SHOPKEEPERS in Edinburgh have hit back against the council over a ban on displaying items on pavements.
Speaking to media outlets yesterday several shopkeepers and business owners warned the City of Edinburgh Council that the move would be bad for business.
The move by the council came last week as they proposed introducing a ban on shopkeepers displaying items for sale on pavements outside their businesses.
Anything from postcard stands to clothes racks will be targeted in the council’s crackdown with goods outright banned from being displayed on pavements.
Shopkeepers across the city spoke out against the move yesterday, slamming the council’s decision and warning it would impact the local economy.
A transport and environment committee meeting last Thursday proposed enforcement of existing laws to stop store owners displaying goods outside their businesses.
Councillors introduced the proposed crackdown over concerns around accessibility for those who are visually impaired or have mobility difficulty.
The proposal suggested involving police to enforce existing laws around displaying goods on pavements.
Several business owners have now spoken out against the proposed crackdown on businesses in the capital.
Speaking to Edinburgh Live, Raza, 32, who runs the Bismillah Food Store on Nicolson Square said: “It will make it harder for us, because we are already struggling in space, we are quite small and busy as well.
“It will destroy our business. We sell healthy food, fruit and vegetables, that’s all you will see outside, it’s an attraction for customers.
“My dad has been putting food outside for the last 40 years nearly.
“There’s enough space for people to walk, I know there are some shops that take too much of the footpath, but that’s not the case for us.”
The report to the Transport and Environment Committee reads: “In recent years officers have observed an increase in the number of retailers utilising the publicly adopted footways to the front of their businesses to display goods for sale.
“This has led to concerns being raised about the impact that display of goods for sale has on pedestrian accessibility, particularly for people with mobility or visual impairments, and for carers with young children and pushchairs.
“Concerns have also been raised about the effect that the display of goods for sale has on the look and feel of the city’s street environment, particularly in areas of cultural and historic significance.”
