Unleash your creativity with 3D Printing at Explore Acomb Library

On Saturday 6 December, Explore Acomb Library will be hosting two 3D Printing events.

3d_touch_3d_printer

During these three-hour events, experts will train learners in 3D design using the latest technology, and each learner will be given the opportunity to print their design to take home with them – this could include 3D jewellery, ornaments, model trains, toys, utensils and much more.

And as the events occur in early December, this could be the perfect opportunity to design and create a unique Christmas gift for that special someone.

Customers have a choice of a morning or afternoon session:

Saturday 6 December, 9.30am – 12.30pm

Saturday 6 December, 13.30pm – 16.30pm.

Spaces are limited, so booking is essential. Please call Explore Acomb Library on 01904 552651 to reserve a place. Tickets are priced at £30 per person which includes design training, model creation and refreshments. The events are open to all ages.

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Investing to protect York’s medieval Bar Walls

Walmgate bar painting

City of York Council is investing over £100,000 to protect and preserve York’s historical Walmgate Bar Walls which date back to the medieval period.

Walmgate Bar is the most complete of the four medieval gateways in York and the walls themselves are the best example of medieval city walls still standing in England today, which over a million people walk across every year.

Originally built as defences, the focus is now on conservation and the council is working with English Heritage to carry out a number of improvements to Walmgate Bar this month to help preserve over 1,900 years of history.

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Skips on Saturday

Skip yellow

The skips below are funded by your local residents association using their Estate Improvement Grant. The skips are removed once they are full so please make sure you arrive in good time if you intend to make use of them.

1. Please remember to take your waste to the site only on the dates advertised

2. If the skip is full or not on the site, please do not leave your waste. This is classed as fly tipping and is illegal

3. Bulky items including furniture, fridges and freezers are not accepted. To arrange disposal of Bulky items including furniture, fridges and freezers are not accepted. To arrange disposal of one of these items please ring York (01904) 551551.

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

Click the following link for more information

Dringhouses RA

Foxwood RA

Road works next week on The Mount

road works

City of York Council will carry out essential resurfacing works on three junctions on The Mount. Work will take place on the junctions of Dalton Terrace, Albemarle Road, and Scarcroft Road from Monday 10 November.

The work is programmed to last five days and will take place between 7pm-11pm.

In order to carry out these works safely, temporary road closures of the junctions The Mount/Dalton Terrace, The Mount/Albemarle Rd and The Mount/Scarcroft Rd will be in place. Traffic on The Mount will be managed using two way temporary traffic lights. Work will not be carried out on weekends.

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New 2014/15 waste and recycling calendars

Recycling wagon

City of York Council is sending households in York a new waste and recycling calendar for 2014/15.

From this week households across the city will start to receive their new calendar which outlines when collections are taking place between December 2014 and November 2015, including collections over the Christmas and New Year period.

The new calendars also provide tips and advice on what items can and can’t be recycled including paper/cardboard, glass, plastic bottles, cans/tins and if applicable garden waste.

The council also recently announced its decision to add a further garden waste collection in January to pick up out of season garden waste – to collect any remaining autumn waste and Christmas trees.

Flats, rural properties and city centre properties serviced by St Nicks recycling team will receive collection information in December. For any queries about the St Nicks recycling service in the city centre please go to http://www.stnicks.org.uk/ or telephone 01904 411821.

Residents are asked to ensure their bins or boxes are presented by 7am on the day of their collection, but no earlier than 7pm the evening before.

For more information on waste and recycling visit please visit www.york.gov.uk/recycling .Or follow on @CYCWaste on Twitter or ‘like’ CYCWaste on Facebook.

Bootham – Gillygate junction to be closed for 1 week (overnight)

St Leonards Place, Bootham, GillygateCarriageway Resurfacing Works

Bootham - Gillygate roadworks from 17th November 2014

Bootham – Gillygate roadworks from 17th November 2014

City of York Council have announced that it is to reconstruct the junction at St Leonards Place, Bootham, Gillygate starting on the 17th November 2014.

The works are programmed to take 1 week to complete, working Monday to Friday between 7:00pm and 5:00am.

To carry out the works safely, a temporary full road closure will be in place between 7:00pm and 5:00am Monday to Friday, with some accommodation works taking place outside of these times.

Due to the nature of the works and the deep excavations taking place, it will not be possible for the buses to access the bus stops on St Leonards Place and all buses will be diverted to temporary bus stops.

Residents and visitors will have pedestrian access to properties and local attractions and Traffic Management Officers will be on site to escort pedestrians where required.

Residents in the works area will have pedestrian access to their properties but no vehicular access will be possible during the hours of working. Parking is not permitted on any of the roads involved. The car park entrance within the works will be affected and may not be accessible at all times during the works. Access to Marygate and Union Terrace car parks will still be available from Bootham and Clarence Street respectively.

Emergency services will be permitted through the works in an emergency situation and pedestrian access will be available at all times. Cyclists will have to dismount and use the footways when travelling through the affected areas.

Lendal Bridge Inquiry to be revived

£162,000 refunded so far to motorists who were illegally fined.

It looks like the Labour Councillors who were responsible for the £1.3 million Lendal Bridge closure fiasco will not get away scot free.Lendal bridge notice

In August, when Labour still had a Council majority, they voted not to undertake a review of what went wrong with the trial closure.

Now a report, suggesting that a full and open inquiry into the failure should take place, is to be considered on 12th November.

  • Residents will be eager to learn how a scheme, that was obviously failing only one month into the trial, was allowed to continue for another 6 months.
  • They will be expecting the legal advice received by the Council at each stage to be made public.
  • They will want to know what secret meetings took place and how they influenced the Councils position.
  • They will look very carefully at the public statements made by officials and Council members in March and April 2014 – after the enforcement arrangements had been found to be unlawful – and which gave the impression that the cameras were still being used for enforcement purposes.
  • The committee will also no doubt wish to look in detail at the costs that were incurred, not least those that accumulated during an ill considered attempt to appeal against the decision of the Traffic Penalty Tribunal Adjudicator

Most of all they will be looking to the Council to remove its arbitrary December deadline for refund applications – from those fined unlawfully – and to finally agree to write directly to all those affected telling them of their right to claim a refund.

So far 7,783 refund claims have been processed.

To date a total of £162k has been refunded as part of the refund process.

However, we understand that some claims have been refused and information about how many – and why – is urgently being sought by LibDem Councillors.

Income from the Lendal Bridge trial totalled £1,378,000. There was administrative expenditure totalling £527k which primarily covered the cost of processing penalty charge notices. As part of the year end accounts the Council made provision of £708,000 to cover the refund penalty charge notices.

Separately the report confirms that the Adjudicator has still not dealt with an appeal against his decision on Coppergate. No camera enforcement of the Coppergate restrictions is currently taking place.

Cllr Andrew Waller – the new chair of theEconomic & City Development Scrutiny Committee which will consider the report next week – commented:

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Ann says, “York must be ready for winter weather”

Cllr Andrew Waller with one of the salt bins that he has asked to be refurbished and refilled

Cllr Andrew Waller with one of the salt bins that he has asked to be refurbished and refilled

 

Liberal Democrat councillors are urging Labour run City of York Council to be properly prepared for winter and not to gamble on continuing mild weather.

The warning comes amid growing concerns that York will not be able to cope with snowy and icy weather following cuts to the winter maintenance budget.

Since 2011 Labour has cut the council’s winter budget every year and last year took 30 miles of road off the priority gritting list and stopped funding two-thirds of salt bins. Whilst Liberal Democrat councillors and campaigners worked with parish councils and residents groups to save some salt bins, many were still lost.

Council budget cuts meant that despite last year’s mild weather, York still overspent its winter budget by around £100,000 leading to fears how it will cope with bad weather this year.

Now Lib Dem councillors have written to the Labour Cabinet Member responsible calling on the council to make sure it is ‘ready for winter’ and to work with local residents to identify gaps in provision.

Cllr Ann Reid, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Environmental Services, commented:

“Despite the recent mild weather I have spoken to many residents in recent weeks who are asking for salt bins to be replaced and roads to be put back on gritting routes as we approach winter. Residents have also raised concerns about salt bins which have been left to rot and are now without lids or full of rubbish.

“Last year the council was fortunate to have a particularly mild winter, but it must make sure it is ready for winter this year and able to cope if more seasonal weather comes in the next few months. It needs to work with local residents and community groups to identify and tackle gaps in provision. These frontline services need to be the priority rather than Labour’s vanity projects in the city-centre.

“While I am pleased to see that the snow warden service is restarting – now in its fourth season having been brought in by the previous Lib Dem administration – this team of volunteers needs proper support from the council, and officers who work hard to keep the city running need support from the top.”

Liberal Democrat councillors have sent the following letter to the Labour Cabinet Member responsible:

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Loss on Huntington Stadium concert confirmed as £187,000

Event only took £12,000 in ticket sales

The York Council has finally revealed that it lost an astonishing £187,000 on the concert that it staged at the Huntington Stadium on 4th July.

It spent £82,000 on artists fees and £94,000 on “infrastructure costs”

An “event management fee” of £18,000 was also spent

The Council went to extraordinary lengths to try to hide the scale of the failure with several Freedom of Information requests knocked back on largely spurious grounds and others still outstanding

With Labour now having lost their majority, officials have been ordered to reveal the full figures.

The mistakes will lead to renewed calls for the Cllr Crisp – who is responsible for Leisure activities – to resign.

She had been awarded a “medal” for her work on the event.

The costs given to leading Councillors were:

Cost Heading

£’000

Artists Fees

 82

Infrastructure Costs

 94

Marketing

 10
Event Management Fee 18
Other CYC Costs 7

Repairs, seats and Gazebos and Charity Donations

Less costs shared with Spec Hub

 -5

Screen and barrier cost shared with Huntington Stadium Spec Hub.

Total Expenditure

206

Gross Income

Ticket Sales

 16

Less Refunds

 -2
Catering

5
Total Event Income

19

Net Cost of Concert

187

NB. The Labour Cabinet on 1st October 2013 set a budget for the Tour de France of £1,664k, to cover the cost of the event, funded from a variety of budgets.

The outturn shows that the final cost of the event totalled £1,827k. In addition there was an up front payment of a “hosting fee”.

Links (click)

Cllr Keith Aspden, Lib Dem Group Leader commented:

“There are serious questions to be asked as to how the council lost money on the Tour De France. The botched camping plans and the last-minute decision to hold a concert at Huntington Stadium have lost taxpayers £33,000 and £187,000 respectively.

“The Liberal Democrats argued all along that Labour needed to produce a proper public business case backed-up with detailed financial plans for these events. Instead Labour shrouded the plans in secrecy and took decisions behind-closed-doors without proper public involvement or opposition councillor scrutiny.

“Given this, it is unsurprising that these council organised events have lost money and will now worryingly hit the communities and neighbourhoods budget by £60,000.

“Despite the mistakes made by the Labour run council, I am pleased that overall the Tour De France has had a positive impact on York businesses and the wider Yorkshire economy.”