BUSINESSES have rallied round to stop bailiffs from shutting an old coal yard.

However, at least two businesses at Upside Railway Yard, next to Colchester’s Hythe station, have moved on already after Network Rail threatened to close the site.

The landowners told mechanic Bob Taylor it would seize the land over an alleged non-payment of back rent totalling almost £30,000, reported in the Gazette last week.

Since then several of the sub tenants, who run businesses from the site, have joined together to try to make a new agreement with one of them, Tony Bowman, offering to take on the lead role.

Russell Spink, a spokesman for Network Rail, said: “Everyone seems pretty happy with it.

“We have no interest in booting them out and it is in everyone’s interest they remain there, so we are trying to make sure they have legal rights to stay.”

A company offering boxing training and another which took cars to the continent have already moved on but about ten other sub tenants want to remain.

Mr Bowman said: “I am here every day of the week and we were not pleased about what has been happening.

“I have got in touch with the company which made the closure order because we have still got a lot to offer.

“I am not interested in running the yard but this would be as a conglomerate and I have put it to the head office in London.”

Brian Waring, an inventor who spent 50 years in the water industry, is a plot holder. which he uses to work on his designs.

He lost everything in the Cowdray Centre fire in 2006 and said he could not cope with having to move again.

He said: “I come here 365 days a year. I would be disappointed if this closed. I could not get a place anywhere else. If we got kicked out, no one would help us.”

Network Rail Infrastructure won an order for possession of the yard on September 8, 2009 at Colchester's County Court.

It is hoped an agreement can be reached in the near future.