Disabled Ian Woodard is complaining about shopfitters working at the Nisa store in Chatteris because they left two large shop display units in a disabled bay. Nisa store owner Ian Benney
Shopkeeper gets an ice cold reception from disabled councillor over dumped fridges
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
4:56 PM
A ROW broke out when shop fitters dumped two discarded fridge units on a disabled parking bay in Chatteris town centre, leaving disabled Manea councillor Ian Woodard without a disabled parking spot.
Disabled Ian Woodard is complaining about shopfitters working at the Nisa store in Chatteris because they left two large shop display units in a disabled bay.Ian’s wife Sabrina said she was “absolutely disgusted” to find that the two units taken out of the nearby Nisa store during a refit were left on a parking space. The couple alerted police and complained to the store owner.
Shop owner Ian Benney said Cllr and Mrs Woodard were unreasonable. “We offered an alternative parking space, but all he wanted to do was make a statement, and that is not what the blue badge system is for.”
Cllr and Mrs Woodard say they refused to park in an ordinary bay, because the doors of their large Mercedes vehicle needed extra space. “We parked in front of the bay with our hazard lights on instead,” said Sabrina. “There was no where else for us to park. I was disgusted to see the parking bay being taken up by the fridges, there was room on the walkway to park them.”
Cllr Woodard is a wheelchair user, he suffers health problems related to diabetes complications. He said: “We attended a Neighbourhood Forum meeting in Manea recently, and told police that disabled bays in Chatteris are often used by motorists without blue badges.”
Disabled Ian Woodard is complaining about shopfitters working at the Nisa store in Chatteris because they left two large shop display units in a disabled bay.The shop re-fit was carried out by Norfolk shop fitters GDP . One of the men working on site said: “I parked the fridges there, because I had no where else to put them, and I did not want to block the pathways. We offered an alternative parking space, but it was refused.”
Shop owner Mr Benney added: “To improve our range of goods and services means there needs to be some disruption. We did not have the lifting equipment available to move the fridges immediately, because the lifting equipment was still being used inside the shop.
“I think these people were being very unreasonable. We are not anti disabled people in any way, we offer a personal shopper service for disabled people, and when we planned the store we ensured there was plenty of space for wheelchair use.”
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5 comments
Come to the next neighbourhood forum meeting in CHATTERIS as you are all passionate about this. What if your disabled father,mother son,daughter,friend or neighbour needed that space but could not park and had to go home without getting their shopping or worse still the medication they needed to keep them alive !
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ian
Friday, February 24, 2012
Here we again a cllr cant get his own way were the fridges going to stay there all day NO. if they had left them on the pavement then how would people including disabled people mothers with pushchairs get passed. There is so many things to worry about cllr Woodward and his wife Sabrina like job cuts famine and your worried about a parking space when there was one avaliable ok not a disabled bay but you had a choice. The shopkeeper is tring to improve his shop and give employement i suggest you both get a life and waisting police time on such a trivial rhing i wonder who voted you in as a cllr poor them for doing so.
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Lee
Friday, February 24, 2012
I totally agree with ian, some disabled people expect far too much. ian provides an excellent shop, and when you have limited space and are trying to make improvments people should be more understanding
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Pauline Gowler
Friday, February 24, 2012
I did not said in any way that Mr Benney is not helpful at all. After all he did make another bay available but ''DISABLED BAYS are for the Disabled community'', after all Disabled bays are there to help people whom have disabilities as my husband does and you don't expect to find Fridges parked in them . I did speak to Mr Benney before taking this further and he was unreasonable. All Mr Benney needed to do was get the shopfitters to move the fridges in the first instance and none of this would had happened!
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Sabrina
Friday, February 24, 2012
i am afraid i cannot agree with mr&mrs woodard i have always found mr benney and his staff to be most helpful tome and my wife
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gander
Wednesday, February 22, 2012