Jewellers could quit city over parking concerns

The city centre is not geared up for customers coming by car, said Lumbers owner Dominic Gomersall

A jewellers based in Leicester for more than 140 years said it could move to an out-of-town shopping centre due to concerns over city centre parking.

Lumbers, in High Street, has traded in Leicester since 1881 but is now considering an offer to relocate to Fosse Park on the edge of the city, near Enderby.

The firm's managing director Dominic Gomersall said there was "not a part" of him that wanted to move but he claimed city centre pedestrianisation and bus and cycle lanes were driving out shoppers in cars.

Leicester City Council said city car parks were competitively priced and well-used and that there was a good bus service to the city centre.

Lumbers is in the city's pedestrianised High Street

Mr Gomersall told the BBC: "I can't quite believe that there's even a minute of a thought that I'd want to move.

"Moving a business is a huge upheaval.

"I believe the council has made Leicester look better than it's ever looked - Jubilee Square, what they're proposing on the Market Square, the new train station proposals, cobbling the old part of town, the cathedral, Guildhall Lane - there's lots of parts we should be really proud of.

"But to me, they're going one step too far with the absolute demise of allowing a car in a centre.

"We're a luxury goods emporium - we also need the people who drive their Range Rovers and drive their Teslas and this, that and the other.

"The city council needs to understand that they're never going to come on the bus."

Lumbers said it was in discussions with Fosse Park over a possible move

Leicester mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said: "The city centre is not dying, it's changing, and of course there are challenges city centres up and down the land are facing.

"Out of town shopping is one of the things that is changing it, online shopping is another.

"Since 2020 we've had a few losses, M&S is the very obvious one, but we've had a net gain of some 36 businesses.

"They come not out of charity, they come because it makes business sense for them.

"It's not just shops - Fosse Park doesn't have the night time economy the centre does, the city centre is 24/7, increasingly a place that people want to live, and it's also a place where people work."

A city council spokesperson added: "We have more than 8,500 parking spaces at prices that compare well to nearby cities, as well as three excellent park and ride services, and a large network of new electric buses.

"We also have a thriving theatre and arts scene, a huge choice of restaurants and bars, and festivals and events that can't be found in any retail park."

Mr Gomersall said he was also concerned about the amount of anti-social behaviour in the city centre, including street drinking, begging and nuisance use of scooter and e-bikes.

However he said the council was addressing the issues with a three-year Public Spaces Protection Order granting greater powers to the police and council to deal with problems.

Fosse Park has been contacted for comment.