£400k cafe in Warrior Square, Southend, to open at last – but just for summer

12:00am Wednesday 22nd August 2012 in Echo News

AN unused cafe which has been empty for more than a year has finally opened – but only for the summer.

The £400,000 outlet, part of a £2million overhaul of Warrior Square, Southend, has spent most of the past 12 months lying dormant.

In an effort to attract new tenants, Southend Council has brought in Parkwood Community Leisure, which runs the council’s leisure facilities, to operate the cafe in the short-term. But bosses do not see Parkwood as a permanent solution and the cafe will close at the end of the summer season.

Ron Woodley, an Independent councillor, described the arrangement as far from ideal. He said: “It was not the original intention to build it and for the council to run it. The rental opportunity we are missing out on is big. The council is doing this to avoid embarrassment.

“It’s a catalogue of here we go again – we have a fantastic idea and we end up having to take it on ourselves.”

The cafe was a key part of the Warrior Square revamp, which also included landscaped gardens and lighting. It was designed by Renaissance Southend , the now-defunct development company set up by the council to attract Government funding. When the kiosk, which has £14,500-a-year running costs, was completed last June, the council agreed a lease with restaurateur Benson Kwan.

Mr Kwan, who owns Fusion, in Leigh Road, Leigh, wanted to open an Asian-style takeaway.

The deal was signed in December, but the cafe was forced to close a few days after opening because of problems with the ventilation system. It never reopened and, in February, Mr Kwan said he wanted to sell the lease.

Parkwood, which also runs Cafe Vita, at Southend Leisure and Tennis Centre, will open the cafe seven days a week from 11am until 3pm for the rest of August and most of September. The fare on offer will be paninis, sandwiches, teas, coffees, soft drinks and ice cream. Joe Chesterton, the council’s head of finance, said: “We are seeking a new permanent tenant, but as an interim measure and to ensure the provision of a service in the newly-developed square, Parkwood Community Leisure has taken on the temporary management of the kiosk.”

Comments(13)

Alice in Her Own Land :P says...
3:14am Wed 22 Aug 12

This cafe was supposed to have a roof that opened like a flower ... but it's just an eye-sore and with every other eatery in Southend doing business,and this one likely to be over-priced, it should be removed and consigned to the history book of c0ck-ups in Southend.

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emcee says...
3:52am Wed 22 Aug 12

It's an embarassment alright. The council have got themselves one big white elephant. Do the council really think, in todays economic climate, someone is going to take on a lockup with such high rents and running costs. If it was such a great opportunity it would have been occupied (and stayed occupied) by now.

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Spookz says...
5:07am Wed 22 Aug 12

This replaced the children's playground that became too expensive. At least the playground would have been used. But it wouldn't have brought in any revenue would it?

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Spookz says...
5:07am Wed 22 Aug 12

This replaced the children's playground that became too expensive. At least the playground would have been used. But it wouldn't have brought in any revenue would it?

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SARFENDMAN says...
6:18am Wed 22 Aug 12

Seems this and the still vacant cafe site under the pier haven't been the roaring success as expected by SBC. No real surprise to most sound thinking folk though.

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Elephantman2 says...
7:24am Wed 22 Aug 12

Don't worry; were getting a conference centre instead of a museum on the Cliffs; that'll be another roaring success I guess!

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Sir Peter Pantsless the 3rd says...
8:01am Wed 22 Aug 12

Southend Council, everything they touch turns to gold, oops sorry I mean fold!
.
Lets not forget though people, Southend Council is 'Council of the year' (insider sources told me only three other councils put themselves up for nomination!)

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bignosechaff says...
9:35am Wed 22 Aug 12

I walked past the park yesterday and only two ladies were sitting on the mile long bench. And it was lunch time and sunny. Let the dossers have it back at least they use it

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fredfoot says...
10:54am Wed 22 Aug 12

I will never work how many people walk past it only those getting off buses, everytime I have walked past the park its full of lay abouts who wants to sit with them. I have lived in Southend for over sixty years and this council have a lot to answer for.

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Max Impact says...
2:33pm Wed 22 Aug 12

Spookz wrote:
This replaced the children's playground that became too expensive. At least the playground would have been used. But it wouldn't have brought in any revenue would it?
There was not a playground in Warrior Square gardens.

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emcee says...
3:01pm Wed 22 Aug 12

bignosechaff wrote:
I walked past the park yesterday and only two ladies were sitting on the mile long bench. And it was lunch time and sunny. Let the dossers have it back at least they use it
And I think there is the problem. It has a reputation for being a dossers park and nobody has any inclination to use it. Even though it looks 100 times better, I do not think it will ever lose the stigma for drugs and alcohol. It's going to take some really special PR to get the park busy and the cafe up and running (and thriving). However, PR is not exactly Southend Council's strong point.

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jayman says...
8:24pm Wed 22 Aug 12

the development of warrior square was purely to make the area more attractive for potential owners of the flats that Regis are going to bang up in the usual characterless and cheap design.

renascence Southend where a bent (arms reach 'bent') organisation acting on behalf of the council purely for the betterment of wealthy 'close contacts'

the longevity, functionality and productivity of the the projects renascence Southend produced where of no concern to the organisation.

either SBC knew this and some money was being scraped off the top (my belief) or SBC where totally incompetent and failed to ensure the projects where at least 'viable'...

any way you slice it. blame must sit squirely at the door of the 'then' Tory cabinet..

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alimac69 says...
1:52pm Thu 23 Aug 12

I watched a football match in Warrior Park recently; Polish/Czech kids vs. everyone else (i.e the black kids and the white kids). It was a great game, watched by their friends and other passers by. There was even a drunk on the touchline giving advice. Was great to see the kids making use of the space rather than hanging around in the High Street.

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