Leon Archives - Page 2 of 3 - The Stray Ferret

Drivers queue outside Harrogate’s new Leon

Drivers were queueing on Wetherby Road this afternoon as Harrogate’s new Leon drive-thru opened.

Although the Mediterranean-inspired restaurant officially opens tomorrow, today it offered free food for customers who provided feedback.

The offer left drivers queuing to get into the restaurant car park at around 1pm today, particularly those turning right when coming from Harrogate.

People were also queuing outside the door of the Leon.

Some motorists were turned away as the queue for the drive-thru reached the entrance of the car park and began to effect traffic on the already busy Wetherby Road.

Eventually, staff placed a cone at the entrance to deter drivers from blocking the road.

The Stray Ferret captured a clip of the scene outside the Leon this afternoon, which you can watch below.

The restaurant will officially open to the public tomorrow, which will end a saga stretching back several years.

Originally, a Starbucks coffee drive-thru was planned for the site but it was refused by Harrogate Borough Council only for the decision to be overturned by a government inspector.

Concerns remain from residents who live near the site on how the drive-thru will affect traffic on the busy Wetherby Road.

Leon was bought by Blackburn billionaires the Issa brothers in 2021.

Glenn Edwards, Leon’s managing director said:

“Since opening our first drive-thru restaurant last year, we have been eager to grow this style of restaurant in order to bring Leon to more guests and allow them to experience Leon while on the go – something that aligns with our mission to bring naturally fast food that tastes good, does you good and is kind to the planet.

“Our opening in Harrogate is a massive achievement across all fronts.”

Harrogate’s Leon drive-thru to open on Friday

Harrogate’s Leon drive-thru restaurant on Wetherby Road will open on Friday from 7am.

The Mediterranean-inspired fast food chain will be open daily from 7am to 10pm, except Sundays when it will be open from 8am to 10pm. It will have 70 covers, including some outdoor seating.

The restaurant has created 20 jobs and will feature digital kiosks.

Alex Parkinson, a Harrogate local who was originally hired by Leon as the assistant general manager at the firm’s Gildersome drive-thru, is leading the team.

The company describes itself as being good for the environment and its menu includes “carbon neutral” burgers, rice boxes, breakfast muffins, egg pots and cakes.

The opening will end a saga that has gone back several years.

Originally, a Starbucks coffee drive-thru was planned for the site but it was refused by Harrogate Borough Council only for the decision to be overturned by a government inspector.

Concerns remain from residents who live near the site on how the drive-thru will affect traffic on the busy Wetherby Road.

Leon was bought by Blackburn billionaires the Issa brothers in 2021.

Glenn Edwards, Leon’s managing director said:

“Since opening our first drive-thru restaurant last year, we have been eager to grow this style of restaurant in order to bring Leon to more guests and allow them to experience Leon while on the go – something that aligns with our mission to bring naturally fast food that tastes good, does you good and is kind to the planet.

“Our opening in Harrogate is a massive achievement across all fronts.”

Four-mile queues as traffic chaos descends on Harrogate

Motorists are enduring misery on the roads in Harrogate today, with long delays on three of the main routes around town.

Wetherby Road, Skipton Road and Ripon Road have all been affected by incidents, bringing traffic to a standstill on the northern side of Harrogate.

Resurfacing outside the yet-to-open Leon drive-through close to the Woodlands junction is causing long delays in both directions on Wetherby Road and Hookstone Drive.

Resurfacing outside Leon

Traffic heading towards the Kestrel roundabout is backing up all the way from Leon to the Empress roundabout and all along Skipton Road to New Park roundabout – a distance of almost four miles.

The four-way traffic lights at the Woodlands junction, near the Leon site, brought tailbacks to Hornbeam Park.

Many vehicles were turning around in attempts to avoid the queues.

The fallen traffic lights.

The central reservation damaged by the traffic lights.

The situation was made worse this morning when a traffic light at the junction of Skipton Road and King’s Road, near Bilton Working Men’s Club, came crashing down.

That has now been removed but traffic was still queueing for miles in all directions when the Stray Ferret cycled around town at about midday today.

Queueing on Skipton Road

Motorists trying to avoid the delays on Skipton Road by heading into town on Ripon Road were hit by further roadworks outside Cygnet Hospital.

Roadworks on Ripon Road is adding to delays.

Leon set to confirm Harrogate opening date for early July

A new fast food drive-through restaurant is set to open in Harrogate early next month.

Leon will welcome customers from “early July” to its new Wetherby Road premises, though it has not yet confirmed an exact date.

New manager Alex Parkinson said a 17-strong team is already in training and she is hoping to add three more to that number. She said:

“I love working for Leon as I love the real sense of family within the teams we create – every store I visit has its own family dynamic but you are always made to feel welcome and at home.

“I enjoy the challenge of being a general manager, but my favourite thing about the role and Leon is developing people and watching people grow. Watching my team grow and develop during training has been my favourite part of Leon so far.”

The Mediterranean-inspired restaurant will be open daily from 7am to 10pm, except Sundays when it opens at 8am. It will have a total of 70 covers, including some outdoor seating.

Its menu includes “carbon neutral” burgers, rice boxes, breakfast muffins, egg pots and cakes.

The company has built its reputation on being good for the environment as well as for people – something which is not normally associated with fast food.

Alex, 28, trained with the company in London and helped to open its first drive-through in Gildersome, Leeds. She said she believes Harrogate is ready to welcome a new take on the fast food concept:

“I think it’s something different in the community, fast food that’s good for your gut and a place to come and sit with friends or family…

“We are mindful of our environmental impact in everything we do which is why we have put a number of processes in place to ensure our drive-through [restaurants] do as little damage as possible.”

The arrival of Leon has proved controversial from the start, long before it was built.

Planning permission was eventually given after the application was initially rejected by Harrogate Borough Council, only for the developer to launch a successful appeal.

It was initially expected to be a drive-through Starbucks, but it was confirmed in March, after construction had begun, that it would instead be a Leon, another brand owned by Euro Garages.

The following month, developers were ordered to remove an 8m advertising sign outside the restaurant which had been erected before planning permission was granted.

However, Alex said now the construction work is complete, she is looking forward to welcoming customers inside.

“I am so excited to launch Leon in Harrogate – it’s probably one of my greatest accomplishments of my career, opening a store as a general manager.

“I could not have done it without the help of my team; they are absolutely amazing.”

Harrogate Leon developer puts up another sign without permission

Developers behind a Leon drive-thru in Harrogate have put up another advertising sign before permission to do so has been granted.

Pictures from the Wetherby Road site show a sign for the restaurant, which will serve healthy fast food, being placed on top of the building this morning. The sign is one-metre tall and the lettering lights up red.

Euro Garages has applied for the installation of 15 advertising boards, which include drive-thru directions, menus and a height restrictor bar.

But Harrogate Borough Council has yet to approve the application.

A spokesperson for the council said:

“We are aware of the signage and are considering what action may be required.”

The move comes just three weeks after the developer erected an eight-metre tall sign outside the drive-thru.

Council officials ordered the sign be taken down and warned that any work undertaken on advertising signage before an application was approved would be at the developer’s “own risk”.

Euro Garages declined to comment.

Concern over Leon design

Local residents have raised concern that the building on the site will be different from that which was approved.

Initially, approval was granted for the site to become a Starbucks — but it has since emerged that the drive-thru will instead be a Leon.

Residents raised concern when it became clear that the design of the building was not the same as that lodged to the council.

Joe Shields, who lives next to the site and is a former marketing manager for companies including fast-food chains, told the Stray Ferret:

“I have opened a few drive-thrus, I’m not against them.

“It is opening a drive-thru here which is nuts.”

Harrogate Borough Council has acknowledged that the building being constructed is not the same as the designs submitted to the authority.

However, it added that the developer has already submitted another application for the design, which is under consideration.

The drive-thru has long proved contentious since it was granted permission by a government planning inspector last year.

Last month, the Stray Ferret reported that Harrogate Borough Council had agreed to pay £25,000 in costs to Euro Garages following the appeal hearing.

Helen Hockenhull, the planning inspector, awarded costs against the council after she said it “demonstrated unreasonable behaviour”.

No conditions for Wetherby Road drive-thru to be a Starbucks, says council

No conditions were set for a planned drive-thru on Wetherby Road to be a coffee shop, say Harrogate council officials.

Lancashire-based developer Euro Garages is currently building a Leon restaurant on the site, despite being given permission for a Starbucks drive-thru.

Local residents have raised concern that the building on the site will be different from that which was approved.

Harrogate Borough Council has acknowledged that the building being constructed is not the same as the designs submitted to the authority.

However, it added that the developer has already submitted another application for the design which is under consideration.

Opening a drive-thru on Wetherby Road is ‘nuts’

Joe Shields lives across from the former Dental surgery site where the Leon is being built.

He and other residents have objected to the drive-thru being built since is was first proposed as a Starbucks in 2019.

While he is not against redeveloping the site, he raised concern over the drive-thru and its affect on neighbouring residents.

Mr Shields, who worked as a marketing manager for various companies including fast-food chains, said:

“I have opened a few drive-thrus, I’m not against them.

“It is opening a drive-thru here which is nuts.”

Mr Shields pointed to the fact that the building at the site does not look like its designs.

A Starbucks drive-thru normally has a slanted roof, while Leon schemes are flat.

(Left) Designs for the Starbucks as submitted to Harrogate Borough Council and (right) the construction site of the Leon.

He questioned how the developer can continue to build a Leon, despite the fact that a government planning inspector gave approval for a Starbucks coffee shop drive-thru.

Last week, Mr Shields was forced to alert the planning authorities when contractors at the site began to erect an eight-metre advertising sign without permission.

He said:

“There are changes at the site on a daily basis.

“My impression is that they will just continue wacking this [the Leon] up.”

Meanwhile, David Stephenson lives next door to the site on Coachman’s Court.

David Stephenson, whose house on Coachman’s Court is next to the drive-thru site on Wetherby Road.

Mr Stephenson has lived with his wife in the same house for six years and would be able to see the serving hatch from his lounge window.

He said that he has accepted the fact that a drive-thru will be built next door to his home.

However, Mr Stephenson said he was concerned that the building being built is not the same as the designs.

He said:

“We were resigned to a Starbucks, but this is a bit overbearing.

“Why apply for planning permission if you’re going to do another building?”

No specific conditions for a coffee shop

The Stray Ferret asked Harrogate Borough Council how the developer was able to build the scheme as a Leon drive-thru when the original approval for the site is for a Starbucks coffee shop.

A spokesperson said:

“Permission was granted by the Planning Inspectorate for a ‘coffee shop to include a drive-thru’, not specifically for a Starbucks.

“The Inspectorate did not add any conditions to the permission they gave restricting the use of the premises solely to a coffee shop, so it can legally be used for any other use within the same use class, which includes a drive thru food and drink establishment.

“So permission is not required for any change of use. However, the building being built differs from the one given planning permission. Therefore, a planning application has been submitted for these changes and is under consideration.”

The Stray Ferret also asked Euro Garages to respond to concerns over the building and erecting advertising without permission, but the company declined to comment.

Council orders Harrogate Leon developer to remove advertising sign

The developer behind a Leon drive-thru in Harrogate has been ordered to take down an eight-metre advertising sign after it was put up without permission.

Pictures from the Wetherby Road site show a sign advertising a Leon restaurant being erected yesterday.

The developer has applied for the installation of 15 advertising boards, which include drive-thru directions, menus and a height restrictor bar.

However, Harrogate Borough Council has yet to approve the advertisements.

Joe Shields, a resident who lives directly opposite the drive-thru, saw the pole being put in place by contractors at around 8am in the morning. He alerted planning officers to the situation.

Speaking to the Stray Ferret, Mr Shields said he was disappointed that the developer had erected the sign without permission.

Mr Shields said:

“There are changes at the site on a daily basis.

“My impression is that they will just continue wacking this [the Leon] up.”

The current construction site at the Leon on Wetherby Road.

A spokesperson for Harrogate Borough Council confirmed that a planning officer attended the Wetherby Road site to order that the advertisement be taken down.

The spokesperson added:

“We have also received an application for advertising at the site. Any works undertaken before the application is at the applicant’s own risk.”

The Stray Ferret asked Euro Garages for a response on the advertisement, but it declined to comment.

£25,000 appeal costs

The move comes as the borough council has agreed to pay Euro Garages £25,000 in appeal costs over the development.

Last year, Helen Hockenhull, a government planning inspector, granted permission for a Starbucks drive-thru on the former Dental surgery site.

It has since emerged that the site will become a Leon drive-thru instead.

Ms Hockenhull awarded costs against the council after she said it “demonstrated unreasonable behaviour”.

The council turned down the development back in 2019 on air quality and highways grounds, but later withdrew its objection.

The move forced residents fighting the proposal to defend the authority’s reasons for refusal at the hearing.

Harrogate council to pay Leon developer £25,000 in appeal costs

Harrogate Borough Council has agreed to pay developers behind a planned Leon drive-thru on Wetherby Road £25,000 for appeal costs.

The authority had been in discussions with Blackburn-based Euro Garages after it took the council to appeal over its decision to refuse the proposal.

In July 2021, a government planning inspector granted permission for the new drive-thru, which was initially proposed to be a Starbucks.

Helen Hockenhull, the inspector who approved the plan, awarded costs against the council after it “demonstrated unreasonable behaviour”.

A spokesperson for the council confirmed that it had agreed to pay Euro Garages £25,000 as part of the appeal cost.

The spokesman said:

“Officer recommendations are always taken with a balanced approach and are based on careful consideration of a wide range of issues, including local and national planning policy, case law, consultation responses and anything else considered to be ‘material’ to the decision, including the comments of local residents.

“In this case, the officer recommendation of approval was overturned by the planning committee and permission was refused, which has led to an appeal by the applicant.

“The council lost at appeal as it was unable to substantiate the committee’s grounds for refusal. The planning committee was therefore found to have acted unreasonably in taking this decision and the council is required to pay costs to the sum of £25,000.”

The council turned down the development back in 2019 on air quality and highways grounds, but later withdrew its objection and did not defend itself at the appeal hearing.

Speaking in May 2021, John Worthington, the council’s executive officer for development management, said officers could not stand successfully at appeal because their previous recommendation would “undermine” their case and that losing also risked legal costs of over £50,000.

The move forced residents fighting the proposal to defend the authority’s reasons for refusal themselves at the hearing.

Ms Hockenhull said she understood concerns from residents, but added that she was not convinced that the development would cause “significant harm”.

In a decision notice last year, she said:

“I recognise that my findings will be disappointing to the local residents and ward councillor who gave evidence at the hearing.

“However, based on the technical evidence before me and all that I have seen and heard, with the proposed mitigation measures secured by planning conditions, I am not persuaded that the development would cause significant harm.”

New Harrogate Leon set to open early May

The new drive thru Leon restaurant currently being built on Wetherby Road in Harrogate is expected to open in early May.

The healthy fast food chain has about 70 outlets in the UK and opened its first drive thru in Leeds last year. The Harrogate venue will be its second drive thru.

EG Group, which owns the site, received planning permission to open a Starbucks on the site of the former dental surgery.

Work to transform the site on Wetherby Road.

Its planning application was approved despite concerns about the volume of traffic.

A Leon spokeswoman confirmed the site would now be used exclusively as a Leon drive thru, which she added was “scheduled to open in early May”.

She said the restaurant would create up to 15 jobs and there would be more than 50 seats inside and about 16 outside.

The spokeswoman added:

“We are so super excited about launching our second drive thru restaurant in Harrogate.”

Leon to open drive thru restaurant in Harrogate

Fast food chain Leon is recruiting staff to work at a drive thru restaurant in Harrogate.

The company, which has about 70 outlets in the UK, is to open on the Wetherby Road site that received planning permission to be a Starbucks..

The Stray Ferret revealed last month that speculation was growing that the site could host a Leon.

Now Alex Parkinson, general manager of the first Leon drive thru in Leeds, is advertising for staff.

In a post on a Facebook recruitment site, she said:

“I’m currently the general manager of the first Leon drive thru in Gildersome, Leeds — and I’m super-excited about opening our second drive thru in Harrogate.

“We are looking for team members and supervisors to join us.”

Leon describes itself as a place that sells healthy fast food that is environmentally friendly.

Options include vegan sausage muffins, Harissa chicken salad and blackberry, apple and ginger porridge

Leon was recently bought by Euro Garages group, which was awarded planning permission last year to open a drive-thru Starbucks on Wetherby Road.

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Concern over Leon design

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Opening a drive-thru on Wetherby Road is ‘nuts’

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No specific conditions for a coffee shop

£25,000 appeal costs

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