Record number of Council candidates in York Council poll

Over 200 candidates will be seeking to become members of the City of York Council at the elections which are due to be held on Thursday  May 7th

A full list of candidates can be downloaded by clicking here.

Details of all Liberal Democrat candidates can be accessed by clicking here

Four parties are contesting every seat (LibDem, Lab, Tory and Green). There is also a smattering of UKIP, Independent and trades unionist candidates

In the Dringhouses ward, only the Liberal Democrats are putting forward an experienced team of candidates (Stephen Fenton, Ashley Mason and Cllr Ann Reid).  A UKIP candidate will join the 12 contenders from the major parties on the ballot paper.

Each elector has 3 votes plus another vote in the General Election which takes place on the same date.

In 2011 Ann Reid and two Labour Councillors were elected in what turned out to be one of the closest contests in the City

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This years poll is again expected to develop into a straight choice between the LibDems candidates and Labour.

You can now register to vote using an online portal at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote which is quicker and easier than completing a form. You must submit an application to register to vote by 20 April 2015 to be able to vote in the elections held on Thursday 7 May 2015

Those wishing to vote by post have until 5pm on  Tuesday 21st April to register a request. You can download an application form by clicking here

York Council receives £1.85 million in bus lane fines

A Freedom of information response has revealed that the York Council has received £1.85 million in fines income from motorists misusing “bus lanes”.Camera

Most of the income was generated on Lendal Bridge and Coppergate.

The enforcement cameras have since been switched off at both locations and the Council is engaged in the costly exercise of writing, to all who were fined on Lendal Bridge, offering a refund. (A further FOI request for a progress report on the numbers responding is due at the end of the month).

The Council has not yet refunded fines imposed on Coppergate but instead submitted an appeal against a traffic adjudicator’s judgement that the fines were unlawful.

The appeal process has been dragging on for over a year now.

£1.85 million in fines

“Litter, what litter?”

A response to a Freedom of Information request has revealed that the York Council stopped counting the number of complaints it was receiving about litter 18 months ago!

Litter complaints admitted by York Council (click to enlarge)

Litter complaints admitted by York Council (click to enlarge)

Monthly figures have been provided only up to November 2013.

The decision not to record complaints co-incided with Labour’s cuts in the number of litter bins provided in the City.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that litter problems are worsening in many parts of the City. 

The new Council which will be elected on May 7th will certainly expect not only performance volumes like these to be gathered but also to have them published routinely on the Council’s web site

The Council recently announced further cuts to litter bin provision in sub-urban parts of the City including Foxwood Lane.

 

Police appeal after York football changing rooms on Sim Balk Lane burgled

York police are appealing for information after the changing rooms at a York football field were broken into on Easter Sunday.

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The changing block on Sim Balk Lane, near to York College was entered by the suspects who forced the locked door open during a football match and stole cash from the players’ bags. It happened between 10.15am and 12.15pm  on the morning on Sunday 5 April 2015.

The changing rooms are situated near the main road which is believed to have been busy on the morning of the break-in and officers are appealing to anyone who was passing at the time and saw any suspicious activity in the vicinity of the changing block to contact them.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact North Yorkshire Police on 101, select option 2 and ask for PC Gemma Churchward or email gemma.churchward@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk

If you wish to remain anonymous, you can pass information to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Please quote reference number 12150055116 when passing on information.

New digital information web site opened in York

 York businesses invited to sign-up

City of York Council has launched a new website featuring local data, giving residents and businesses free access to a wealth of information about their city, which will be used to build new solutions to all kinds of challenges such as those around sustainability, transport, energy and community engagement.

York Open Data is a place for businesses and organisations to publicly share their data so that anybody can connect to hundred’s of up-to-date, searchable data sets and use them to make a difference in their local area.

Anybody wishing to get involved in York Open Data is encouraged to make contact and sign-up to future events at www.yorkopendata.org.
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The way we were – 2011

  • The new Barbican auditorium opened. It is now run by the private sector with no Council subsidy.
  • Labour gained an overall majority at the Council elections and promptly changed the Councils budget priorities. They approved proposals to reduce the size of recycling containers.
  • May 2011-Labour announce plans to sell off the Union Terrace car park to St. Johns University. There is massive public opposition The University later pull out of the deal and the plan is abandoned   

    Attempted sale of Union Terrace car park

    Attempted sale of Union Terrace car park

  • June 2011-Labour give their first indication that they plan to build on the Green Belt
  • July 2011-The Lowfield care village plans are published. Public consultation is to follow. Four years later the project is to collapse costing taxpayers over £350,000. Labour confirm their plans for a “signed only” 20 mph speed limit Public reaction is overwhelmingly negative.
  • August 2011-Redevelopment of the British Sugar site stalls
  • September 2011-The Council announce plans to close their branch office in Acomb. The closure hastens the economic decline of the Front Street area. The local social care budget deficit hits £1.6 million and chaos hits the care homes plan
  • October 2011–A record fall in bus use in York is revealed as Labour try to force the ftr off roads
  • November 2011-Labour close the Haymarket car park losing £300,000 a year in income. There are calls for Labour Councillors to be frank about their trades union sponsorship arrangements. The Coalition Government gives the “go ahead” for two new park and ride sites in the City.
  • December 2011secret plans for new access routes into the York North West development are leaked. The Council is set to abandon its historic Guildhall home. A spoof obituary goes viral on internet.
Dringhouses Focus Feb 2012 click to enlarge

Dringhouses Focus Feb 2012 click to enlarge

Street lights – no wonder we are in the dark

York Council fails to fix 67% of faults within target time

Street lighting repair stats

Street lighting repair stats

The York Councils streetlight repair performance slipped to an all time low last December with only 18% of faults being repaired within target times.

Performance had been  dropping since routine “scouting” for faults was abandoned.

Even when faults have been reported by members of the public there have been unacceptable delays.

The Council has the following targets for attending to faults:

  • Urgent faults will be attended and either repaired or made safe within 2 hours
  • Normal faults will be attended and either repaired or made safe within 4 working days
  • When a defect has been made safe and further works are required, we aim to have the repairs carried out within 20 working days.  When there is an issue with the electricity supply, and we have to work with a utility company to resolve, the national standard allows 35 working days for the repairs to be completed

The performance probably hides an even more serious situation with few Councillors apparently now routinely reporting lighting faults in their wards.

In Dringhouses LibDem Councillor Ann Reid is the exception having reported (and re-reported) dozens of faults this winter. However, members of the public have become disheartened by the lack of response.

The situation has deteriorated over the last 12 months.

  • In February 2014 only 20% of fault repairs missed target.
  • This had escalated to 67% in February this year.

Labour Councillors blame aging street lighting stock for the problems but conveniently forget that they spent over £1 million on new lamps in 2012. The number of faults reported in January 2015 was actually less than is the corresponding month the previous year.

The reel issue related to the lack of adequate staffing levels and an enforceable service level agreement with repair contractors.

In the battle against crime and In road safety terms, good street lighting should be a higher priority than putting up more 20 mph signs.

Call for action on Council estate maintenance standards

Not surprisingly many tenants are bemused as rents continue to rise while maintenance standards on estates fall.

Fly tipping on Green Lane Acomb garage forecourt

Fly tipping on Green Lane (Acomb) garage forecourt today

Council tenants have faced a 28% increase in rent levels over the last 5 years.

The York Council is expected to have a £15 million surplus balance on its housing account at the end of this year.

Yet little has been invested in improvements and communal areas are too often targets for graffiti and dumping.

Weeks elapse before clean ups are arranged

York Council Housing rents and balances. Click to enlarge

York Council Housing rents and balances. Click to enlarge

Strangely the York Council housing  department is the only part of the local authority which has seen no cuts at all in funding during the last 4 years yet service standards are declining.

There is little evidence that the Labour Councillors who are responsible for Council housing ever routinely visit estates to ensure that service standards are acceptable.

Time for a change of approach we think!