Businesses on 'lack of support' during demolition of India Buildings

Shops, restaurants, and supermarkets on Bridge Street in Laurieston claim they were given 'no help' during a seven-month-long emergency road closure which was put in place whilst the 19th-century property was demolished.

Boushra Kebabti, who owns Intelicare PPE alongside her brother, explained that their business has been “severely impacted" by the closure - which is said to have begun in March and ended in October - with their financial losses estimated to be in the “hundreds of thousands”.

Boushra Kebabti, one of the owners of Inteli PPE (Image: Newsquest staff)

The 22-year-old said: “We were left in the dark with no prior notice or support from the council.

"Businesses and residents were not given a timeline for the road closure or the expected period of disruption.

“We all rely heavily on walk-ins as well as being able to park outside our shops to make deliveries.

“Whilst the road was blocked we had to park across the street and one time my brother was loading the van and by the time he had walked from the shop to the van the parking warden had given him a fine.

“It’s frustrating. We’ve lost a lot of money with the road being closed. We’ve also lost a lot of customers that we’ve had for years.

“As soon as the road closed we saw a big drop. It was very tough, one or two weeks is hard enough never mind seven months.

“We dropped about 30 to 40 per cent in business revenue and in business, every penny counts.

"We’ve not calculated exactly how much we have lost but it’s probably in the hundreds of thousands.”

(Image: Newsquest staff)

The India Buildings prior to demolition (Image: Boushra Kebabti)

To ease the impact of their losses during this time many of the businesses tried to make claims through their business interruption insurance.

However, many of the claims were reportedly rejected.

Boushra claims that part of the reason for this was a lack of official notification of the demolition and road closure.

Bridge Street during the demolition (Image: Boushra Kebabti) The cordon outside of businesses on Bridge Street during the demolition (Image: Boushra Kebabti)

The law student, alongside other business owners in the area, is now calling on Glasgow City Council (GCC) to provide compensation to those affected.

Songul Galano, manager of CSS Salon Supplies and Services, told our reporter that CSS’s insurance claim was also denied due to a ‘lack of official proof of the closure’.

She went on to explain that the ordeal has left local businesses with “no sense of security”.

(Image: Gordon Terris) (Image: Gordon Terris)

Songul said: “In the last seven months our sales have dropped by almost 60 per cent. We’ve had to cut down the hours of our staff and we actually considered closing at the weekends as well because it just wasn’t feasible.

“We’ve had zero communication from the council or the landlords and we’ve had councillors walking by and checking on us but then there’s no follow-up.

“I just feel like the people that made an attempt to visit us, it was just for show. Everyone in this area communicates on a daily basis.

“We all helped each other out and joined together during this but we didn’t get any help. I feel extremely let down.

“Even if the council weren’t going to help us they should have at least put the closure in writing.

“Most of the businesses here have insurance but they won’t act on us just verbally telling them the road is closed.

“They need written proof of the closure. We didn’t get anything and now the road is open and we didn’t even get a letter to say it was reopening.

“We are considering moving from here because there’s no security. If the council fail to communicate with a simple road closure what if something drastic happens?

“You have no sense of security with them.”

A Glasgow City Council spokesperson said: “The council’s Building Standards team has been in regular contact with affected residents and businesses throughout the demolition period. 

"It should be repeated that in this case – the emergency demolition of a dangerous building in private ownership, which gave no opportunity to provide advance warning to local residents/business owners – the council was carrying out a statutory undertaking to act in the interests of public safety, and such action can necessitate the removal or prevention of access by persons to buildings, adjoining buildings, land, roads and any affected spaces.  

"There is no legal requirement for us to compensate anyone when undertaking such necessary actions to protect the public, and the effect on businesses or property is subject to the terms of any individual insurances they may carry.”