Infrastructure Minister Kevin Lewis has confirmed that his department is considering temporarily closing a ‘small number of minor roads’ in town as part of the crisis recovery plan.
The work comes as St Helier Constable Simon Crowcroft said the parish was currently dealing with more than 20 applications for new al-fresco areas or extensions to existing areas as a direct result of the coronavirus outbreak.
Cafés and restaurants were allowed to start opening their inside areas last week, and it is likely that the pandemic will lead to a change in customer habits, with more people wanting to eat and drink outside.
Since last month Broad Street has been closed to vehicles to give pedestrians more space to physically distance and queue for shops.
The decision was not without controversy, with a number of businesses raising objections, citing the impact it could have on their operation and customers getting to them.
Deputy Lewis also wants to improve cycle routes in the town centre at a time when the number of people taking to two wheels has increased dramatically.
The roads being considered for closure include Phillips Street, where the Arts Centre’s Caféjac wants to extend its al-fresco area.
The minister refused to be drawn on the location of the other roads, but said more details would be released soon.
‘We are working on several roads, minor roads, at the moment that could bolster business on a temporary basis,’ he said.
‘We are working out what is feasible. It is not going to be many.’
He said the department did not want to create traffic problems but was carefully considering the options and potential implications.
Asked if Phillips Street was one road being considered for temporary closure, he said: ‘It is under consideration.’
Denise Goldsbourgh, general manager at Caféjac, said in an ideal world Phillips Street would be closed permanently to allow the café to expand its outside area, but a temporary closure, perhaps until September, would be welcome.
Meanwhile, Mr Crowcroft said all those involved were working hard to process applications for al-fresco areas, but there was a lot of red tape and the work did not rest solely with the Parish of St Helier.
He has previously called for the Town Hall to be a ‘one-stop shop’ for businesses with such applications to help speed up and simplify the process.
And he said that the creation of more temporary pedestrianised areas in St Helier was supported by the parish if it met the needs of the community and did not cause problems for businesses and residents. Looking to the future, he said that such areas could be key to helping attract people back to the high street, which needed to be a place of entertainment and culture and not just shopping.
He added: ‘We have had a huge number of requests from local businesses for help and the parish team is working with Kevin Lewis’s team – they are looking at more than 20 applications for either new al-fresco or extensions to al-fresco areas.’
