Labour-run Ipswich Borough Council acquired 4 College Street in 2016, opposite St Peter's Chuch, a derelict building on the At Risk register.
In 2019, they approved renovation works. Another 2 years on, works have now commenced and narrowed College Street to 1 lane causing additional traffic chaos and extra pollution.
Conservative Group Deputy Leader, Cllr Eddy Phillips, challenged the leader of the Labour council as to why it had been scheduled now, and causing this traffic misery in the essential run up to Christmas.
Cllr Phillips suggested that the council could have worked with the contractors in order to commence works from July 2020 onwards when covid restrictions eased and roads were relatively still quiet and should now apologise to the residents and businesses of Ipswich. The Labour group leader refused to apologise and blamed covid instead.