Julian Brooke, who lives in Drury Lane, said pigeon droppings were damaging Richard Harding Watt's Ruskin Rooms.

"We have a high volume of tourists coming from all over the world and they see this building polluted by pigeon droppings," he told the Knutsford Guardian.

"I think we let ourselves down as such a lovely town with a cultural history."

Mr Brooke said the rear of the ornate rooms, built in 1902, was fouled with pigeon droppings that had started to smell in the hot weather.

"It must rot the fabric of the building but there is also the problem of the diseases that it spreads," he said.

"Last week one of my neighbours collected seven sacks full of pigeon droppings from the Ruskin Rooms."

Mr Brooke suggested a pigeon cull or the introduction of a bird of prey - like a peregrine falcon - to help keep the numbers down.

Pigeon droppings are directly linked to human diseases including listeria and salmonella.

"The droppings of these birds present very serious health problems," said a spokesman for Macclesfield Borough Council.

"People must not feed the birds which encourages them."

Now Mr Brooke wants nearby businesses and residents to pay to pigeon-proof the back of the building.

"The front was done about six years ago and it worked well," he said.

"That building would absolutely sparkle if it was cleaned up."

Agents for the Ruskin Rooms owner, who are based in the Drury Lane building, were unavailable for comment.

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