Stallholders at a 1000-year-old market are fearing for their livelihoods after learning they will be replaced by GERMANS.
Traders are facing the boot to make way for German chalet-style stalls in the busy four-week build-up to Christmas, just weeks after the UK leaves the EU on October 31.
Locals have sold their goods at Chichester city centre in West Sussex for almost 1,000 years and fear the Christmas takeover will damage their businesses.
One local trader said: “We do more than 20 per cent of our annual business on those four Wednesdays before Christmas.
“What are we supposed to do now? This will put some of us out of business.”
At present, market traders are only allowed to set up in the city centre once per week on Wednesdays.
But Chichester District Council is paving the way for new German businesses to erect their stalls directly outside existing shops for the entire four weeks before Christmas.
Their stalls, some up to 35m wide, will block shops on both sides of each street, with pedestrian access down the middle.
The application for the German street market has been lodged with the council and will be voted on by councillors at a meeting next week.
But many shop owners in the affected streets have already submitted objections to the proposed four-week German market.
Market trader Andy Matthie has been selling shoes and clothing from his stall in the historic city for 42 years and slammed the council’s plans.
He said: “The public love this market and footfall on our Wednesday market day has been rising every year.
“Why on earth the council want to replace us with a German-themed Christmas Market is beyond me.
“The council love to talk about Chichester being a wonderful historic market town, but they are planning to take away the four weeks before Christmas, when we do the most trade.
“They want us to stand here in all weather for 48 weeks of the year and take away our busiest time running up to Christmas.
“There are strict rules concerning how we operate here, like not blocking the retail shops and not putting heavyweights on the ancient stone flagstones.
“Yet the council appear to be ready to approve huge scores of German-style cabins to take over our pitches, which will hide the retailers and will need huge heavy equipment to move them in.”
Tony and Marie Coward, 48, who are fourth-generation market traders, also hit out at the plans.
Marie said: “We love this historic 1,000-year-old market, it’s in our blood and the public love it.
“If they replace us with the German Christmas Market it makes a mockery of the historic market, started by King Alfred, for the German influence to take over.
“The chalet-style units that plan to put up, will shut off the retailers, who will also lose out massively, the plan is insane.
“We don’t object to there being a German market here in the town, I’m sure we could all work together, but there are other for more suitable sites for it, where it won’t impact on the traditional market traders and retailers.”
Traders also claimed to receive no consultation regarding the German Christmas market takeover.
Hamid Ali, who has sold deli produce at his stall for three years, said: “I had no idea the council wanted us to make way for a Christmas Market, I hadn’t heard about an application.
“It’s very worrying and I am very upset that I could lose my Christmas trade.
“It’s not fair, I can make a months money during that last week before Christmas.
“Don’t they care if they put us out of business.”
A spokesperson for Chichester District Council said: “We are currently speaking with the Wednesday market operator about markets taking place in Chichester city centre in the run-up to Christmas.
“Should the planning application for a Christmas market be successful, we will work closely with all parties to look for a solution that suits everyone.”
Unity News Network (UNN) Staff Writer | To find out more details about our staff, please head to the About Us section on our website.
