A Spanish restaurant has closed, with works on Perth City Hall right outside its front door being blamed for driving customers away.
Perth and Kinross Council says the £26.5 million project will attract thousands of visitors from across the world and "create a vibrant city centre environment that will benefit businesses".
But fencing, a noisy generator and building works opposite the entrance to the South St John's Place restaurant Bistua has put diners off eating there.
Bistua restaurant owner and father-of-three Ciro Sito told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): "Nobody cares and nobody helps me. I just had to close."
The tapas restaurant had 30 covers and offered a takeaway service too.
But the building site right outside has been a turn-off for diners.
Speaking to the LDRS on Monday, Mr Sito said: "They started to do work in the evenings and at weekends. People could not find me. I lost six or seven tables last weekend.
"Everything is being done in front of my door. I have had no compensation from the council.
"I can't put tables outside.
"There is a railing in front of the restaurant and a generator three metres from my door. People were leaving because of the noise."
Ciro then had to deal with the dust which would gather on the wooden floors.
He said: "In the evenings, everything was a mess."
Ciro has even faced problems offloading goods into his restaurant with construction vans blocking the road.
Ciro - who opened the restaurant in September 2020 - has struggled with rent and utility payments.
He said: "I have spoken to the council 10 times. How can I feed my three children? I'm quite upset. It's not a joke.
"They don't care. I'm desperate to pay the electricity."
A Perth and Kinross Council spokesperson told the LDRS: "The new £26.5 million museum at Perth City Hall will bring thousands of visitors to the city from across the globe.
"Work started in January last year and the new museum is on track to open in September 2024.
"The new museum will create a vibrant city centre environment that will benefit businesses in the city centre and the wider Perth and Kinross area.
"We are keeping businesses updated on progress of the new museum.
"Our Business and Place Development Team can help businesses make the most of the opportunity including grant support for frontage improvements and re-use of upper floors."
Perth City Centre councillors were sympathetic.
Local SNP councillor Eric Drysdale said: "I appreciate that it has been an extremely difficult couple of years for businesses and I hope Bistua can re-open in new premises soon.
"We’re committed to supporting businesses and re-energising all our town centres and the new museum will play a huge role in that in Perth City Centre.
"This will be a museum of international renown that will bring visitors from across the globe to Perth and businesses across Perth and Kinross will benefit once it opens in 2024."
Bailie Chris Ahern said: "I have all sympathy for him."
The C onservative councillor hopes the restaurant can re-open once works outside the restaurant are complete.
He said: "There are building works going on and that eventually will do a lot for the city centre and his business if he's able to open up again.
"They were scheduled to last about 13 weeks and they started on that side of the City Hall about two weeks ago."
Liberal Democrat councillor Peter Barrett said: "I am very sorry to hear that Bistua has closed. It shows that these are still really tough times for the casual dining sector.
"The council ensured that all COVID financial support was provided to local businesses and even took on extra staff to process payments. Flexibility and support to enable greater use of outdoor areas and pavement has also been made available to support restaurants and bars around St John’s.
"There is also the open for business scheme to support the improvement of business facades to make premises more attractive to customers. The council is investing a massive £26.5m in the transformation of the City Hall and the re-generation of the area around it which will attract footfall and customers.
"But it can’t afford to make that sort of investment and provide compensation for loss of trade."
