Disused Bilton car park to be used for council homes

Revised plans for five council homes on a disused car park in Harrogate have been approved at a second attempt.

Harrogate Borough Council’s housing team was sent back to the drawing board to rethink its plans for the site at Dene Park, Bilton, in May.

But the scheme has now gained approval after a planning committee meeting yesterday.

Councillors said previous concerns over the layout and designs had been addressed, although there were still questions over the loss of the car park.

Councillor Sue Lumby, a Conservative who represents Harrogate Coppice Valley, said:

“I have received a letter from a number of residents who are very concerned about parking. If cars are forced to park on pavements, it is going to make access for buses and refuse vehicles difficult.”

Gillian Wood, the council’s housing growth manager, responded by saying the car park was “grossly under-occupied” and that 12 new parking spaces would be built for the use of all residents over nearby grass verges.

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She said:

“This will reduce parking on the street.

“We have been monitoring the car park for quite a long time now and we are finding there are generally three cars on there.

“People have a preference to park outside their property, so if we can provide 12 off-street spaces that is 12 cars off the street, which should help.”

1,800 households on council waiting list

There are around 1,800 households on the council’s housing waiting list and the housing team said the car park would help provide “much-needed” accommodation for these residents.

Councillor Pat Marsh, the Liberal Democrat leader, also said the plans should be welcomed for this reason.

She said:

“There are people parking at the site, but it is very small in numbers. To me, what is more important is the almost 2,000 people on our housing waiting list.

“I’m really pleased the council is moving forward with this.”

Councillors unanimously voted to approve the plans at Tuesday’s meeting.

Popular Harlow Hill fruit and veg shop to reopen in February

Wharfedale Fruiterers on Otley Road in Harrogate will reopen with a new name and new owners in February.

The owners of the Shepherd’s Dog pub, Mike and Donna Schofield, opened the greengrocers during the first covid lockdown in a former barbershop close to the pub.

It also sold dairy, bread and meats and quickly became popular with Harlow Hill residents.

However, Mr Schofield closed the shop this year to concentrate on the pub and his wife’s illness.

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From February, the shop will be owned by a couple who currently run a fruit and veg stall on Ilkley market. It will be renamed Wharfedale Fruit and Veg but Mr Schofield promised not much about it will change.

He said:

“The great thing is they’ll purchase everything from the same market as me. They’ll keep Longley Farm dairy and eggs. It will be the same quality but they’ll put their stamp on it.

“They are well established and they know what they’re doing.”

Controversial 200-home Pannal Ash scheme approved

Harrogate Borough Council‘s planning committee has voted to approve Homes England‘s plan to build 200 homes on the site of the former police training centre in Harrogate.

Councillors debated the application for almost three hours today with discussion focused on traffic congestion and the loss of a football pitch on the site.

Seven voted in favour, three against and John Mann, whose Harrogate Pannal ward would be affected by the scheme, abstained.

Homes England, which is the government housing agency, had permission to build 161 homes on the Yew Tree Lane site but wanted to increase this by 23% to 200 homes by building on the pitch.

The planning committee voted in June against a recommendation to approve the application.

Instead it deferred the scheme pending publication of the West of Harrogate Parameters Plan, which will assess transport and infrastructure needs associated with wider plans to build up to 4,000 homes on the western side of Harrogate.

Councillors were told a draft version of the parameters plan would not be published until February 2022.

However, this time they decided to approve the housing scheme, with a representative of Homes England suggesting it would consider legal action if the application was deferred again.

More to follow on this story

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Eco-development could be catalyst for green housing in Harrogate district

There are hopes nine ‘eco-homes’ that could be built near Knaresborough will be a catalyst for greener housebuilding in the Harrogate district.

Ben Holmes, from Birstwith, has submitted a planning application to Harrogate Borough Council for the cutting-edge development, which would be built to strict environmental standards and include solar panels, air-source heat pumps and super-tight insulation.

There would even be a communal vegetable garden to reduce the need to drive to shops.

A different model

Mr Holmes’ proposed scheme for York Road in Flaxby would be a community self-build development, which is a different model of housebuilding from what is usually seen.

If he is granted planning permission, he will install infrastructure, such as paths, water, drainage and a communal area, on the site.

He will then sell each of the nine plots to people who want to build their own home. The buyers then hire an architect and builder and design a home to suit their family’s needs.

Mr Holmes’ said this allowed for a customisable approach rather than buying identikit cookie-cutter homes on a large estate.

He said:

“You see these houses and they’ve all got their gas boilers. It is wrong way to build houses. Your big developers get as many homes on as possible and there is a lack of variation and creativity. It is soulless.

“There is a different way of building houses.”

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Lower energy bills

Harrogate Borough Council has a register of about 200 people who want to build their own home. Mr Holmes said there is an appetite in the district who people who want to have more of a say in how their home is built.

Anyone buying a plot to build their home will have to abide by a framework of environmental rules.

This includes Passivhaus certification and the Home Quality Mark from BRE.

Developed in Germany in the 1990s, Passivhaus is seen as a game-changer for low-carbon housing. It’s an innovative design code that prioritises insulation so that a home doesn’t need any heating or cooling at all, resulting in minimal energy bills.

There is only a handful of Passivhaus homes in the district, including the Larners’ house on Bogs Lane in Harrogate.

Mr Holmes also said the houses may be factory-built, bypassing much of the polluting construction process that comes with traditional bricks and mortar homes.

He added:

“Hopefully this site will act as a catalyst for the area to build more Passivhaus. It’s a high bar to get to that standard.”

Harrogate district refugee groups oppose ‘cruel’ immigration bill

Volunteers from charities that support refugees in the Harrogate district held a demonstration on Saturday afternoon to oppose what they describe as a “cruel” government immigration bill.

Harrogate District of Sanctuary and Ripon City of Sanctuary met outside Ripon Cathedral with placards and banners.

They oppose the government’s nationality and borders bill, which was debated in Parliament last week. The bill will make it a criminal offence to knowingly arrive in the UK without permission to be here.

The government says the bill will “send a clear message to migrants” thinking about making the “dangerous and illegal” journey.

The BBC has reported that more than 23,000 people have made the crossing from France to the UK by boat so far this year.

However, Nicola David, from Ripon City of Sanctuary, said the bill will criminalise people fleeing persecution and violence in their home countries.

Ms David said:

“We came together in unity.

“We feel the general public doesn’t know about the bill. Many people are horrified.

“What the government is doing is closing down the ability to come to the UK by asylum and only through resettlement schemes.”

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The bill would also allow the government to place asylum seekers in countries outside of the UK while they wait for a decision.

The government says the bill “tackles illegal immigration”.

“It will prioritise those in most need of protection while stopping the abuse of the system.”

Harrogate hospital covid deaths reach 199

The Harrogate district has reported a further 161 covid cases, according to today’s government figures.

The district’s covid rate now stands at 438 infections per 100,000 people.

Across the county, the average stands at 404 and the England rate is 478.

Harrogate District Hospital currently has 12 covid-positive patients – a figure which has fallen from 25 over the last month.

The hospital last reported a death of a patient who died within 28 days of testing positive on Friday. Since the pandemic began 199 people have died with covid at the hospital.

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Harrogate’s Great Yorkshire Showground reopened today as a vaccination site.

Although Harrogate is the largest place in the Harrogate district, the town has not had a vaccination site since August, when the showground stopped administering jabs.

Since then residents have been travelling to Knaresborough, Ripon and Pateley Bridge, or further afield to Leeds and York, for appointments.

The showground was due to close on December 22 but it now looks set to continue until March, although this has yet to be confirmed, as the government aims to speed up the vaccination programme.

Those eligible can book appointments on the NHS booking site here.

Harrogate Town fans dreaming of Mo Salah and Ronaldo in FA Cup draw

A fan poll has revealed Harrogate Town fans’ hopes of seeing their team line up against the likes of Mo Salah, Cristiano Ronaldo or Harry Kane in the FA Cup.

The third round is when Premier League clubs enter the historic competition ⁠— and smaller clubs like Harrogate Town can look forward to a potentially glamorous and lucrative tie.

We asked a Harrogate Town fan group on Facebook which team they hope will be picked out of the hat to face Simon Weaver’s men. The draw takes place from 7pm tonight and will be broadcast live on ITV4.

Around 50 fans responded.

Many are hoping for a draw against Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United as some fans will have some split allegiances. The two neighbours used to regularly play pre-season friendlies against each other but have never faced off in a competitive fixture.

Michael Ellison said:

“Leeds away would attract many Harrogate residents who ‘support’ both or either club, especially those who are unable to obtain tickets for league games at Elland Road.”

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Several supporters said they were hoping for an away day at Tottenham Hotspur’s £1bn new stadium in London.

Paul Keys said:

“Spurs away, be great to visit that stadium and watch Connor Hall have Kane in his pocket!”

Callum Hurle was hoping Town would be rewarded with a tie against Jurgen Klopp’s star-laden Liverpool side.

“It would be a great experience going to Anfield and cheering the Town on and it would be a great reward for getting to the third round for the first time! Brilliant to see how far we have come in the last few years, we should all be proud of Harrogate.”

Darrell Gardner said:

“I’ve supported Everton since childhood so I’d love for Town to play them at Goodison. It would be a difficult game to watch, my allegiances would be torn but I’d shouting from the stands for a Town win.”

Ball numbers to look out for

64 – Harrogate Town

2 – Arsenal

21 – Leeds United

23 – Liverpool

25 – Manchester United

26 – Manchester City

40 – Tottenham Hotspur

Storm Barra: Warning for strong winds and snow in Harrogate district

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for strong winds and snow tomorrow in the Harrogate district.

Storm Barra is expected to arrive at 9am and could last until midnight.

A yellow warning for wind has been issued from 9am until midnight and covers most of the district.

Another yellow warning for snow has been issued from 11am until midnight. It suggests snowfall is likely to hit Pateley Bridge and other parts of Nidderdale.

BBC Weather says there is a chance of snow in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon tomorrow afternoon.

The Met Office warns there may be delays to public transport and there is the possibility of power cuts.

Storm Barra comes just over a week since Storm Arwen, which cut electricity to thousands of homes and caused damage to trees and property.

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Harrogate council gets £100,000 to help turn brownfield sites into housing

The government has awarded Harrogate Borough Council almost £100,000 to help turn three brownfield sites in Pannal, Ripon and Sharow into social housing.

Harrogate is one of 15 councils to receive funding from the £75m Brownfield Land Release Fund, which aims to build more affordable homes.

The three sites to be awarded funding are council-owned garages that HBC wants to demolish and replace with social housing. These are:

Holmefield Road in Ripon (£35,000), Church Close in Sharow (£30,000) and Pannal Green in Pannal (£30,000).

The plans for Ripon and Sharow have already received planning permission.

In October, HBC was awarded £50,000 from the same fund to bring forward housing on two underused garage sites in Bilton and Knaresborough.

A council spokesperson said: 

“This is a fund specifically aimed at the cost of infrastructure requirements on council-owned land.

“By helping meet these costs, sites will become viable for development, either by the local authority directly or by private developers, enabling the site to be placed on the open market.”

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The Harrogate district has an acute shortage of homes built for social rent.

Last month The Stray Ferret reported that just 52 social homes were built last year in the Harrogate district, despite there being 1,867 households on the social housing waiting list.

Lib Dem leader on Harrogate Borough Council Cllr Pat Marsh, who also sits on the council’s planning committee, said the council needs to be more proactive instead of relying on developers to build them.

Last gasp winner puts Harrogate Town into FA Cup Third Round

Harrogate Town beat Portsmouth in the FA Cup Second Round this afternoon thanks to a goal from Jack Diamond in the fifth minute of injury time.

It means the Sulphurites will play in the Third Round of the FA Cup for the first time in their history, and could look forward to a mouthwatering tie against the likes of Leeds United, Liverpool or Manchester City.

122 Town fans made the long trip to the south coast today to watch Town take on Pompey, who are two-time FA Cup winners and were big favourites to advance.

Luke Armstrong’s goal was cancelled out by Portsmouth’s Ellis Harrison in the first half and it looked like the game was heading for a replay at the EnviroVent Stadium.

But it was on-loan winger Jack Diamond who once again wrote his name into Town’s history books when he tucked away the winner to send the travelling Town fans into raptures.

The Third Round draw will take place at 7pm on Monday on ITV4.

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