Eatery extension creates 'very narrow' passageway

An inspector found the extension at Trinity Lounge restaurant created a safety risk

The owners of a restaurant in Wakefield have been told to demolish an extension after it made a public passageway "very narrow".

A covered seating area was added to the side of Trinity Lounge, Brook Street, but Wakefield Council refused a retrospective planning application in January 2024.

After an appeal against an enforcement notice, an inspector visited the venue and upheld the council's decision after they found it had created a "threatening environment".

The alley between Brook Street and Smallpage Yard would "likely to be a magnet for anti-social behaviour", the inspector's report said.

Businesses near Trinity Lounge said the extension had blocked the majority of a previously well-used route, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Complaints were also raised that the passageway had become too narrow for people with disabilities and elderly people to use.

The route, pictured before the extension was built, connects Brook Street with Smallpage Yard

The inspector warned the passageway "would constitute a dark, narrow, and threatening environment" for pedestrians, especially at night.

Eight members of the public and a local councillor objected to the original application.

One complaint stated: "This used to be a nice clear walkway for all businesses on Brook Street and pedestrians gaining access to taxis.

"It is no longer a safe walkway."

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here.