once the works are complete — a move they fear could leave them permanently displaced.
The campaign to save the shops gained rapid public support, with more than 1,500 signatures collected in just two days when it was launched in April. The petition has now grown to over 4,800 signatures from shoppers and residents supporting the businesses.
Supporters gathered outside the Town Hall this morning as the petition was handed in, urging the council to offer the traders a clear path back once renovations are completed.
Outside the Town Hall, Charlotte Arundell, who headed up the petition and runs a business at the Colonnade, told Bexhill News: “We now hope that Rother will see some sense and realise that we actually are important in the Regeneration of Bexhill.
“When we went inside Town Hall to hand it in, no one bothered to come to accept the petition. The receptionist was trying to ring through to Lorna Ford and her Secretary, and nobody answered. They knew we were coming and nobody from Rother has turned up, or even been willing to come downstairs from the Town Hall to accept the petition.”
Bexhill News has approached Rother District Council for comment.
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