THE boss of the Forum Shopping Centre has launched a last ditch plea to help save his business.

Manzur Ahmed is urging council bosses to invest in the area surrounding the Forum to keep it from closing for good.

The Forum has been struggling for several years but could be just weeks away from being shut down.

Mr Ahmed claims North Ayrshire Council have done nothing to help him or the eyesores surrounding the centre - including the rotting ex-Ruby Tuesdays.

He says he can no longer afford to keep the Forum running at a loss and is now urging the council to help him prevent leaving his retailers jobless - and creating further empty units in Irvine town centre.

Speaking to the Times, Mr Ahmed said: “I’m at the stage now where I need the council to help us or we will be forced to close.

“The retailers are not surviving in this situation, I’ve invested a lot of money over the last four years but I’m getting no help whatsoever.

“No financial help or even personal help from anybody, people don’t care in this area.

“I’ve been running into loss since March, I can’t pay my bills, more retailers are leaving and my stress levels are unbelievable.”

He added: “If more leave I will be left with nothing but I’m now having to say to the retailers ‘if you want to go, just go’.

“The real losers will be the retailers losing their jobs and the older shoppers who still come here for a good deal at a good price.

“I want to carry on but we have had no help, I don’t know how long we have left.”

To add to his worries, Mr Ahmed has also been embroiled in a long-running battle with the Rivergate Shopping Centre.

The Times told last year how the Rivergate blocked off a door - open for 20 years - which offered access between the Forum and the mall.

The Rivergate initially said this was closed due to “safety concerns” but a spokesperson later said it was a “business decision”.

In 2012, the Forum was declared back in business as new traders arrived to pack out the centre.

Since then, however, business has been in a downward spiral but Mr Ahmed insists he has refused to increase the rent on his retailers.

The Forum boss added: “It’s not my fault if it closes. I’ve put a lot of money in and in four years of running I have not increased a single penny in rent.

“I actually reduced the rent when I first came in! 

“The council should be taking the opportunity to prevent more businesses closing in the town.

“They are investing all of that money into the leisure centre when it could have cost them between £20,000 to £30,000 on really improving this part of the town centre.

“We really need help and I’m asking the council to come forward and give us support or we won’t survive.”

A North Ayrshire Council spokesperson said: “We haven’t received any requests for assistance or advice from the owner of the Forum Shopping Centre.

“We would certainly welcome an approach to hear about the proposals for the centre and how we could help with these.

“We have previously offered to provide financial support to help improve the Forum Centre’s signage and entrance.

“But the bid for grant funding wasn’t taken forward as the owner did not meet the requirements of the offer in providing a share of around 25 per cent towards the works.

“While we don’t own the land adjacent to Ruby Tuesday’s we recognise that it needs to be improved and have previously undertaken improvement works to the area such as repairs to surfaces and making the canopy structure safe.

“Our Streetscene officers also manually clean the area every day.

“We will continue to explore options to try and improve the amenity of the area.”