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14
Sept 2020
More than 2,000 call for council to leave tables outside Harrogate bars
Two Harrogate bars are fighting back against the council's threat to remove their outside tables and chairs with a week's notice.
Over the weekend, more than 2,000 people have signed a petition calling on Harrogate Borough Council to reverse its decision.
Simon and Sharon Colgan run both The Blues Bar and The Empress, and took advantage of the relaxed rules on outdoor dining in recent months.
Now, the council said it will remove any tables and chairs left on the grass after this Thursday. It raised fears that Stray land could be damaged when the weather changes.
Read more:
- Harrogate bars want al fresco dining to be permanent
- Harrogate council threatens to remove tables from outside bars
- Harrogate family pet shop to close after more than 50 years
Dozens of messages of support were posted after the Stray Ferret shared the news that the outdoor chairs and tables would have to be removed.
Sharon said she has around 2,000 signatures behind the bar and nearly 600 on the change.org website over the weekend. The website reads:
A spokesman for Harrogate Borough Council told the Stray Ferret:
The owners of The Blues Bar and The Empress have said that they would contribute towards maintenance of the Stray if it became an issue. They are meeting with council officers later in the week to discuss the situation.
North Yorkshire County Council had previously said it would be “happy to review any requests for longer term use of the public highway” for al fresco dining.
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