A YORK car dealer who wants to relocate to an industrial estate has vowed to appeal if City of York councillors refuse his request to convert his garages into flats.

Robert Pulleyn, who runs Piccadilly Autos, in Leeman Road, claims that a major upheaval of car dealerships from the city centre to industrial estates like Clifton Moor, Monks Cross and Poppleton Park, has taken customers elsewhere and forced him to close his business.

He has submitted plans to convert his garage - which is located near the National Railway Museum and the East Coast Main Line railway - into a block of 24 two-bedroom flats.

Mr Pulleyn, who also runs the Clifton Garage, in Clifton, hopes to move to an industrial estate and merge both businesses.

But in a report to be discussed by members of the council's planning committee tomorrow, the flats plan has been recommended for refusal.

Mr Pulleyn said: "I can't believe that this site is being recommended for refusal at tomorrow's council meeting.

"Three years ago, I had a meeting with York City Council to discuss the relocation of my garage business to one of the industrial motor parks. The council have encouraged the motor parks to be built up so that customers look to purchase a car from one of these sites.

"It's no longer viable for me to continue trading from my Leeman Road location."

Piccadilly Autos was once a new car dealership with used car sales and a petrol station.

The petrol station remains open but Mr Pulleyn fears that too may soon have to close if he cannot move his businesses to the outer ring road.

He added: "I'm looking for some sensibility from the council. They are stopping me doing something I have done as a family business for over 35 years and I will appeal this issue."

A council spokeswoman said Mr Pulleyn's problem was "not as cut and dried as all that", and potential problems of noise and vibration from the railway lines and possible land contamination from the garage and previous users must be considered.

Updated: 14:36 Wednesday, June 25, 2003