(Image: NQ)
BRADFORD Council has said it may be forced to take enforcement action in an ongoing dispute over an outdoor seating area at a popular restaurant.
The row centres on a seating area installed in the atrium beside Forde Restaurant in The Moors Shopping Centre, Ilkley.
Restaurant owner and MasterChef runner-up Matt Healy recently revealed the dispute had become so significant that he intends to activate a break clause in the restaurant's lease and leave the premises in late 2027 unless a solution can be reached.
According to Forde, the atrium seating area formed a key part of its business plan when it took on the lease from Bradford Council, which owns The Moors Shopping Centre.
The restaurant says it had permission within its lease to use the area for customer seating and later sought approval to make improvements designed to make the space more accessible.
Forde says the work was carried out to make the area safer and more comfortable for wheelchair users, people with mobility difficulties, families with pushchairs and customers with dogs.
However, the restaurant claims Bradford Council and its managing agents later insisted the seating area be removed after receiving a single complaint.
Forde argues the outdoor space is vital to the business's long-term viability and ability to grow in what it describes as a challenging hospitality market. The company has announced plans to leave its current premises if the issue cannot be resolved to its satisfaction.
Responding to the dispute, Bradford Council said it was continuing to work with the restaurant but warned that action could be taken if requested information is not provided.
Councillor Ian Eglin, Bradford Council's Executive Member for Corporate Resources, said: "We are keen to work with all our tenants, where we can, to help make their ventures successful without breaching terms of lease, planning or other regulations.
"Forde restaurant has undertaken alterations to the property which are not within the terms of their lease, and up to now have not complied with requests to rectify the situation.
"We are working with the management team there to get the information needed to allow the Council, as landlord, to make an informed decision and ensure there are no breaches of terms of lease, health & safety, or other regulations.
"However, if this information is not supplied, we may have to take enforcement action."