Northampton restaurant owner fears Mayorhold closure will drive customers away as pub boss warns over town centre parking

Simon, owner of Oriental Garden in Sheep Street, said the multi-storey has been "fundamental" to the restaurant's success for more than 20 years and fears customers will now be put off visiting the town centre.

It comes after West Northamptonshire Council closed the Mayorhold car park on Monday July 20 "until further notice" after identifying crumbling concrete on one of the building's internal support columns.

The council said the closure was necessary to prioritise public safety and pointed motorists towards alternative town centre car parks.

However, Simon believes the loss of more than 1,000 parking spaces will be felt by businesses across the town centre.

Speaking to Chronicle and Echo, Simon said: "We've relied on this car park ever since we opened.

"We actually started this restaurant [25 years ago] knowing there was a car park nearby because that's fundamental when you're running a restaurant in the town centre.

"Our customers tell us all the time how lucky we are to have such convenient parking. It's one of the reasons people choose to come here."

The Oriental Garden owner said he was given no warning that the car park would close, leaving him scrambling to contact customers with existing bookings.

Simon said: "I haven't had enough time to plan accordingly or let our customers know.

"Now I've got to go through every booking over the next few days and explain the parking situation and try to give people alternatives.

"The problem is I don't know whether they'll still come because it's suddenly become much more inconvenient.

"We have a lot of families, elderly customers and people who use wheelchairs. Mayorhold is literally just across the road, so asking them to park elsewhere and walk much further isn't as easy as it sounds."

Mayorhold is one of Northampton's busiest car parks especially on event days, with visitors using it when attending Royal & Derngate, Northampton Saints matches and nearby restaurants.

Simon fears its closure will have a knock-on effect across the town centre.

Simon said: "This car park is used by people going to the theatre, by rugby supporters and by people coming into town to eat.

"St John's car park is already full on theatre nights and people queue just to get in and pay, so people park here instead.

"I'm not too sure where all those cars are going to park now."

West Northamptonshire Council has previously described the 50-year-old car park as "significantly under-utilised", but Simon disputed that assessment.

He said: "I park there every single day because I'm here six days a week.

"I spend a lot of time driving around looking for a space, so I don't agree that it isn't busy."

Looking ahead, Simon said he worries the closure is another setback for businesses already facing difficult trading conditions.

Simon said: "Hospitality is already struggling and this is just adding more pressure. It feels like businesses aren't wanted in the town centre anymore.

"WNC says it wants to bring people into town, but then it take facilities away that make it easy for people to visit. I don't understand what the long-term plan is.

"I've lived in Northampton all my life and I've watched places disappear. The old bus station came down more than 10 years ago and we're still waiting to see what happens.

"You hear about plans all the time, but businesses need people coming into town now.

"I'm just hoping for the best. We'll see what the next couple of weeks are like, but I'm worried footfall will drop because of this."

On other potential parking locations, Simon added: “Grosvenor car park closes at 6pm, so that's no use for our evening trade.

"St Peter's is fine if you're just popping into town because you get two hours' free parking, but if you're coming for a meal there's no option to extend your stay. If you overstay, you're looking at a £100 parking charge.

"Upper Mounts is where I ended up parking, but it's a much longer walk. Mayorhold was the most convenient because it was right across the road.

"I'm trying to think of alternatives for customers, but there just isn't another car park that offers the same convenience, especially for elderly and disabled visitors."

His concerns are shared by other town centre businesses.

Paul McManus, owner of McManus Pubs, which includes The Wig & Pen and The Shipmans in town, said he supports much of the Greyfriars regeneration plans but fears reducing parking capacity could have unintended consequences for existing businesses.

Paul McManus said: "I think a lot of the plans will be good for the town centre. My concern is the reduction in parking capacity and how this may affect the rest of the town centre's existing businesses.

"I carried out a survey of the town centre car parks and found Mayorhold's first two floors were around 80 per cent full, while Upper Mounts was around 85 per cent full during the afternoon.

"That means around 600 cars would need to find alternative parking, including disabled users.

"There is some spare capacity at St Michael's, but St John's gets pretty full.

"Grosvenor had around 396 spaces available, meaning around 200 vehicles would still have to find somewhere else to park, many of them town centre workers.

"With Stack set to open and venues like the Roadmender attracting large crowds, my worry is the Greyfriars proposals may harm the viability of existing businesses and organisations by taking up parking capacity."

West Northamptonshire Council said the Mayorhold car park was closed immediately after crumbling concrete was discovered on one of the building's internal support columns.

A spokesperson previously said: "The building, which was built over 50 years ago, could present potential health and safety risks to car park users and as a result its owner West Northamptonshire Council has decided to immediately close the site.

"The town centre continues to provide ample parking spaces at alternative car parks."

The Mayorhold site is earmarked for demolition as part of the wider Greyfriars regeneration scheme, which will eventually deliver around 1,000 homes alongside shops, cafés, restaurants and leisure facilities.

Mark Mullen, chief operating officer of Northampton Town Centre BID, said: "The sudden closure of Mayorhold Car Park is clearly a matter of significant concern for businesses across Northampton town centre, particularly given its size and importance to the town's overall parking provision. "We understand that the council is dealing with an unexpected situation and that the safety of the public must be the priority. We have spoken to WNC, who have advised us that there is sufficient capacity within neighbouring multi-storey car parks to accommodate the loss. “We also understand that a full review of the structural report is being done, but the future implications are not yet known."