Town centre street reopens 13 months after fire

Bridge Street in Northampton was closed from August 2023 following a fire at the former Balloon Bar

A street has reopened over a year after it was damaged by a fire.

Bridge Street in Northampton had been closed since August 2023 after a fire broke out at the former Balloon Bar and Angel Hotel.

Another fire in May this year at the former Fat Cats bar, which was part of the same building, also caused extensive damage.

Phil Larratt, cabinet member for highways at West Northamptonshire Council, said: "We’re incredibly grateful to everyone for their patience while this extended closure has been in place."

Several businesses on Bridge Street said the road closure had affected trade

Bridge Street is one of the busiest areas of town in the evening, with many nightclubs, bars and restaurants.

Zeeshan Manzoor, the owner of The Ladz restaurant, said he was "really happy" the road reopened as the closure had affected business "quite a lot".

"It feels so good. When I saw a bus [coming up Bridge Street] for the first time, it was such a good feeling," he said.

"Now we are hoping in the next few weeks the business will be back to where we want it to be."

Earlier this year, the First Tier Tribunal set a deadline of 6 September for the landowner to complete safety work, allowing the road to reopen.

Daniel Lister, the Conservative-run council's cabinet member for the local economy, acknowledged the impact of the closure on local businesses, and said "[the council are] doing what we can to help".

The local authority added that businesses experiencing financial problems due to the road closure might be eligible for hardship relief to remit or reduce some business rates.

Ratepayers can contact the council to found out more about the qualifying criteria.

Zeeshan Manzoor opened the Northampton branch of a chain of The Ladz restaurants in June 2023