TWO angry businesswomen are planning to sue City of York Council over a parking permit blunder.

Jacky Featherstone and Barbara Stephenson believe they have been misled by the council, after it stopped them parking outside their business premises. They moved their soft furnishings shop, Serendipity, from Vine Street, Bishopthorpe Road, to Gillygate two months ago, hoping the new location would boost business.

When the pair decided to take the premises, they were told they could park behind the shop and they paid £360 for a parking permit. But after they signed a nine-year-lease with City of York Council, they received a letter withdrawing the permit, saying it had been issued by mistake.

Jacky said they would never have moved to Gillygate if they had known there was no parking.

"I feel we have been greatly misled.

"Without parking we can't trade properly," she said.

"I need to go to people's homes to take measurements and make deliveries."

She said the council had offered them a parking permit in nearby Marygate, but the new permit would cost them £1,500 a year.

Jacky said: "We don't know what to do.

"We are now in a nine-year lease and we can't run our business properly."

Jacky started Serendipity 18 months ago with her aunt, Barbara, and business had been going well.

Now they are planning to take legal action against the council.

"Before we came here, the shop was abandoned and in a dreadful state," she added.

"We want to help improve this area. This business is our baby, but the council has ruined it for us."

A council spokeswoman said: "Three residential parking permits were issued to business premises on Gillygate in error, two to long-established businesses and one to Serendipity.

"We are writing to all three businesses to apologise for the error and explain that, although the permits have been withdrawn, they will receive a full refund and a free permit for parking on Union Terrace for the same duration as the ones that they had originally purchased.

"We recognise the inconvenience that this has caused and hope that the measures that we are putting in place give the affected businesses time to come up with alternative arrangements.

"Our property team will also be making arrangements to ensure that Serendipity is not held to the nine-year lease if they no longer wish to be."

Updated: 09:28 Saturday, June 05, 2004