Former council parks café operator evicted three years ago never repaid £70,000 of rental debt

The new Conservative leadership at the civic centre says it’s “unacceptable” anyone should “take advantage of the council in this way”, reports James Cracknell

Enfield Council decided to “write off” nearly £70,000 in rental debts owed by a former parks café operator, it has emerged.

The cafés at Trent Park, Whitewebbs Park, Town Park and Oakwood Park – all controlled by Ozgur Celebi – were shut down simultaneously in September 2023.

In response to a recent Freedom of Information Act request by the Dispatch, the council has now revealed Celebi didn’t repay any of the £69,541.51 in unpaid rent.

The council’s FOI response explained: “Trace searches were undertaken, however the council were unable to instruct county court proceedings as the tenant, comprising four separate limited companies under the same director, had no known fixed abode in the UK and it was understood they were no longer in the country at the time.

“The tenant also had no ownership of assets or property in the UK to secure a county court judgement against.

“Therefore it was recommended by our legal team to write off the debt rather than incurring further costs to the council by conducting further tracing and legal action.”

While the first three of the cafes operated by Celebi’s companies that were suddenly closed by the council in September 2023 reopened within a year under new management, it took far longer to reopen the café at Town Park – it was only this spring that soft play operator Little Dinosaurs finally completed its refurbishment of the pavilion and opened for business.

The decision to write-off the debt would have been made under the previous Labour administration. A new minority Conservative administration took power at Enfield Civic Centre at the end of May, following the local election that month which saw Labour lose its majority.

Asked to comment, Edward Smith, the council’s new cabinet member for council assets and culture, said: “It is unacceptable that anyone should take advantage of the council in this way and treat taxpayers with such disregard. We will always use whatever powers we have to recoup money owed.

“We will ensure that proper procurement and procedural processes are followed for any contractual arrangements with the council and importantly, finances are monitored and prudently managed. We will fight for every penny for our residents.”

Ozgur Celebi could not be reached for comment.

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