SHOPPERS running the gauntlet to avoid pigeon droppings can now breathe a sigh of relief.
Council workmen have fitted hundreds of spikes in roosting areas to put a stop to the mess created by the birds.
The problem had become so serious in Handbridge that shoppers pleaded with the city’s council to do something about the pesky pigeons.
Shopkeepers have even been coming in to work early to clean the pavements with boiling water and detergent.
Kevin Brackenbury, who owns fruit and vegetable store Edens, said it had been a persistent problem for more than two years.
He said that customers have had to run the gauntlet under shop canopys and have been crossing the road to dodge the roosting pigeons’ droppings.
Mr Blackenbury told the Leader: “My canopy has been completely ruined and there is a constant mess all along the pavement. I have to use boiling water and a yard brush every single day to clear the mess.
“The first thing you want to do in the morning is prepare your shop for the day’s trading but instead you have to clean up this mess.”
Janice Atlay, owner of Château de Sable, and florist Sue Gostelow have experienced similar problems.
Mr Blackenbury said he had even received an anonymous letter from a customer saying they would not return to the shop until the problem was solved.
He said: “It’s hard to even quantify what trade has been lost and what effect this has had on the businesses here because people may have avoided the area and the mess.”
Mike Robinson, 45, of Doorsteps sandwich shop, said he had been faced with more than 100 droppings in front of his store.
He said; “The pavement has been bleached with the acidic urine from the birds – it looks awful. If it’s been a hot weekend it’s caked on – it’s a horrible unsightly mess.”
But after months of complaints to Cheshire West and Chester Council workers yesterday put up hundreds of tiny spikes to prevent the pigeons from roosting on the buildings.
However, shopkeepers on the row of independent stores say the move is “too little to late”.
Mr Robinson said: “We were told in January that this problem would be solved and then we were told that it wouldn’t be going ahead.
“Men have come with ladders and the spikes have been put up in a day – why was this not done 18 months ago? It’s not good enough.”