One of Harrogate most famous names, Graveleys, is to make a comeback tomorrow.
The fish and chip restaurant and takeaway was a feature of Cheltenham Parade for decades until it was sold in 2019.
New owners Catch Seafood spent £250,000 refurbishing the property and introduced a champagne and oyster bar as well as cocktails.
But all five Catch restaurants ceased trading last year when the company went into administration, paving the way for Simon Pilkington, the son of former Graveleys owner Robert, to buy back the building.
The takeaway will reopen tomorrow at 11am.
The takeaway will open at 11am tomorrow and the restaurant is due to open in the next few weeks. A final date has not been confirmed.
Sarah Knox, manager of Graveleys, said the venue would be going “back to basics”, adding:
“The focus will be on fish and chips. We just want to get back to basics and serve quality products.
“We will listen to what customers tell us and adjust our menu accordingly. Come in and see us!”
Ms Knox, who has worked all her life in hospitality and was previously employed by Catch, said the new venture had come about quickly and she had spent the last week preparing for the reopening. New staff are wanted.
The takeaway will be open from 11am to 2.30pm and 4.30pm to 8pm from Tuesday to Saturday. It will be closed on Sundays and Mondays.
Read more:
- Harrogate’s former Graveley’s fish and chip restaurant closes
- Graveley’s fish and chip restaurant to be renamed Catch Harrogate
Person airlifted to hospital after serious crash near Harrogate
A person has been airlifted to hospital after a serious crash on the A59 Skipton Road near Harrogate this morning.
Police and firefighters have been at the scene along with paramedics following a two-vehicle collision between The Nelson Inn and the farm shop crossroads.
The incident caused long tailbacks to New Park roundabout in Harrogate, with police diverting traffic onto Otley Road towards Penny Pot Lane and Beckwithshaw.
Harrogate Fire Station posted on social media:
“This morning, Harrogate crew attended a two-vehicle road traffic collision on the A59. One transported to Leeds hospital via air ambulance.”
North Yorkshire Police tweeted about the incident at 9.24am.
https://twitter.com/NYorksPolice/status/1622888981460357120
Read more:
- Graveley’s fish and chip shop to reopen in Harrogate tomorrow
- Harrogate’s first Tesco supermarket set to be approved next week
Tesco supermarket in Harrogate set to be approved next week
Harrogate looks set to get a Tesco supermarket after a long-running saga dating back more than a decade.
The store will be built on the site of the former gasworks, off Skipton Road, and include a petrol station and 209 car parking spaces. It is expected to create about 100 jobs.
Harrogate Borough Council ‘s planning committee has been recommended to approve the plans next week, despite “significant concerns” about the impact on the nearby Co-op in Jennyfields and neighbouring shops.
In her report recommending approval, case officer Kate Broadbank says there is “real potential for the proposed Tesco store to have a significant adverse impact upon the Co-op store and the wider performance of the Jennyfield local centre”.
The report adds the cumulative impact of a new Tesco on the Co-op could be as high as -22.4% and the Co-op “acts as a key anchor to the local centre, including its wider post office offer”.
The local centre in Jennyfields
Tesco will therefore be asked to sign an agreement to use “reasonable endeavours” to open a Tesco Express at Jennyfields local centre if the Co-op closes within five years of Tesco opening and will operate this for at least five years.
Ms Broadbank’s report adds:
“A post office and pharmacy would also be required. An additional clause has also been added that requires an independent expert to determine matters should dispute arise between Tesco and the council, as to whether the replacement store can be provided.”
New footpath and cycle lane
The report says no environmental impact assessment will be necessary for the brownfield site project even though trees will be felled on the north side of Skipton Road to accommodate the creation of a new roundabout at the site entrance, where the A61 Ripon Road and A59 Skipton Road meet at New Park.
The site of the former gasworks
North Yorkshire County Council plans to widen Oak Beck Bridge in a scheme that could see six months of roadworks in the area.
The report adds:
“A continuous footpath will be provided along the northern edge of the roundabout with additional uncontrolled pedestrian refuge island crossings on the site access and the eastern arm of Skipton Road.
“A new segregated cycle lane will be provided along the south of Skipton Road from the access to the bridleway further along Skipton Road. These works will be secured by condition and a Section 106 agreement.”
The 209 parking spaces will include four click and collect spaces, six electric vehicle charging spaces, 12 blue badge spaces and nine parent and child spaces. Two motorcycle spaces and 24 cycle spaces are also provided.
£50,000 for bus services
North Yorkshire County Council has requested a contribution from Tesco for improvements to bus stops on Skipton Road and Ripon Road. Ms Broadbank’s report adds:
“North Yorkshire County Council wish to provide a new bus service in the Killinghall area as part of the bus service contribution from the housing development on Penny Pot Lane and these additional improvements would add value to the new service and help encourage sustainable travel by bus to reach the new store.
“A contribution of £50,000 (£10,000 per bus stop) is requested to help fund this service and will help provide new extended shelters with information boards, seating and where necessary raised kerbs to each carriageway.”
The report also says discussions have taken place between the applicant and Northern Gas Networks about “potential interaction” between the proposed petrol station and an existing Northern Gas Networks high pressure gas transmission pipeline located beneath the site.
It says the risk of interaction is “acceptably low”.
The site is highlighted on a planning document.
Majority opposed to scheme
The council received 82 representations about the scheme. Just 24 were supportive and 57 objected, mainly on the grounds of amenity, traffic, environmental and drainage impacts.
Ms Broadbank has recommended the project be approved subject to conditions being met. The Conservative-controlled planning committee will decide whether to accept her recommendation when it meets on Tuesday next week. The meeting will be broadcast live on the council’s YouTube page.
It will be the penultimate meeting of the planning committee before Harrogate Borough Council is abolished at the end of next month.
Ms Broadbank’s report concludes:
“In summary, the development is acceptable in principle and meets the requirements of the sequential and retail impact tests with appropriate mitigation.
“The scheme uses previously developed land and is in a sustainable location within the development limits of Harrogate.
“The design and landscaping of the buildings are appropriate for this site and impacts with regards to the residential amenity, environmental impact and highways are acceptable.
“The development will create jobs and provide social, environmental and economic benefits to the local area.
“The scheme is in accordance with the development plan policies as a whole and represents sustainable development as required by the National Planning Policy Framework.”
Tesco first secured planning permission on the site in 2012 but revived its plans in December 2021.
Read more:
- New Tesco supermarket would threaten future of Jennyfields Co-op, warns report
- Waitrose objects to plans for new Tesco in Harrogate
Harrogate ambulance striker: ‘Nobody wants to wait three hours to offload patients’
Ambulance workers and nurses formed picket lines within metres of each other in Harrogate today as part of the biggest-ever day of NHS strikes in England.
Members of the Royal College of Nursing began two days of industrial action outside Harrogate District Hospital on Lancaster Park Road.
A two-minute walk away, members of the GMB union were huddled around a fire at Harrogate Ambulance Station for a one-day strike due to take place from 6am to midday and from 6pm to midnight.
Unison ambulance workers are due to strike on Friday.
The hospital picket line today
Laura Faulkener, an ambulance practitioner and GMB rep, told the Stray Ferret patients were more likely to get an ambulance today than on non-strike days because of the measures put in place to respond to the most serious incidents.
Asked why the GMB was striking, Ms Faulkner said:
“There’s been a lot of focus on pay but it’s about conditions, above all.
“None of us want to wait seven hours in a corridor with patients while they wait to be seen.”
She said the situation was particularly bad at York Hospital but paramedics could still be left looking after patients in the back of ambulances for three or hour hours at Harrogate District Hospital while they waited to be treated.
Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust said in a statement key services continued to operate during the strike and nobody should be put off seeking urgent or emergency care. It added:
“Patients should continue to attend appointments as planned unless contacted to reschedule.”
RCN staff will be taking part in industrial action today (6 February) and tomorrow (7 February). This will impact our services at HDFT. Unless it’s a life-threatening injury/severe illness contact NHS111 https://t.co/h6tkZbXSie #nhsstrikes https://t.co/sUdV7rONPD
— Harrogate NHS FT (@HarrogateNHSFT) February 6, 2023
Read more:
- No trains in Harrogate district today amid further rail strikes
- Harrogate cannabis gardener jailed after £250,000 farm found
- Harrogate’s first Tesco supermarket set to be approved next week
Confirmed: second phase of Harrogate’s Otley Road cycle route scrapped
The second phase of Harrogate’s Otley Road cycle way has been scrapped, North Yorkshire County Council confirmed today.
The council, which is the highways authority, also revealed it would not be bringing back restrictions for motorists on nearby Beech Grove.
Instead it will propose new measures to tackle speed in the streets surrounding Otley Road, improved crossings for cyclists, better signage for cycle routes and improvements to bus infrastructure.
Cllr Keane Duncan, the Conservative executive member for highways and transportation at North Yorkshire County Council, hinted last month the second of three proposed phases for Otley Road would not proceed after none of three options put forward proved popular with cyclists, walkers or motorists.
Today the council issued a statement saying “an alternative package of measures for Otley Road will be outlined and presented to the Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee this summer”.
The area constituency committee advises North Yorkshire County Council on local issues although its powers are expected to be beefed-up when North Yorkshire Council comes into existence on April 1.
The statement said:
“After listening to public concerns, it is proposed that construction of phase two of Otley Road cycle way is not advanced, and the Beech Grove restrictions are not made permanent.
“Instead, it is proposed that the remaining funding of up to £500,000 in the National Productivity Investment Fund package is used for other measures to encourage active travel, support growth and address safety concerns along the Otley Road corridor.”
Otley Road cycle path
Phase one of the Otley Road cycle way, which was completed in January last year, links Harrogate Grammar School, residential areas and Cardale Park. It has been widely criticised for its design.
The proposed phase two would link Arthurs Avenue to the town centre, and phase three Harlow Moor Road to Cardale Park.
The experimental traffic restrictions on Beech Grove and Lancaster Road, which prevented non-residential through traffic, ran from April 2021 to August last year.
‘Listening to feedback’
Cllr Duncan said today:
“Our proposal to consider an alternative package of sustainable transport measures demonstrates how we are listening to public feedback. Halting construction of phase two allows us the opportunity to prepare new measures with local input and support.
“The constraints of Otley Road meant it was always going to be difficult to meet government cycle infrastructure design standards without infringing on the Stray, widening the road or removing trees.
“We consulted on a number of options, but these were not fully compliant and attracted criticism. Cyclists have expressed concerns that the proposed cycle way would not encourage more cycling due to its design, while pedestrians said they were concerned about their safety.
“Given the concerns, it is right that we think again and explore alternative measures to promote walking, cycling and use of public transport.”
Concerns were expressed about possible conflict between cyclists and pedestrians because an entirely segregated cycle way could not be created due to constraints such as protected trees, Stray land and carriageway width.
The next steps will be considered at a meeting of North Yorkshire County Council’s business and environmental services corporate director and executive member on Friday.
Baltzersen’s to close Harrogate coffee shop
Baltzersen’s is to close its Harrogate coffee shop and sublet the premises due to a decline in visitors.
The Scandinavian-inspired coffee shop is situated next to the company’s main cafe, which remains open, on Oxford Street.
In a social media post, Baltzersen’s said many people will have noticed the coffee shop has been empty for a while. It added:
“We have struggled to open it for any prolonged length of time since the covid pandemic. It simply hasn’t been busy enough, especially during the week.
“Whilst the cafe still has queues at the busiest times, the truth is visitor numbers are down overall and have been since reopening after lockdown.
“In the current climate we think the best choice is to try and sublet the premises – offering the space for someone else to use in order to help with paying the rent.”
Read more:
- Baltzersen’s to open pop-up shop in Knaresborough
- Want an alternative Valentine’s? Some ideas in the Harrogate district
The coffee shop opened in November 2018, and the company said in its post “we are extremely sad to see it go”, adding:
“It is a struggle for so many people and businesses at the moment and that includes Baltzersen’s. We’ve said it before, but we really do appreciate all those that can visit the cafe, whether on a regular basis or as a one off.”
Montpellier Properties is to market the property.
The post prompted supportive comments, with one person saying they made detours to Harrogate on their trips from near Cambridge specifically to go to Baltzersen’s. Another said they make the best cinnamon buns.
Harrogate man jailed for possessing ‘madball’ at convention centre
A Harrogate man has been jailed for five months for possessing a glass ball in a sock.
John Donaldson, 32, of Cheltenham Crescent, had the improvised weapon, known as a madball, at Harrogate Convention Centre on November 15 last year.
He admitted the offence at Harrogate Magistrates Court last week.
Court documents say Donaldson was jailed because of the seriousness of the offence and for his previous record of offending.
He was also ordered to pay a £154 surcharge to fund victims’ services and a £85 costs to the Crown Prosecution Service.
A police picture of a glass ball in a sock — not the one referred to in this case.
Read more:
- Man jailed for 12 months after theft from Harrogate shop
- Man jailed for racial harassment and carrying weapon in Harrogate
Overnight arson attack on shed in Harrogate’s Dalby Avenue
Harrogate and Knaresborough firefighters were called out last night to a shed that was set alight on purpose.
The crew was summoned to Dalby Avenue in Harrogate at 4.53am to deal with the incident.
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service‘s incident log said:
“The cause was deliberate.”
Earlier in the night, a crew from Harrogate went to Starbeck High Street at 1.14am to a report of a male locked out of his home.
The incident log said:
“The male needed access to medication inside therefore crews used a lock snapper and spreaders to gain entry.”
Read more:
- Harrogate firefighters release images of Blubberhouses collision
- Harrogate district teachers go on strike — and firefighters could be next
Accident reignites calls for traffic lights at ‘horrendous’ Killinghall junction
A collision involving a pedestrian this week has reignited debate about what can be done to improve safety at a bottleneck junction in Killinghall.
The Ripon Road and Otley Road junction has been added to the agenda of Monday’s Killinghall Parish Council meeting in the wake of the accident.
It may be a new agenda item but it is an old topic, as parish council chairman Anne Holdsworth is only too aware. She says:
“I’ve lived in the village since 1961 and that junction has always been a problem.
“People in the village have been anticipating a collision like this. It’s horrendous but the question is, what do you do?
“I’m not sure what the solution is. All we can do is draw attention to it to the experts.”
The junction is frequently snarled up at rush hour so there are concerns about traffic flow as well as safety.
Vehicles turning right from Otley Road or turning right on to Otley Road often face particularly long delays, and the addition of the Tesco Express — although widely welcomed in the rapidly-expanding village — has added another dimension to drivers’ thoughts at the junction.
Turning right on to Otley Road
North Yorkshire County Council, the highways authority, considered installing traffic lights pre-covid but nothing happened.
Cllr Michael Harrison, a Conservative who represents Killinghall, Hampsthwaite and Saltergate on the county council, said the traffic lights plans were “paused” due to work on the Tesco Express, which opened last year. Cllr Harrison added:
“I have asked the council highways team for an update on this.
“I have previously voiced concerns about potential congestion that signalising that junction might cause, although obviously that has to be balanced against safety concerns which are more apparent since the pub was converted to a Tesco.”
Tackling speed ‘the priority’
Villagers agree it’s time for action — but what is the solution?
Harvey Radcliffe said the junction was “poorly designed and an accident waiting to happen”, adding:
“It’s only a matter of time before someone gets killed. I’ve lived in the village for 12 years and I’ve never seen driving like it recently. I’m genuinely concerned for the kids and older residents of the village.”
Mr Radcliffe said speed prevention measures were the first priority. He said adding traffic lights and moving the bus stop that is close to the Tesco entrance, would help. He added:
“Everyone’s in a rush but when you drive in a populated area, if there is one straight road the quality of driving becomes worse as people just see it as a race track, especially at night. I’ve seen taxis doing 60 or 70mph down Ripon Road.”
The Tesco Express has created another factor for drivers to think about.
A mini roundabout, similar to the ones that have improved traffic flow at Bond End, has been suggested but Killinghall resident Tom Beardsell, who recently posted a video on social media highlighting the problems facing motorists at the junction, isn’t keen. He said:
“There would be more accidents with a mini roundabout as most people don’t know how to use them.”
Mr Beardsell said locals were “absolutely fuming” following this week’s collision and suggested introducing smart lights that allowed traffic to flow on the A61 most of the time but changed when someone pulls up at Otley Road. He said:
“It will disrupt traffic flow but it will be safer.”
Read more:
- Refurbished church aims to meet needs of growing Killinghall community
- Killinghall Cricket Club applies to build new two-storey pavilion
Former parish councillor Mike Wilkinson also thinks it’s time for traffic lights.
“As a resident and parent living in Killinghall, l am daily concerned that a fatality at the junction of Ripon/Otley Road will occur due to the unsafe driving witnessed on a daily basis.
“Incidents have been reported to the police and also Harrogate Borough Council but no safety measures have been put in place to give reassurance to the Killinghall residents. I would like a meeting to be set up with relevant agencies and the public to share the recent issues
“Traffic lights would be the best option, and this would stop traffic rushing through the junction especially trying to turn right from Otley Road onto Ripon Road.”
Whatever the parish council calls for this week, the final decision will rest with North Yorkshire County Council, and North Yorkshire Council — which will succeed it on April 1.
Paperchase in Harrogate to closePaperchase in Harrogate is holding a closing down sale after the company went into administration this week.
Tesco bought the rights to the cards, gifts and stationery brand, entitling it to sell Paperchase items in its supermarkets, but did not buy the stores.
It means the shop on James Street is one of 106 stores facing uncertain futures. More than 800 staff nationally are affected.
Signs have now gone up in the window confirming the closure, although the final day of trading is not yet known.
In-store notices confirm administrators Begbies Traynor have been running the business since Tuesday.
They say no further gift cards will be sold and customers have until 5pm on February 14 to use existing gift cards.
Read more:
- Paperchase in Harrogate faces uncertain future as company goes into administration
- Valley Gardens visitors urged not to feed ducks