Restaurant owners have dumped plans to build a car park in a Bradford park - after mass opposition from residents.

Owners of the Barrack Tavern pub in Killinghall Road have made a surprise retreat from plans to buy 1,500 square metres of Bradford Moor Park after protesters amassed more than 1,000 petition signatures.

A new planning application has now been lodged which would see the pub transformed inside to create an Indian restaurant.

But customers would have to park on surrounding streets.

Councillor Ghazanfer Khaliq (Bradford Moor, Lab) who had backed the protesters, said the climb-down was a "success for common sense and the local people".

He said: "There was a strong feeling among local people - and everyone was involved whether they lived next to the park or a couple of miles away.

"There is a shortage of green space in the area and people were concerned that if Bradford Council sold off a section of the park, it would open the floodgates for other sales.

"We already have enough restaurants.

"I think local people would like to see the Barrack Tavern be turned over for residential use or become a community facility."

But restaurateur Mohammed Taj accused ward councillors of politicising the issue and added that the community would lose out.

He said: "It's very disappointing but we didn't want to argue with the local people and we are going ahead to create a high-class restaurant.

"I wonder if people would really rather have customers parking outside their houses instead of in a car park.

"Residents were worried about losing some of their park but that land isn't used for anything."

Under the original plan, Mr Taj and his business associates would have spent up to £50,000 building the car park.

It would have been open for use by the public and park visitors.

The proposal was approved by Bradford Council's town and country planning sub-committee last month.

But Mr Taj would have needed to win the support of the council's parks and recreation sub-committee to buy the land.

Sajid Mahmood, speaking on behalf of protesters who had collected signatures, said he feared the owners of the Barrack Tavern could revert to the car park plan in the future.

He said: "Moves need to be made to safeguard the future of the land."

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