Council defends £750k grant after bar closes

Princes Quay restaurant and bar Iron Lilies closed in July after just 12 months

Hull City Council is defending its use of government money after coming under fire from opposition councillors.

The Labour Group is calling for scrutiny into how cash from a Levelling Up Fund, which supports regeneration and new jobs, has been used following the closure of Princes Quay restaurant and bar Iron Lilies, which was awarded £750,000 but closed in July after just 12 months.

At the time, the shopping centre said it needed to "revisit the concept", with the council this week adding that it would "reopen later this year".

A spokesperson for the Lib Dem-run authority said: "The scheme has brought 19 buildings back into use, brought in £13m of private investment and supported 900 jobs."

The council was awarded £19.5m of government funding in November 2021 to "level up" the city centre, of which £7.5m was allocated to creating a city centre grants scheme.

The idea was to bring unused floor space of empty or partially occupied property in the city centre back into use and, earlier this month, the council said 31 businesses had made use of the money.

Some of the businesses to benefit have been the US fast-food chain Wendy's, which opened with the support of £200,000.

Wykeland Group was awarded £750,000 and £450,000 from Historic England to restore the former Burton building on Whitefriargate, although the site is not yet occupied.

ResQ received £750,000 towards its refurbishment of the former Hammonds of Hull building and now occupies four floors and has welcomed hundreds of new employees as a result.

Grants have also been given to smaller businesses, including £101,800 to Crepes & Bubbles, £73,356 to Hearth Restaurant and Bakery and £75,000 to Bar 55 to create a new rooftop bar, which has since closed.

In May, WHSmith Travel Holdings Limited was given £146,250 to move to a vacant unit opposite in Paragon station. This was to enable a former ticket office and hall to be converted into a bar.

Labour councillor Sharon Hofman says the opposition group is calling for some of the council's Levelling Up decisions to be looked at

Councillor Sharon Hofman, deputy leader of the Labour Group, said the council had given "significant amounts of funding to well-established national companies, such as Wendy's and WHSmith, to either set up in the city or simply relocate a few yards".

"Labour has contacted the chair of the economy and environment overview and scrutiny commission requesting that this is put on the agenda as a matter of urgency," Hofman said.

"With local businesses struggling we need to be sure that decision-makers are using funding properly and taking local businesses into account in those decisions, and there also needs to be clarity on what has happened to the £750,000."

In response, the council said: "We understand that Iron Lilies will reopen later this year.

"It should be highlighted that 91% of funding has been distributed to small and medium-sized enterprises.

"That means of those in Hull who have benefitted from this funding, nine in 10 are independent businesses."

Tokyo Industries, which owns Princes Quay and runs Iron Lilies, has been approached for comment but has not responded.

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