OPEN LETTER FROM 62 LOCAL BUSINESS LEADERS TO THE LEADER OF CHESHIRE WEST & CHESTER COUNCIL SAMANTHA DIXON AND MEMBERS OF CHESHIRE WEST & CHESTER COUNCIL. RE. PROPOSAL TO LEASE LAND ON TOP OF CHESTER AMPHITHEATRE TO DEVELOPER FOR NEXT 150 YEARS. Dear Samantha Dixon and members of Cheshire West and Chester Council, We write on behalf of 62 local businesses in the local area, regarding your proposal to grant a 150-year lease to a developer for the land on top of the as yet uncovered part of Chester’s Amphitheatre. As the identity of the proposed developer or developers is currently undisclosed, we fear that they will be looking to use the site purely for profit, creating residential units or student accommodation or some other inappropriate commercial use not in keeping with, and not enhancing, this important historical site. It is essential to realise that there are only a handful of Roman Amphitheaters in the world and none in the UK are as historically important or as large as Chester Amphitheatre. It has the potential to make the city an international must-see destination and, combined with the city’s rich Roman history, it represents a unique opportunity for Chester’s economy. Development of the land will ruin this opportunity. At the same time, of grave concern to us is the fact that there is a high risk that repair work to the foundations of Dee House will in fact damage the nationally important archaeological remains beneath. If this occurs, who will be held responsible? Given the huge level of public support from around the World, this could become Chester’s number 1 tourist attraction in the not too distant future; benefitting local businesses, creating local jobs and attracting new businesses to the City and wider area. We recognize that English Heritage’s current view is that the site should remain covered for future generations to uncover with new techniques, however, we feel this is not only short-sighted but it will negatively impact upon our generation today, and if correct, this suggests that English Heritage has little value in today’s archaeological discoveries. We feel that this policy will in fact change decades before the site will become available in 150 years (the year 2166!) if the Council’s proposal is actioned. It is apparent that the Council have not properly taken into account the overwhelming amount of public support for delisting and demolishing, or even the moving of Dee House, which will allow for the unearthing of the remainder of the amphitheatre, given the huge number of signatures obtained over the past five days on a recent petition; currently standing at 7,963 signatures, a figure which continues to grow by approximately 100 per hour. It is our belief that a period of public consultation is now essential and should be carried out prior to any deal being entered into by the Council with a developer, after which we implore the Council to act in such a way to respect the wishes of the electorate whom they represent. We are certain that with hindsight, you wouldn't have wished your legacy to be that of the leader who oversaw the sale of what will in effect be, part of Chester's Roman Amphitheatre to private developers, for their financial gain, for the next two generations and in doing so, preventing potentially millions of tourists from visiting the city which you were elected to represent. Yours sincerely, Adam Dandy of Dandy’s (Chester) Limited Paul Makinson of Slater + Gordon - Walker Smith Way Simon John Williams of Jolliffe & Co. Nick Harding of Cruise Nightclub Brendan McLoughlin of Gin Rickeys & Luke's Eating House Peter Hughes of Devaprint (Chester) Ltd Izzy Grey of We Love Cheshire Les Owens of Trustland Group owners of Coach House Inn Owain Clegg of Essell Cleaning & Bar Supplies John Brookshaw of Plassey Holiday Park, Retail Village and Golf Course Craig Gabriel of FMS Investments Chester Martin Jones of Hako Machines Limited Jane Harrad-Roberts FCIM, DipM, of Marketing Projects Peter Goddard of Daulby Read Limited Nick Hilton of SnapStudies Mike Garvey of Prodo Digital James Cadwaladr of Invive Resourcing Victoria Roskams of Enbar Enterprises Limited Gareth Lloyd-Wilson of Skills for Rail Limited Charles Robertson of Winter Service Solutions Limited Amanda Arnold of Arnold’s Art Stuart Whittaker of G Whittaker and Sons Limited Dave Harrington Wright of Red Line Credit Control Brian Gelling of G3 Insure Debbie Rush from JSW Chester Damian Sansome of Power Solutions UK Craig Swire of Help Me Rent(.co.uk) Lynne Wood of Direct Line Communications Limited Lianne Wilkinson of Engage Web Paul Murray of BNI Chester Andrew Munro, Local Architect and Photographer Ian Williams of Ian Williams Photography Gill Taylor of Electrical Excellence Katie deWinton of Dandys Properties Ltd Steven Batty of Steve Batty Joinery Penny Macpherson of Travel Councillors Brian Wright of Wright Tiling Limited Jonathan Davies of Jonathan Davies Photographic Marc Halstead of IT Support Worx Denise Durband of Speedwell Roofing & Contracting Ltd Katie Shield of Katie Shield Garden Design Robert Harrison of ASC Finance Dave Skeels of Complete ECO Ltd Kennan Michael Wyatt of Spot on Plastering Dave Graham of Dave Graham Developments Limited Gary Wright of Wright Rentals Richard Barr of Parragon Chauffeurs Stuart Banks of WT Banks & Co. Ltd. Dave Ledward of North Wales Tweets Adam Butler of Easy Online Recruitment Nic While of WFS Ltd Richard J Smith of Wine School of Cheshire Jerry Greenhalgh of JMAK Garden Services Helen Mansutti of FB Sports and Clothing Terry Golding of 1st for Creative Ltd Steven Walker of F.G. Walker Ltd Steve Love of RAS Print & Design John Steven Locke of The Commercial Hotel Chester Mark & Christene Rees of Clay and Rock Ltd Steve Howe of the Black & White Picture Shop Ed Abrams of Civil War Tours Nigel deWinton of Cheshire Carpet Edging ‪#‎DigUpDeva‬ Picture: Chester Chronicle.