Council orders removal of vape shop container

An unauthorised shipping container that formed part of a vape shop in a Bradford car park must be removed, the council has said.

An enforcement notice states that if the container, in the Orange Street car park off Leeds Road, is not removed within two months, or if the owners do not appeal against the decision, legal action can be taken.

The unit had been operating as a chai cafe until it was converted into a 24-hour vape shop which has since closed.

A retrospective application urging planners to allow the container to remain in place was previously submitted to Bradford Council by Assad Mahmood Khan, but this was refused last year.

Planning officers said the unit would lead to the car park "being used solely for the proposed business and not the wider area".

The enforcement notice said the unit "is detrimental to visual amenity by virtue of its position, design and appearance, forming an incongruous feature on the land and within the street," according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

There is a lengthy planning history surrounding the site.

In 2020, a container was installed next to the council-owned car park, and converted into a cafe called Chaii Walay.

Retrospective plans for the cafe were submitted, but were refused by the local authority twice.

Highways officers said the car park was created for use by Leeds Road businesses and customers - not to benefit one specific business.

However, in late 2021, a government planning inspector overturned Bradford Council's decision.

Chaii Walay then closed and the business became a store called Super Stop - a 24-hour convenience store and vape shop.

When it was a cafe, the business was made up of a single shipping container.

The second container was installed in April 2024.

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