A furniture clearance firm has been refused permission to run an auction house at the weekends.

Kevin House, of Bradford House and Office Clearance, applied for permission for the change of use at Unit 7, Holroyd Business Centre, Carr Bottom Road, Little Horton, Bradford.

But 19 letters of objection were lodged, many raising concerns that there would not be enough parking.

The plan was refused by councillors on the Bradford Area Planning Panel yesterday.

Council leader Councillor David Green call on the panel to reject the plan. He said the site was surrounded by homes, including a sheltered housing complex, and that many people parked on the street when Bradford Bulls were playing.

He said: “I don’t know, and I’m not an expert, how many people attend an auction. But people are going to come with vehicles to take away goods.”

But Mr House said he was trying to expand his business.

He said: “I love Bradford, it’s my Bradford. I’m trying to create more work, more jobs, and at the moment I’m struggling.”

He said he didn’t understand why anyone at the Council would object to his plan.

“You should be helping us get businesses and jobs back in Bradford,” he said.

Panel member Councillor Malcolm Sykes said he had visited the site and that the parking situation “could be pandemonium”.

He said: “The car park is not very big. It says it holds 75 but it’s a bit higgledy-piggledy.”

The panel refused the application on the grounds that there was not enough on-site parking, that it would affect the flow of traffic and that it would create noise, disturbing nearby residents.

  • The panel approved a plan to extend the Kashmiri Bazaar shopping complex in Barkerend Road, Bradford, which will give the retail outlet an extra 360 sq metres of floorspace, despite local opposition. A petition signed by 15 people had raised concerns that the move could lead to more shoppers parking in nearby streets.
  • The panel also approved a plan to replace a car showroom, once a petrol filling station, with a convenience food shop, at Pendragon Garage, Bolton Road, Bradford.