Staff to patrol car park littered with human waste

Operators of a car park that has human waste in stairwells and is littered with nitrous oxide canisters have announced plans to introduce staff on site.

Southgate Car Park on Thornton Road was deemed "unacceptable" by Bradford Council's leader last week, after Ocean Parking took over the site last month.

As well as nitrous oxide canisters and human faeces, the Local Democracy Reporting Service found piles of litter and a stench of urine throughout the building.

Ocean Parking said: "We're working closely with our client to introduce a full-time on-site cleaning and site presence in the near future to improve the condition of the facility and provide greater reassurance to customers."

Councillor Stephen Place said he had raised concerns with the operator of the site, which is also prone to anti-social behaviour and substance misuse.

"We have taken urgent enforcement action to ensure the site is cleaned as soon as possible, and I have also written to the car park operator, and their regulator, to raise this matter and set out the need for the site to be maintained and cared for properly," he said.

On Monday, a spokesperson for Ocean Parking said it was aware of anti-social behaviour and substance misuse at the multi-storey car park.

Last month, the car park's opening times were extended to 24 hours "to better serve the local community, particularly those visiting nearby facilities such as Bradford Live, the theatre and local hotels," they said.

"Unfortunately, this has also led to an increase in anti-social behaviour and misuse of the site.

"In response, we have implemented CCTV across the car park."

The spokesperson said they had raised concerns with the police and requested increased patrols in the area.

West Yorkshire Police said the council was dealing with anti-social behaviour issues.

Ocean Parking added it had arranged professional deep cleans and was working to introduce full-time, on-site cleaning.

They said: "We are disappointed that what was intended to be a positive addition for the community is being abused by a small number of individuals.

"We remain committed to working with our client and law enforcement to improve the situation and ensure the car park remains a safe, clean and welcoming facility for everyone."

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