THE boss of a Bradford textiles firm has called on the Council to stop "messing about" and demolish Harris Court mill following the major fire on Tuesday.
Peter McIlvenny is the managing director of Whaley's Bradford, a textiles and fabrics firm which has been operating in the city since 1869.
It has been based in Harris Court, next door to the Harris Court Mill, since 1973.
Mr McIlvenny said he has been calling for the mill to be demolished for years, and said it had only been a matter of time before a fire took hold there.
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He is now demanding the dilapidated, abandoned mill be knocked down to avoid future fires which could have bigger consequences than the blaze on Tuesday evening.
Mr McIlvenny said: “It is very scary having something like this happen so close to your business.
“I have been on to the Council for three years saying it needs to be demolished.
“Both buildings need to be knocked down immediately, no more messing about, enough is enough.
"When the conservation order was place on the area it put all the investors off, and this was just bound to happen one day.
“I have been telling the fire service and the Council this was just a matter of time, and it will happen again soon.
“We are very lucky and I am indebted to the fire service who have done a brilliant job, the whole of Harris Court could have gone up in flames.
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“They said if the wind had picked up or been blowing in the wrong direction it could have been a different story, but thank God nobody has been hurt and our business was safe.
“But this should make it clear, the mill needs to come down quickly.”
Harris Court Mills has stood empty for more than ten years, following the Yorkshire Envelope Company moving out, and has fallen into a sorry state of disrepair since.
The buildings previous owners called for it to be demolished in 2012, but at that time Bradford Council said as the building is in a conservation area it would only be demolished as a "last resort".
Plans to sell the Victorian mill for £1.5 million in 2007 to turn it into apartments fell through after the buyer went bankrupt.
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