HBC chief executive interview: the district needs more homes

Throughout this week the Stray Ferret is publishing excerpts from an interview conducted with Harrogate Borough Council’s chief executive Wallace Sampson OBE. 

Today’s section looks at housing. The Stray Ferret has consistently reported the impact of new housing developments within the district. In November we ran a series of in-depth reports looking at how planning “chaos” in recent years meant the district was a target for developers, to concerns that young locals are being priced out of the Harrogate market and worries that the scale of new developments are pushing local infrastructure to breaking point.

HBC’s Local Plan was finally adopted in March 2020. It means 12,000 new homes can be built in Harrogate over a 15-year period.

Mr Sampson, you’ve been chief executive since 2008 and you know the impact that not getting a Local Plan over the line has had on Harrogate. Do you feel personally responsible for these failings over the last decade?

Trying to get to the point where we have an adopted Local Plan is a challenge that every local planning authority around the country faces. The challenges we face in Harrogate are not unique.

I’m very pleased and proud of the fact we do have a Local Plan in place that will guide the delivery of housing in the district through to 2035.

I anticipate it will shape the direction of change in the Harrogate district over the next few years, and it will be really important to everybody that lives or works in the district and for those who visit.

I’ll be looking to address the challenges that we’ve got around housing delivery, but we need to recognise the need for more housing is an issue that we face nationally and not just locally. It’s a challenge we need to respond to because we know we have in our district families and young people who face significant difficulties buying their homes, not just due to a lack of housing but also high prices.

But there is a feeling in Harrogate that we are taking more than our fair share of new housing compared to other areas. The average house price in Harrogate is £360,000, 13 times the average salary in Harrogate. Is housing working for people in Harrogate?

We’ve got both a lack of houses and a lack of affordable houses. That’s what we will be trying to address through the Local Plan over the course of the whole plan period.

We’re quite ambitious in terms of the number of houses that we are seeking to build. It’s important that we get the right mix of houses so that we’re not just building lots of houses but there is a mix of houses and affordable houses being built as well.

We’re very clear in our Local Plan that 40% of homes that will be built must be affordable and we’ll be making sure that there are affordable homes in the Harrogate district.

It’s no surprise there are many people travelling from Harrogate to Leeds each day and vice versa. In part, that’s due to the challenges in finding accessible and affordable houses.

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Is Harrogate’s infrastructure coping with the amount of housing being built?

The fact the Local Plan was approved by the inspector and we’ve adopted it demonstrates that we have an opportunity to address infrastructure over the period.

If you look to the west of Harrogate as an example, we are working with site promoters across the various sites to make sure we are taking a joined-up approach to infrastructure provision.

We’re doing that through the development of a parameters plan. That plan will ultimately set out what the infrastructure requirement sites are at all the sites to the west of Harrogate and how we need to phase development to make sure the infrastructure requirements are being addressed.

Ultimately that plan will shape how those planning applications will come forward and be delivered.

Clearly, there are infrastructure challenges to be addressed but through things such as the parameters plan, the infrastructure delivery plan and the use of Community Infrastructure Levy, I’m confident those infrastructure issues will be addressed.

Is it fair that people might criticise you for not living in the district? Does it make a difference to the way you run the council?

What the last 12 months have shown is that work is becoming increasingly an activity, rather than being tied to a place.

It’s about what you do rather than where you do it from. I don’t think living outside the district has had any bearing on the commitment or level of devotion that I show the job.

I’ve always approached my job with 110% dedication and commitment. I love what I do and I love where I do it. I love working for HBC and I love the Harrogate district. I don’t think where you live has any bearing on that at all.

Tomorrow Mr Sampson responds to questions about the cost of the council’s controversial new offices at Knapping Mount, and what might happen to the building post-devolution. 

One more covid death confirmed at Harrogate hospital

Another patient who had tested positive for coronavirus has died at Harrogate District Hospital, according to today’s figures from NHS England.

The death, which was registered yesterday, brings the total number of deaths at the hospital to 167 since the start of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, seven new cases of covid have been confirmed in the Harrogate district today by Public Health England.

The total number of confirmed cases in the district since the start of the outbreak now stands at 7,391.

The Harrogate district seven-day covid rate has fallen to 42 per 100,000 people. This is lower than the rate for England which is 60,

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Final approval for 80-home Green Hammerton scheme

Harrogate Borough Council has given final approval to an 80-home housing development in Green Hammerton.

Leeds-based developer Loxley Homes was granted outline planning permission to build the homes in January 2019.

Today the council’s planning committee considered a reserved matters application that dealt with the design and layout of the site.

Five councillors voted to approve the plans, three voted to refuse and three abstained.

The development, which will include 32 affordable houses, faced fierce opposition within the village, with 229 objections and none supporting.

Chris Chelton, co-chair of the Keep Green Hammerton Green action group, spoke to councillors and cited an objection from Historic England.

The public body said the views towards York’s skyline were some of Green Hammerton’s ‘most precious but fragile qualities’.

Mr Chelton added:

“Out of all the developments in Green Hammerton, this is the one that’s aroused the most local outrage, and with good reason. It will have a massive impact on its surroundings.

“You could refuse and say you are no longer prepared to sanction a development on a site as sensitive as this. Send the developers back to the drawing board to work harder.”

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Ann Myatt, Conservative councillor for Ouseburn, objected to the plans and also revealed that Conservative Selby & Ainsty MP Nigel Adams had intervened and written to committee members about the proposals.

Responding to comments that there are too many homes in the development, the agent Roger Rippon, speaking on behalf of Loxley Homes, said:

“I don’t believe this is over-development. All the government guidance says you should make the most use of a site. We’re not allowed to waste land by carrying out unreasonably low-density development.”

 

Huge increase in Harrogate district allotment applications

Applications for allotments in the Harrogate district have gone up massively since 2018.

The increase is being attributed to lockdown tempting people with the promise of clear air and fresh vegetables grown from a patch of ground they can call their own.

Harrogate Borough Council owns and manages allotments at Claro Road and Pearl Street in Harrogate and Ferrensby in Knaresborough. The remaining 23 allotments in the district are run by parish councils or managed privately.

In 2018, Harrogate Borough Council received 12 requests for allotments at its Claro Road site, which is one of the biggest allotments in the district with 56 plots.

In 2020 there were 103 applications, an increase of over 750%.

The other two council-run sites saw a similar surge of interest. Pearl Street went from two applications in 2018 to 27 in 2020. Ferrensby saw an increase of six to 37 over the same period.

The council warns on its website that applicants could wait for up to five years, depending on which site they apply for.

Caroline Linford, who runs the website Sustainably Harrogate, has been on the waiting list for an allotment in Harrogate for two years. She would like her own plot so she can re-use food waste from her family’s dinner table.

“I love the idea of creating our own circular system where our food waste turns into nutritious compost that helps our vegetables grow. I intend to garden organically too so will avoid pesticides to help with local biodiversity.”

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The six allotments in Ripon are owned by Ripon City Council and leased to the Ripon Allotments Society.

Malcolm Hutchinson from the Ripon Allotments Society said there are now 76 people on the waiting list for a plot in Ripon, a significant increase over previous years.

He’s had an allotment since the 1970s and says they have become popular for people with more time on their hands due to lockdown.

He said:

“A lot of people are wanting to have a go at it. For most people, it’s something to do where they can potter away at their own pace.”

HBC chief executive interview: The vision for Harrogate is very clear

On Friday the Stray Ferret interviewed Harrogate Borough Council chief executive Wallace Sampson OBE on a range of subjects including the covid pandemic, housing, the cost of HBC’s new offices and the future of Harrogate town centre.

It is the first time a senior figure at HBC has agreed to an interview with the Stray Ferret- all previous requests have been declined.  Over the next four days we will publish sections of the interview.

Today focuses on Harrogate town centre and whether the council’s proposed £50m investment into the Harrogate Convention Centre could be throwing good money after bad.

The vision for Harrogate town centre

Mr Sampson, what is your vision for the future of Harrogate town centre?

We need to look at what’s being happening generally with town centres around the country and I don’t think Harrogate is any different or immune to them. If you look at trends over the last few years, everybody would agree the impact of internet shopping is having a fundamental impact on retail and people’s shopping trends. It’s meaning fewer people are coming into our town centres.

If you look at the last 12 months, covid has shown that people want their town centres to be clean, successful, safe and accessible. They also want to see more use of public space and to do that in a very safe and responsible way.

Without a shadow of a doubt, there’s a need to look at how we can reshape our town centres to make them welcoming and where people can meet, visit and spend time. We need to use our open and public spaces in a much more accessible way than we have done before.

Some people have been critical of HBC’s vision and they see a different Harrogate from the one they once knew. They also might be critical of your leadership and role in putting this vision forward. Have you been clear enough and is it getting through to people?

I think the council has been very clear with its vision for the town centre. We’ve had a town centre masterplan that’s been in place for many years now. We’ve been through our economic recovery framework and are looking at ways we can support the town centre and infrastructure requirements.

But there will be significant jobs in retail that will be lost over the next few years. Without being complacent, there are still signs that the Harrogate district’s economy is reasonably resilient.

I did a comparison across the district looking at retail vacancy rates today compared with as far back as 2013. Across the district, our average retail vacancy rates are currently 7.3%. In 2013 it was 8.3%.

If you suggest retail in Harrogate is better than in 2013, why is there a perception that the town centre is declining?

There are fundamental structural changes that are taking place in retail behaviour and Harrogate isn’t immune to that. There’s also the point about high rents affecting the ability of businesses to retain a presence on the high street. That’s affecting small businesses and big strong brands.

The fact that big brands such as Debenhams and Topshop are closing isn’t a sign of a lack of confidence in Harrogate, it’s a sign that big businesses are going through a period of change and how to respond to issues such as internet shopping and their own costs, particular premises-related costs around rent and rates.

Tackling vacant space is something that should be market-led, but we can try and support it. That’s why we’re doing things like the Transforming Cities project that’s going out to consultation and the redevelopment of the Harrogate Convention Centre.

Those things are really, really important to supporting the vibrancy and resilience of our town centres. I say town centres plurally because quite often the conversation is about Harrogate but it’s important we talk about the district as a whole.

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The future of Harrogate Convention Centre

What makes you convinced that spending £50m on the Harrogate Convention Centre will revitalise Harrogate? The Stray Ferret reported the HCC has been losing money consistently over the last 10 years. Is this investment throwing good money after bad?

It’s important to understand how important the convention centre is to the economy of the town. We’ve obviously been affected by covid over the last 12 months but in a normal year the conventions centre attracts about 150,000 visitors a year and its economic impact is significant. We’re talking £30-£40m it brings to the economy a year.

If we understand and accept that the HCC is of fundamental importance to the economy of the town and district, do we do nothing or do we just do the minimum in terms of patching up what is very ageing infrastructure?

If we do the minimum, what does that mean for the ability to attract events to the convention centre? Is there a risk that this leads to a very slow decline? That is the question that ultimately councillors will have to consider.

We need to work up what a redeveloped HCC will look like. We’re just starting that work to get the designs up so we have very clear designs and feasibility. We’ll take a full economic impact report to understand the benefits if we were to redevelop the HCC.

We’ll bring it all back to councillors who can eventually make a decision. In short, do we do nothing or see a decline in infrastructure, or do we invest and show confidence in an ability to win business so that has a knock-on impact to all the businesses in the district.

But the world has changed and conferences might look completely different following covid. Is there a risk the council could spend a significant sum redeveloping the HCC which could turn out to be a huge mistake? 

Councillors make the final decision and that will probably be in about 12 months’ time. They’ll need to take into account assumptions about future opportunities for the business. We will need to reshape our targets to reflect those opportunities.

We also need to look at conferences as well as public events and corporate events.

We’re looking at ensuring how we can retain our exhibitions and ensuring things like entertainment and trade events are much more on a weekend rather than on a weekday. The conferences on weekdays really drive the strong economic impact.

Covid is driving changes of behaviour and whether people in the future will attend trade shows exhibitions. We’ll use all that over the next 12 months to feed into the business plan. That will ultimately drive the decision.

Tomorrow Mr Sampson responds to questions about the number of new homes being built in the district and the Local Development Plan. 

 

Fake account uses porn star’s image to attack Harrogate cycling plans

A fake Facebook profile has been using the image of a porn star from Liverpool to whip up anti-cycling sentiment in Harrogate.

Harrogate resident James Smith, who is pro-cycling, told the Stray Ferret he and his friends recently became suspicious of a group of six Facebook accounts which they believed not to be genuine.

Mr Smith said for several weeks the accounts have been posting fervently anti-cycling opinions on any posts related to the pedestrianisation of James Street and the Station Gateway.

One account in particular, Tara Gunne, was the most prolific. A letter attributed to her was published in last week’s Harrogate Advertiser, with the supposed Ms Gunne passionately stating “this destruction of our characterful town has to stop.”

Mr Smith said:

“Tara Gunne was very aggressive and was dissing the Station Gateway as ludicrous.”

Their suspicions were confirmed when a friend of Mr Smith used his tech skills to investigate Tara Gunne. He discovered the account was using an image of Liverpool-based adult entertainment star Hazel May.

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Mr Smith said they confronted the accounts over the weekend asking them “why are they so excited about Harrogate”?. He believes all six accounts could be related to Tara Gunne.

All mysteriously disappeared from Facebook by Sunday morning and appeared to have been deleted.

Mr Smith isn’t sure who is behind the account but suspects it could be people from outside of Harrogate looking to sway public opinion against active travel schemes.

“We’re not detectives. Maybe they are doing the same in London or Wales. But why? Are they getting paid and is it just one person?”

“It’s become so polarised and these people don’t seem to be helping.”

Trading standards criticised for response to Harrogate builder

North Yorkshire County Council’s trading standards department has been accused of not taking complaints about a Harrogate builder seriously.

Over a period of at least seven years, James Moss has set up and closed several new companies and has been ordered by the civil courts to pay tens of thousands to customers following multiple complaints of shoddy workmanship.

Yet trading standards, which has been aware of Moss since at least 2014, recently closed an investigation following a complaint due to a lack of evidence, which it said was “hampered” by the covid pandemic.

Trading Standards has the power to investigate cases that could ultimately result in a criminal record, fines, disqualification from acting as a director or even imprisonment.

People who have made complaints against Moss though to trading standards told the Stray Ferret that it could have acted against him years ago and spared a trail of misery for his customers.

2014: “Nothing happens”

Kev, who asked us not to use his surname, bought a fireplace from James Moss in Harrogate in 2014.

After the builder “made a mess of it”, the county court ordered Moss to repay some money back, which he has not received seven years later.

Kev said he complained to trading standards about Moss but was disheartened after the complaint went nowhere. He said “they didn’t seem to be bothered.”

Even though his dealings with Moss were many years ago, Kev said it was a stressful time for him and his wife who are still troubled by the experience today. 

He believes that if trading standards had taken tough action following his complaint in 2014, it could have prevented James Moss from trading by the courts.

“At the end of the day they have procedures, but nothing happens.”

2018: “Fobbed off”

In March 2018, four years on from Kev’s complaint, trading standards began an investigation into James Moss following a complaint from Karen Macgillivray-Fallis from Burton Leonard.

Ms Macgillivray-Fallis submitted her complaint after the builder left a garage conversion in such a state it had to be demolished.

But she has grown frustrated with the speed of their investigation into her case and says she felt “fobbed off” and “not taken seriously” by the department.

She said it took until September 2018 before she was even asked to submit a formal statement.

In October 2020 she received a letter from NYCC’s trading standards which said its investigation into Moss has been closed.

It had been exploring whether he had breached the Consumer Protection From Unfair Trading Regulation 2008 and the Fraud Act 2006 whilst working for Ms Macgillivray-Fallis.

The letter, which has been seen by the Stray Ferret, said it was closing the investigation due to a lack of evidence. It also blamed the covid crisis for hampering its inquiries, which Ms Macgillivray-Fallis said is not good enough.

She said:

“Using the pandemic as an excuse for inaction is a bit crass.”

“It’s just heartbreaking. I hate injustice.”

“Toothless tiger”

In the time that Ms Macgillivray-Fallis made her initial complaint to trading standards in 2018, others, including Gill Lawrence, Vicky Cooke and Anna McIntyre have all won civil cases against James Moss.

Moss has also set up eight new companies and dissolved five of them.

Last month, Ms Macgillivray-Fallis won her own case against Moss in the Harrogate small claims court when he was ordered to pay almost £10,000. 

Despite the civil courts ruling against Moss time and again, we are not aware of trading standards taking any firm action against the builder.

We spoke to one person who was so defeated after a previous experience with trading standards that he didn’t bother making a complaint after being unsatisfied with the quality of James Moss’s work.

He called the department a “toothless tiger”.

“A strong track record”

James Moss has always maintained his building work has been of good quality and has disputed some of the court claims against him. He told the Stray Ferret in November last year that he has ceased trading as a builder.

In a statement released to the Stray Ferret, Matt O’Neill, assistant director of growth, planning and trading standards, said he would not comment on individual cases but defended the department’s track record.

He said:

“Our trading standards service is determined in its enforcement work, not only to protect the residents of North Yorkshire as consumers, but also to ensure a level playing field for the many legitimate businesses in the county.

“The service receives about 7,000 complaints from consumers each year. Officers assess these to determine which should be investigated. Following an investigation, enforcement may range from advice and guidance to prosecution and confiscation or forfeiture of assets following conviction.

“In deciding whether to prosecute, the service must first be satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction. A decision to prosecute is not taken lightly. Prosecution is a serious step with considerable repercussions for those who face criminal charges.

“The service has a strong track record. For example, a joint operation with colleagues from other agencies last year saw the courts order offenders to give up £140,000 in proceeds from their crimes to compensate their victims.

“There are occasions when the standard of businesses’ work does not meet consumers’ expectations. This is not acceptable and consumers could take action in the civil courts for breach of contract. However, such conduct would not necessarily amount to a practice over which the trading standards service could take action.

“Equally, businesses sometimes fail. This is recognised in law, with provision for the management of bankruptcy and insolvency. A business failure alone will not amount to conduct about which the trading standards service could take action. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has a remit to investigate sole traders and companies that have acted illegally in relation to the formation or solvency of trading entities.”

Thieves rip Knaresborough ATM from wall

Thieves appear to have stolen an ATM machine at the Co-Op petrol station on Wetherby Road in Knaresborough.

The incident is believed to have taken place during the early hours of the morning today.

A resident who lives nearby posted on a Knaresborough Facebook group to say he was awoken by a loud bang at 3am.

It seems the thieves managed to ripped out the ATM and escape with the money.

The petrol station was taped off by police earlier today but is now back open.

The Stray Ferret has asked North Yorkshire Police for details but has not received a response.

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Former Home Guard club in Harrogate for sale

The former Home Guard club on the corner of Tower Street and Belford Road in Harrogate has been put on the market for £500,000.

Property agent Feather, Smailes, Scales says the 2,700 square foot building near St Peter’s School is in need of extensive repair but could be refurbished and turned into housing or retail space.

It also suggests the building could be demolished and rebuilt, if planners allow it.

Simon Croft, from Feather, Smailes, Scales said the former social club is in a “sorry state” but has the potential to be redeveloped.

He said:

“The building could become what someone would think would work best economically and prevent it from being an eyesore.”

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Home Guard members played snooker at the club.

There have been two planning applications in recent years to demolish the building and build four flats in its place, but they were both withdrawn. Objections were raised from both the Ancient Monuments Society and Harrogate Civic Society.

Harrogate historian Malcolm Neesam told the Stray Ferret that the building has historical importance to Harrogate. It was originally the town’s second hospital from 1873 until 1883 before being used as Harrogate’s first custom-built Masonic Hall.

It was also where Harrogate’s Crimean War hero Sgt Major Robert Johnston died.

With the advent of the Second World War in 1939, the local Home Guard began using the building as a social club to relax with a drink and play snooker.

Since 1987, the ground floor has been used by various businesses including Sweet Tooth Munchies.

According to a letter from a former Home Guard club member that is contained within planning documents, the club was forced to disband and close the venue in 2015 because it did not have enough money to repair a leaking roof.

Harrogate Town fans dreaming of Wembley again

Hopes are rising for a Harrogate Town appearance at Wembley this year — and this time fans might be able to watch.

Three wins on the bounce have pushed the club up the League Two table and they are now just four points off the play-offs.

The government has said that up to 10,000 fans can return to stadiums from the middle of May. The play-off final is set to be held at Wembley on the weekend of May 29-31.

Town are also in the final of last season’s postponed FA Trophy against Concord Rangers, which will also be held at Wembley, with the FA keen to see the fixture played once fans can return.

Jordan Ford, from the Harrogate Town Supporter’s Club, said fans are starting to dream of making the trip to Wembley after they were cruelly denied the experience last season.

He said:

“I’m not getting carried away yet but anything can happen. We’ve shown that over the last two seasons and there is no reason why we can’t get promoted. We’re mixing it with some big teams.”

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Town beat Barrow 1-0 last night and Mr Ford said recent shrewd signings had given Simon Weaver’s squad the strength in depth to compete at this level.

Besides some matches in December when tier two rules allowed about 500 fans to watch games at Wetherby Road, supporters have been forced to watch games via an online stream this season.

In normal times, Mr Ford organises coach trips for fans to away fixtures around the country. He hopes to be able to resume this from next season.

As fans have been starved of the experience of travelling to new grounds, trips to the likes of Bolton, Tranmere and Walsall could be seen as glamorous for a club that is used to playing less illustrious non-league opponents.

He added:

“It’s about getting up at 5am and getting a taxi to the ground to get on the bus. We’re missing exploring these new grounds.”