Poor turn out at Dringhouses “ward forum”

Only about 20 residents (plus a couple of Labour Councillors from other parts of the City) turned up at the Ward Forum last night despite the welcome attendance of Julia Mulligan the Police and Crime Commissioner.

Attendance at Ward meetings has fallen off since the council stopped publicising the meeting dates in ward newsletters.

Julia Mulligan spoke and answered questions for about an hour.

She confirmed that she is maintaining Police and PCSO numbers at the level she inherited – 1392 and 183.

On 20mph limit enforcement she said that the new ACPO guidelines would be adopted in N Yorks. This means that 20mph limits will be subject to the same process as 30mph limits. If a road has persistent speeding problems then it could be subject to enforcement. Residents will have to record their concerns through the 95 Alive forms and the same process will follow.

There will be no new resources to do this so they will just have to take their turn with all the rest. The main difference is that if people are stopped in a 20mph limit then there will be the same options of taking a speed awareness course, instead of a fine and points, as there is now for the 30mph limits.

However the new policy does represent a change of approach from the Conservatives in North Yorkshire, who have previously been as sceptical as we are about wide area 20 mph limits and the wisdom of allocating scares Police resources to roads where there have been no recorded accidents.

If any tickets are issued in the new 20 mph areas during the first year of operation, on roads with a low accident record, then it is likely that the new Council, which will be elected in May 2015, will decide to scrap the new restrictions.

Outdoor entertainments plan for Rawcliffe park and ride site

The York Council wants to permit outdoor entertainments to be staged at the Rawcliffe Park and Ride site.

They are applying to extend the license that currently applies to the adjacent Rawcliffe Country Park.

Rawcliffe Park and Ride site

Rawcliffe Park and Ride site

The application is phrased to give the impression that the car park will be commandeered if the adjacent country park is unsuitable for outdoor events – for example as a result of flooding.

However the requested hours of operation cover the full week and in particular the times when the car park is heavily used for the park and ride service.

The entertainment license would apply between 09:00hours to 2200 hours except Fridays and Saturdays when the hours extend to 2300 hours.

No explanation for the circumstances in which the license would be used have been provided for a committee meeting which is taking place on Thursday 24th October.

The main problems are likely to arise if organisers start setting up during the hours that the car park is normally in heavy use.

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NB. A fireworks display and outdoor entertainment event is scheduled to take place at the Rawcliffe Country Park on Sunday 3rd November.

Called “Kaboom” it is advertised as the counties biggest fireworks display. Last year a similar event resulted in extensive damage to the Rawcliffe Country Park because of wet conditions.

Plans to hold the Galtres Festival at Rawcliffe earlier this year were abandoned in favour of a venue near Helmsley.

Unwrapping the Chocolate City – Discovering the Chocolate Makers 19th Oct 2013

This hands-on workshop takes a journey through York’s confectionery industry as it developed from a Medieval trading city to become the home of the world’s most famous chocolate bars.
Location: The Mansion House

Time: 11:00 – 13:00

Cost: £17.50 Adult, £12 Child

Learn how to make the products that made York the Chocolate City and join us for a journey through York’s confectionery industry as it developed from a Medieval trading city to become the home of the world’s most famous chocolate bars.
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Lendal Bridge and Coppergate penalty income revealed by York Council. 11,177 fined!

The Council have belatedly published details of the numbers of drivers who have fallen foul of the number plate recognition cameras installed on Lendal Bridge and in Coppergate.

In total during August and September 11,177 drivers were sent penalty charge notices.

This would generate over £600,000 in income for the Council in just 5 weeks.

click to enlarge

click to enlarge


Some fines might be reduced for drivers who pay up quickly or who successfully appeal against the notice.

The penalty charge notice numbers are divided fairly evenly between Coppergate and Lendal Bridge although the figures for the latter are only for 3 weeks.

But it is a staggering amount and confirmation of the inadequacy of the signage marking the new restrictions on Coppergate as well as the trial day time closure of Lendal Bridge to private motorists.

The data is contained in an obscure part of the Council web site and has not been officially publicised.

Apparently the web page will be updated monthly.

The figures show no sign of a downturn in the numbers of motorists being caught, so the Councils annual income from the cameras is likely to be several millions each year.

It is much more than would have been raised by putting a congestion charge on the bridge and they do suggest that “road pricing” is what the Labour Council really wants to introduce next.

The publication of the information follows the tabling of a question on the subject at last weeks Council meeting by a Liberal Democrat Councillor.

Detailed information, on the reductions in the number of shoppers accessing the City centre, is still awaited.

A report on the first month of the trial, previously published by the Council, admitted that there had been no significant improvement in journey times for buses – one of the major objectives of the trial

Cancer awareness campaign starts in York

City of York Council is supporting the NHS Be Clear on Cancer ‘Blood in Pee’ campaign.

The campaign will run from 15 October to 20 November 2013 across England. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the key symptom common to both bladder and kidney cancer – blood in pee – and encourage those with this symptom, even if it’s ‘just the once’, to see their doctor straight away. If bladder and kidney cancers are diagnosed early they are more treatable.

Adverts will appear on national TV, radio and in the press.

Around 65 people in York (1774 people in Yorkshire and Humber) are diagnosed with bladder or kidney cancer each year and these cancers account for around 7,500 deaths per year across the country.

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Fewer jobless in York – LibDem Euro MP acts

click for interactive map showing what the LibDems are doing to help job creation in York

click for interactive map showing what the LibDems are doing to help job creation in York

The number of people claiming Jobs Seekers Allowance (JSA) in York has again fallen, representing the lowest figure since October 2008.

The Office for National Statistics have released figures today stating that there are 2317 claimants in York, a fall of 134 from last month and of 740 from September 2012.

The claimant count represents 1.7% of the working population and contrasts to the regional average which stands at 4.1%.

The figures are also much lower than the national average which stands at 3.2%.

Edward McMillan-Scott

Edward McMillan-Scott

Meanwhile, York’s Lib Dem Euro MP Edward McMillan-Scott has worked alongside others to secure new EU trade deals with countries like the US and South Korea that are worth an extra £12 billion to the British economy each year.

Edward said: “These deals mean it will be easier for local companies to trade with the EU and beyond – helping to protect local jobs. We are also working to cut back on red tape, to help small businesses.”

All this and millions of jobs across the UK will be put at risk if UKIP and the Conservatives get their way and pull Britain out of Europe.

Labour reject calls for Tour business case

Liberal Democrats have attacked Labour run City of York Council for refusing to reveal the full expected costs of staging next year’s Tour De France.

TDF

Hosting Stage 2 of next year’s Grand Départ is already scheduled to cost York taxpayers around £1.3 million with speculation that these costs will increase when full details of the route are announced next week – planned road resurfacing work along the Stage 1 route has seen Leeds’ expected spending rise to over £3 million. The Government is providing a contribution of £291,000 to York, but confirmed in September that “no more money” is available.

At last week’s Full Council the Liberal Democrat Group challenged Labour to provide a full business case for investment on the event. They called for this to include details of the money already committed, expected future costs and which budget these costs would come from, detailed income projections, a cost/benefit analysis and information on how the success of the event will be measured.

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Draft private housing strategy open for comment

City of York Council’s is consulting on its plans for privately rented accommodation in the City.

The private sector housing strategy will be shared amongst landlords, stakeholders, tenants and partners. With 85 per cent of all homes in York either privately owned or rented, this plan will impact on a significant proportion of the community.

White Swan

White Swan

Earlier this year and in anticipation of the strategy, the council has supported property owners to return or convert buildings back into domestic use – notably the White Swan – as well as helping home owners and landlords and tenants cut fuel bills and maximise energy efficiency.

However the Council Leadership has recently repeated its opposition to converting retail accommodation into residential.

The council has been developing a new landlord accreditation scheme called YorProperty to help raise standards of rented accommodation, which will be a focus of the Landlord’s Fair on 17 October (part of Housing Week) when the draft will also be presented to those attending.

Views of the strategy are now needed. Feedback will be used to shape the final strategy due for publication in the New Year. Complete the short questionnaire at www.york.gov.uk/housingweek The closing date for feedback is 22 November 2014.
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Bizarre twist in footfall pantomime

increase-footfall-retail

With the Council resolutely refusing to reveal the reduction in the number of shoppers using the City centre since the Lendal Bridge restrictions were introduced, they have today announced investment in yet more “footfall” cameras.

Many will wonder whether spending money on more cameras can be justified when the authority apparently don’t want to believe the results of its existing two cameras (which are located in Parliament Street and Coney Street).

A beleaguered Council Leadership has agreed though that the decline in the numbers accessing the City centre over recent years is higher than in similar City’s elsewhere.

The Labour Leadership was quick to celebrate increased footfall in the run up to Christmas 2011 but since then a huge increase in car parking charges, and steps to further reduce on street parking, have taken their toll.

Now, the way that the Lendal Bridge restrictions have been introduced is already having a major impact on the City’s reputation with visitors and potential shoppers.

The Council seem to be following a strategy based on a new saying, “If you don’t like the facts, spend more money looking for alternative facts”

The Council has not revealed how much it intends to spend on the additional cameras.

York Labour Councillors reveal cunning plan?

Site capacity for new homes - draft Local Plan. click to enlarge

Site capacity for new homes – draft Local Plan. click to enlarge

Labour Councillor Dave Merrett seems to have overstepped accepted guidelines when welcoming a planning application for the Our Lady’s school site.

He was quoted in the local paper as supporting a plan to build 56 homes on the site – almost double the number allocated in the Local Plan that Cllr Merrett approved in the spring.

If approved at the meeting on 21st November, the proposal would mean that the green space, school nature reserve and children’s playground will all be lost.

Normally executive Councillors avoid commenting publicly on planning applications once they have been submitted. They allow normal consultation with residents to take place before a cross party planning committee meeting decides on the merits of each proposal.

A public intervention by an executive Councillor could be deemed to be putting undue pressure on the planning officers who work in his department and who will author reports recommending approval or rejection of an application.

Officials are understood to have said already that the density on the development – at 82 homes per hectare based on the existing built footprint- is in excess of what would normally be permitted in a sub-urban location.

Meanwhile the Council Leader is also interfering in the planning processes.

Following on from his public opposition to converting unused shops into residential accommodation, he told the last Council meeting, when questioned about the higher number of housing units coming forward on brownfield sites that,

sessions site

sessions site

“the important distinction between the positions of the Liberal Democrats, and the Conservatives it has to be said, is that the other parties believe those living in central wards should have housing built on any spare piece of land anywhere near them and outer wards should continue to enjoy protection against any development anywhere near them”.

“The truth is housing should be built in both central and outer areas where it can be shown to contribute to tackling the city’s housing crisis at the same time as protecting residents’ local amenity”.

In fact over recent months it is central area sites that are seeing high densities proposed with Our Lady’s school only the latest in a long line which includes the former Press offices in Walmgate, the Burnholme club and several dozen others.

The Council Leader may, however, be confused about what constitutes “central wards”.

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NB. The Planning committee will consider next week a proposal to build 59 homes on the former Sessions site on Huntington Road. Of these 20% will be “affordable”

The density of the proposed development is just over 32 dwellings per hectare, and would be more densely developed than the surrounding residential areas. However this figure appears to be in conflict with the figures shown in the draft Local Plan.

The draft Local plan showed only 17 homes being built on this (0.47 hectare) site