Ayr businesses 'struggling to survive' and losing thousands after Station hotel fire

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Furious traders operating in the shadow of the fire-ravaged Station Hotel – have blasted council chiefs over a lack of support as their businesses ‘struggle to survive’.

Shops, restaurants, pubs, cafes and takeaways have stood together after being plunged into crisis in the wake of the fallout over a huge inferno at the historic hotel.An award-winning dessert parlour and sit-in diner say they have lost thousands in earnings after they were forced to axe their delivery service.Owners of Nanny Mary’s have spoken on behalf of fellow Smith Street and Burns Statue Square traders who say the situation is ‘diabolical’.It comes more than a month after a huge inferno ripped through the iconic Station Hotel – forcing entire businesses to shut completely for almost one week.But since reopening, they have noticed an extreme dip in sales and footfall with people now avoiding the area that has been transformed into a construction site – as painstaking safety works are carried out.

And traders have been dealt another miserable blow after it was revealed by South Ayrshire Council that those works could last 9 weeks – leaving them staring at a bleak future.

Alana Harte, 51, who helps run family business Nanny Mary’s says the future is looking bleak for fellow traders.Alana told Ayrshire Live: “The situation is diabolical for businesses.