York is to get £248,530 of National Lottery funding from Sport England’s Community Sport Activation Fund

32 projects will receive a share of £5.1 million of funding to support grassroots sport activity across the country and build a lasting legacy from last year’s successful Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The programme will make playing sport and active recreation easier and more enticing for York residents across generations. The programme will employ 6 staff to work with community clubs and organisations to provide sports opportunities for, those aged 14-25, adults (25-55) and those aged over 55.
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The latest results for speeding offences obtained by the use of mobile cameras in York reveal York Road Haxby, Towthorpe Road Haxby, Strensall Road Huntington, Temple Lane Copmanthorpe and Murton Way as the main problem roads

6 speeders were also caught on Beckfield Lane.

Once again most offenders were offered a speed awareness course.

The full results for the county can be found by clicking here

At 6pm on Wednesday 15 May 2013, the force will hold an hour-long web-chat on the subject of our mobile safety cameras.

There is a chance later today to have a web chart with the mobile camera Policing team.People are invited to put their questions to Dave and PC Forth by logging on to www.northyorkshire.police.uk/webchat

You can also enter your email address to receive an alert reminding you to log on at 6pm.

North Yorkshire Police mobile safety camera routes 15 May to 21 May 2013

The mobile safety cameras will be in operation at the following sites at various times during the dates stated. Cameras will not be in use all day, every day. The locations were accurate when this news release was produced.

Below are enforcement locations for North Yorkshire Police’s mobile safety cameras for week commencing Wednesday 15 May 2013.

Due to operating constraints, our mobile safety camera locations may change without prior warning.
•A64 east-bound, Tadcaster
•A64 west-bound, Tadcaster
•Beckfield Lane, York
•Temple Lane, Copmanthorpe, York
•A1036 Tadcaster Road, York
•Main Street, Askham Richard
•A1237 Monks Cross, York
•B1228 Dunnington Lodge, Elvington, York
•York Road, Haxby, York
•Towthorpe Road, Haxby, York
•Greenshaw Drive, Haxby, York
•Murton Way, Murton, York
•Strensall Road, Huntington, York
•The Village, Stockton-on-Forest, York
•A1036 Malton Road, York
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The latest league table charting business growth in the 100 largest Towns and city’s in the UK sees York in 49th place.

It falls behind places like the Wirral, Northampton, Lincoln, Harrogate and even Blackpool when measuring growth, in active companies, during the 4th quarter of 2012.

Three towns actually showed a contraction (Southend, Working and Stockport)

The full table can be accessed here

The Local Government Boundary Commission have taken the easy way out in their report published today.

Labour achieved an over majority on the York Council in 2011 but attracted only 40% of the popular vote.

Those hoping that new ward boundaries in York would provide a much needed stimulus for democracy in the City will be deeply disappointed by proposals which see little or no change in the boundaries in the urban area.

The opportunity to introduce single member wards – with a quarter of the Council standing for re-election each year – has been rejected.

Incredibly the draft proposals, which will now go out for public consultation, accept a Labour Party proposal which is nakedly aimed at increasing the number of seats that they hold in the Fulford/Heslington area.

Copies of the London based Commissions proposals can be found by clicking here

Put simply, residents feel no attachment to large wards containing over 10,000 electors.

Such wards encourage candidates who have no connection with a neighbourhood and who – after an initial bust of enthusiasm – are rarely seen in between elections.

It is one of the reasons why the turn out in local elections is often around the 33% mark in large wards. Turnout in smaller wards is usually much higher.

The Boundary Commission have agreed to make Copmanthorpe a single member ward. Shame that they didn’t observe the same principle elsewhere!

Residents have until 5th August to respond to the Boundary Commissions proposals.

The Cornlands Road based leisure centre Energise is celebrating a record number of visits during the 12 months up to 31 March 2013. A total of 422,000 visits were made, an increase of 6.1% year on year.

Both the number of visits to ‘wet’ – or pool-based sports and activities based in the swimming pool and ‘dry’ or land-based sports increased during this time. ‘Wet’ sports like water polo / aqua fit recorded 193,000 participants and ‘dry’ sports including hockey / badminton / gym attendance reached 248,000.

All areas of the centre enjoyed increased visits, from public swims and Swim York swimming lessons to fitness classes, climbing and club bookings.

The recent improvements at Energise, including the extension to the fitness suite, have made Energise a fantastic, all-round community facility and this is reflected in the end of year results. 2012 was an inspiring year for sport and physical activity in lots of ways.

For more information about Energise and its timetables visit http://www.energiseyork.com/ or call 01904 552424.

Harrison developers of York have announced that they intend to covert the “largely under-utilised Press site on Walmgate” into student flats “.

“An inward investor – one of the UK’s most respected student accommodation providers – is seeking to provide office accommodation for the 100+ strong Newsquest team, and to create high quality, round-the-clock managed student accommodation to meet an identified demand”.

“If our proposals get the go-ahead, the development will help secure the future of our local paper in the city, further regenerate the Walmgate area and deliver a £35 million boost to York’s economy. We estimate that the build programme alone will create around 200 jobs”.

Harrisons claim to have “been working closely with the council’s planning officers to bring forward a design which is appropriate for the site.

Our ideas are now developed to the stage where we are keen to seek the views of neighbours and other interested parties before we submit a full proposal to the planning committee”.

Harrisons are staging a one day public consultation at the National Centre for Early Music – Monday 20th May, 1pm – 7.30pm.

They will have our plans on show and the design team will be on hand to explain the proposed scheme and to answer questions.

Harrisons conclude by saying “As always, we are positively encouraging feedback”.

In response to a Freedom of Information request the Council has confirmed that it spent £414,305 on media adverting and services last year.

Most of this money went to The Press (£254,183) and Local Link (£76,462)

Other large sums went to Hays Accountancy Personnel (£20,250), Minster FM (£15,024), The Hemming Group Ltd (12,950) and Gravitas Recruitment Group (£6374.16)

Perhaps surprisingly, given the cuts backs, the amount spent on recruitment advertising increased from £28,177 in 2010 to £57,724 in 2012.

click to enlarge

Below is the latest planning application received by the York Council. Full details can be found by clicking by quoting the application reference on the “planning portal” web site. Click here.

Representations can be made in favour of, or in objection to, any application via the Planning on line web site.

NB. The Council now no longer routinely consults neighbours by letter when an application is received.

Ref No: 13/00974/FUL Location: 23 Mayfield Grove York YO24 1HJ Proposal: Single storey rear extension Applicant: Mrs Lou Blenkharn Contact Mr Paul Martin Consultation Expiry Date 3 June 2013Case Officer: Heather Fairy (Mon – Wed) Expected Decision DEL htt

Ref No: 13/01220/TPO Location: 107 Dringthorpe Road York YO24 1LF Proposal: Fell Beech Tree protected by Tree Preservation Order No. 13 Applicant: Mr And Mrs Eaton Contact Mr Dave Keeley Consultation Expiry Date 3 June 2013 Case Officer: Esther Priestley Expected Decision Level DEL

Cllr Carol Runciman, new Group Leader Cllr Keith Aspden and Deputy Leader Ann Reid – who will stay in the role after being unanimously elected at the Group AGM.

Councillor Keith Aspden has been chosen as the new leader of the Liberal Democrat Group on City of York Council.

Keith, who is Councillor for Fulford, will takeover from Cllr Carol Runciman, who is stepping down after two years. She will become Group Chair and take on a new role developing the party’s next generation of candidates and councillors for 2015. The change was unanimously approved at the Council Group’s AGM last week at which Carol formally nominated Keith as leader.

Keith studied at the University of York and became the youngest councillor in the country when he was elected in Fulford in 2003. Since being elected, he has led many campaigns, and has worked with local residents to raise concerns about the proposed Germany Beck development. He has recently launched a ‘Fair Deal for Fulford Campaign’ in opposition to Council cuts to salt bins, litter bins and road repairs in the village. In recent months his role on the national Local Government Association Fire Services Committee has seen him campaigning on the issue of firefighter pensions. After qualifying as a secondary school teacher in York in 2004, Keith now works across a number of North Yorkshire schools.

Cllr Keith Aspden commented:

“Carol has done a fantastic job over the last two years. The Council Group has carved out a distinct identity as the real alternative to Labour and left the ineffective Tories far behind. In her new role she will use all her skill and experience to help spearhead our 2015 election campaigns, where we aim to gain new councillors across the city.

“I will continue to work tirelessly in Fulford and my priority over the next two years will be to fight for communities and villages which feel let down by the Labour Council. Every day I speak to people who are angry that Labour finds millions to spend on city-centre projects, but cuts funding for basic local services like libraries and road repairs. In the coming weeks, I will also step-up our campaign to save York’s Green Belt, outlining our vision for sustainable housing growth.”

Cllr Carol Runciman commented:

“My commitment to residents in Huntington and New Earswick remains as strong as ever and I plan to seek re-election there in 2015. However, after getting married recently, I want to get a balance in my life where I can spend more time with my husband and my family, along with working on new projects such as helping the next generation of candidates. Stepping down now as leader will allow me to
do this. Keith is a truly outstanding councillor and I was delighted to formally nominate him for Group Leader. I am now looking forward to working with him and our strong local team to help the party achieve success in 2015.”

Public opinion survey results click to enlarge

The Council has confirmed that public consultation on Labour’s Local Plan will run from 5th June to 24th July (7 weeks)

Not long to read all the background information, especially as the Council is currently withholding access to key reports.

Expect a rush of “Freedom of Information” requests as residents attempt to find a way through the fog.

If the Council continues to try to hide key facts then they are likely to face legal action and a request that the Ombudsman investigate maladministration issues.

Better news on the Acomb side of the City where dozens of residents are mobilizing against the attack on the Green Belt boundaries.

Nearly 400 people have now signed a petition supporting no change to the (draft) green belt.

Survey results have so far shown that most residents back the urban boundaries agreed in 2011.