A number of shop owners on Parade Quay say they've been told they will need to vacate their premises early next year.
The council says they were told from the outset that their tenancy was temporary as funding was being sought to regenerate those buildings.
However, the owner of the shop, Béibhinn, says she was only notified for the first time two months ago that she would have to find a new place.
"Hard for us to survive"
Speaking to WLR News, Béibhinn McGrath says her business needs to be within the Viking Triangle.
"In the summer, our business is aimed towards the tourists," Béibhinn explains, "and they love it because they come in here and all of our knitwear is made here and everything else is made in Ireland.
"We can tell them a story about all the makers.
"I feel like I need to be in the tourist area and there's not so many premises around here.
"... Covid was a very tough time and instead of helping the independent businesses in the town to get back on their feet, I feel like they are making it quite hard for us to survive."
Ed McHatton of the Tower Gift Shop is a tenant of a private landlord but it seems his building is also set to be renovated.
"Everything I had went into keeping this business going"
"I heard nothing and I knew nothing about it whatsoever," he told WLR News. "Like I said, the first I heard was when they came in to measure for it.
"After the lockdown, everything I had went into keeping this business going during lockdown.
"I moved out of my flat, I moved in with my sister to save money, I took out loans to keep the business going that I'm going to be paying off for the next two years.
"And I would have done that all differently had I thought that in 2023 I'd have no business."
Sinéad Gunnigle set up her business, Nest, just over two years ago and is also one of those who has been given notice that she will have to relocate, if she can.
She says that closing a business "in its infancy - I'm still only two-and-a-bit years old - is detrimental really.
"I've worked so hard and I think that if there was more conversation about the whole thing... Just talk to us and just make us aware.
"And you know, try and keep independent businesses open."
Uncertain future
Sinéad has also made the point that she doesn't know now whether or not she will even be able to sell gift vouchers come Christmas time, as she doesn't know whether or not she will be there in the new year.
This has also come at a particularly precarious time for Béibhinn, who is supposed to be preparing for maternity leave.
"Yes, I'm due my baby in six weeks time," she says, "and we're currently trying to hire staff.
"It's a very uncertain time and you're trying to hire staff and telling them, 'I don't know, maybe I'll be open in January... maybe I won't'.
"Molly, my sister-in-law who works here full-time, she's training to be a primary school teacher, so she's going to be gone off on placement as well.
"Coming into the Christmas season as well, the uncertainty isn't great, to be honest."
The council's statement in full reads:
"From the outset, tenants of Parade Quay would have been made aware that the tenure was temporary and funding was being sought for the regeneration of the area. As much notice as possible has been provided to the tenants in order for them to have adequate time to source a new property. Waterford City and County Council has been engaging with some of the major city centre retail landlords to advise them these retailers will be looking for new premises.
Once the projects on Parade Quay are completed, Waterford City and County Council anticipates that it will be looking for suitable tenants to occupy the ground floor, so former tenants may be offered tenancies /leases at market rents."
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