Kingsley Drive residents to ‘remain vigilant’ despite 217-home rejection

Residents on Harrogate’s Kingsley Drive say they will “remain vigilant” despite a controversial 217 home plan in the area being rejected.

Councillors on Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee unanimously voted to refuse the proposal from Persimmon Homes yesterday after council officers said it was unacceptable.

The council received 388 objections to the scheme and no responses in favour.

The Kingsley ward area will eventually see more than 600 homes built, including developments at Granby Farm and 149 homes on Kingsley Road.

However, despite the refusal, residents have said they intend to keep an eye on the proposal in case it is appealed.

The proposed layout of the homes on Kingsley Drive as submitted by developer Persimmon Homes.

The proposed layout of the homes on Kingsley Drive as submitted by developer Persimmon Homes.

John Hansard, who lives in the area, told the Stray Ferret that the refusal was a “good result” but added that locals were well aware that the plan could come back.

Mr Hansard pointed to the Planning Inspectorate’s decision to approve 149 homes on Kingsley Road back in March, despite the borough council refusing the plan, as an example.

He said:

“It was a good result and I am pleased about that. It does give us a bit of breathing space.

“My only concern is that they [the developer] will appeal. I think that we need to look into that.

“I think we need to remain vigilant.”

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Meanwhile, Catherine Maguire, another resident on Kingsley Drive, said the result left her with mixed emotions.

She said the news was “positive” for the area, but added that there was further to go in opposing the scheme.

Ms Maguire said:

“It’s good to have some positive news, but I have mixed emotions and there is a long road ahead.

“You never know what a planning inspector will say. But I feel more confident this time, because there are too many issues with the site.”

Chris Watt, who spoke on behalf of Kingsley Ward Action Group at the meeting, said he was delighted that councillors sided with residents.

He told the Stray Ferret:

“I’m delighted that councillors listened to local residents and rejected this terrible proposal.

“The area is already suffering from heavy construction traffic from early in the morning and another massive housing project in an already over developed area would only make matters worse and add to congestion and pollution.

“It was telling how scathing councillors were about the proposals and it shows the power that local people can have.”

Officer and councillor concerns

Ahead of refusing the proposal, council officers said the application was “not considered acceptable”.

Although the site is allocated for housing under the council’s Harrogate district Local Plan 2014-35, which outlines development in the district until 2035, officers had concerns about overdevelopment and inadequate information on surface water drainage and noise.

Authority officials also said in a report that the number of homes on the site was above the 173 allocated in the local plan.

The application, when combined with the nearby Stonebridge Homes development, would have seen a total of 313 houses built if it had been approved.

Meanwhile, Cllr Nigel Middlemass, ward member for Kinglsey, told the council’s planning committee that the development had not been thought through.

He said:

“This is the biggest and worst thought out [housing site] in the area. It is far too intensive and well above the numbers in the local plan.”

Paul Butler, agent for Persimmon Homes, requested that the committee defer the application so that the council and developer could work on the design and layout of the scheme.

However, the council’s planning committee voted unanimously to reject the scheme.

Council rejects controversial plan for 217 homes on Kingsley Drive

Harrogate borough councillors have rejected a controversial scheme for 217 homes on Kingsley Drive.

The council received 388 objections to the scheme and no responses in favour.

The current application, submitted by Persimmon Homes, has seen the number of properties planned on the site reduced from 244 to 217.

But Harrogate Borough Council planning officers said the proposal “was not considered acceptable”.

The Kingsley ward area will eventually see more than 600 homes built, including developments at Granby Farm and 149 homes on Kingsley Road.

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However, residents have raised a number of concerns over Persimmon’s plan, including overdevelopment and traffic congestion.

Chris Watt, speaking on behalf of Kingsley Ward Action Group, said the traffic caused by the homes would make congestion worse in the area.

He said:

“As we have already seen from current developments taking place, our local roads are not designed for construction traffic.

“Congestion on Knaresborough Road is already bad and this would only be made worse by the number of houses proposed for this site.”

Meanwhile, Cllr Nigel Middlemass, ward member for Kinglsey, told the committee that the development had not been thought through.

He said:

“This is the biggest and worst thought out [housing site] in the area. It is far too intensive and well above the numbers in the local plan.”

Paul Butler, agent for Persimmon Homes, requested that the committee defer the application so that the council and developer could work on the design and layout of the scheme.

However, the council’s planning committee voted unanimously to reject the scheme.

First Lidl supermarket in Harrogate given go-ahead

Plans have been approved for the first Lidl supermarket to open in Harrogate.

Councillors on Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee gave the go-ahead for the new store on Knaresborough Road this afternoon.

The new supermarket will be built on the former Lookers car dealership site.

The multi-million pound proposal includes a 1,263 square metre sales area, an in-store bakery, customer toilets and 94 parking spaces and cycle parking at the front of the store.

Jonathan Harper, agent for Lidl, told councillors at a meeting today:

“There are a number of clear tangible benefits to this scheme.

“The development represents a significant investment by Lidl and will create 40 new jobs which carry clear importance at this time.”

Cllr Robert Windass, member for Boroughbridge, said:

“This site is derelict.

“I think it will be an asset to that part of Harrogate.”

Cllr Philip Broadbank, member for Harrogate Starbeck, said the development would be “welcomed and well used”, but added that delivery times and highways needed to be looked at when setting conditions.

He requested that a condition was set to reduce the delivery time hours from 11pm to 10pm.

However, Cllr Broadbank added:

“The site is generally acceptable and it does have quite a lot of support [from residents].”

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The new store will be open from 8am to 10pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 4pm on Sunday.

Lidl has also submitted plans for a new store in Ripon.

The German supermarket chain has lodged proposals for a store at St Michael’s Retail Park in the city.

Earlier this month, the application won the support of Ripon City Council.

Staffing a major challenge says new Harrogate leisure company boss

The new manager of the council-controlled company that has taken over leisure centres in the Harrogate district says staffing is a challenge.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Mark Tweedie, the company’s new managing director, said although a number of these vacant roles would be filled in the coming weeks, staffing was still one of the most immediate challenges it faced.

He said:

“We have got a recruitment issue and that is something which is consistent right across the country.

“In leisure and hospitality, where people have been hit hard by lockdown closures and uncertainties around jobs, many people have got off and tried new jobs.

“We have got to convince people there are still strong careers in the leisure industry and attract people to come back.”

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The company also faces a longer term challenge. Under local government reorganisation, all council services will come under the control of a new unitary authority serving the whole of North Yorkshire by April 2023 when the current two-tier system will be scrapped.

Like Harrogate, some other councils including Selby and Scarborough already have a system of leisure services being run by external companies.

But ultimately it will be for the new North Yorkshire council to decide whether these arrangements should continue beyond 2023 or if a county-wide approach is to be taken.

If all leisure services are brought in-house under the new authority, the road ahead for Brimhams Active will be an uncertain one. it could mean Brimhams Active is scrapped just a few years after launching.

Mr Tweedie said:

“With all these uncertainties on the horizon, all I can do and all I am doing as managing director is thinking how can I make Brimhams the best it can be so whenever any decisions are made we are in the mix.

“We are already collaborating with all of the other leisure operators around the region to look where we can form partnerships and work together.

“All we want to do is make sure we are best placed and the council has done that with the local authority controlled company (LACC).

“They have really done what is in the best interests of Harrogate.”

The council has spent less than £300,000 on setting up Brimhams Active which is now running 12 leisure venues in Harrogate, Knaresborough, Ripon and Pateley Bridge.

Some decisions over how services are run will be made exclusively by a board of seven directors made up of councillors and council staff.

This includes councillor Pat Marsh, leader of the Liberal Democrats, who said she was pleased that the launch of the company showed a commitment to keeping services running.

She said:

“Because leisure is not a statutory service and is expensive to deliver, the council could close all facilities or some of them to save money, in these difficult times, as some councils have done.

“At least having a LACC in place means there is commitment to deliver leisure facilities to the people of the district.

“Covid is and has been an issue for everyone. Hopefully now we are able to start to open everything up and with the launch of the LACC we will see a new future for the delivery of leisure service.”

Mr Tweedie added:

“Although we have launched the company, it will not be an instant change which people are going to see within 24 hours. This is a new strategy and website to make a commitment to where we are going.

“There is going to progressive change in the next one to three years to make the service a high performing offering.”

New Harrogate Beer Week raises glass to local pubs and breweries

Local pubs and breweries will be the focus of the first ever Harrogate Beer Week, which starts next month.

The beer week will run from September 20 to 26. During the week there will be a programme of special events across different venues in Harrogate.

There will also be an indie beer trail, live local music and a home brewing competition on the the cards. It will all culminate with a big beer weekend in the town centre.

If successful, the organiser hopes that she will be able to bring it back on an annual basis.

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Rachel Auty, who founded Women on Tap, is behind the new project. She said:

“This brand new event will be a spotlight on the very best of what’s on offer in Harrogate and will be created and delivered by people who actually live and work here.

“I would love it to become an annual flagship event that is proven to deliver direct benefit to the town centre, independent beer and food businesses.

“It’s been such an awful 15 months and I am determined to bring some beer-themed joy back to our indies and communities this autumn.”

She believes that, with five big breweries in the district, there is nothing to stop Harrogate from standing shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Leeds and Sheffield.

Harrogate BID is helping to finance Harrogate Beer Week. BID manager Matthew Chapman said:

“We’re really excited to be supporting September’s Harrogate Beer Week, particularly as it will involve a host of local bars and pubs.

“It will be a fantastic opportunity for beer lovers to have a pint or two in different venues, which as an organisation dedicated to driving footfall into all parts of the town centre appealed to us.

“And whilst it’s still a few weeks away, we are happy to raise a glass to its undoubted success, and say ‘cheers, Rachel’.”

Police arrest two men after damage to properties in Bilton

North Yorkshire Police arrested two men in Bilton last night following reports of damage to properties.

Officers were responding to reports from the Woodfield Road area of the Harrogate suburb last night.

The force’s Dutch Herder police dog, PD Bobby, was brought in to find the suspects.

The two men are currently in custody.

If you were involved in any of these incidents and have not yet reported this to the police, please call 101.

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A decade worth of monthly police visits to Mayfield Grove house

Police received on average one report per month over suspected crime and anti-social behaviour at a house on Harrogate’s Mayfield Grove for the past decade, the Stray Ferret can reveal.

Figures obtained by a Freedom of Information request show 255 reports were made to North Yorkshire Police from the public about 38 Mayfield Grove since April 2008.

It amounts to at least one police visit a month on average for the last 13 years.

The house has been at the centre of crime concerns recently after North Yorkshire Police and Harrogate Borough Council ordered the property to be closed back in March.

The figures revealed today suggest a persistent problem at the property over anti-social behaviour. Since the closure, residents have called for more to be done about crime in the area and have met with officers, council officials and North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Philip Allott.

The Stray Ferret asked police for the most common reports made about the address and how many times police were called about each reason.

Of the most frequent reports, a total of 64 were related to public safety and included suspicious circumstances, insecure premises and concerns for safety.

Meanwhile, 27 were about anti-social behaviour.

Closure orders and crime concerns

The house has been ordered to close twice since 2005.

The latest order to shut the property down was made back in March by North Yorkshire Police and Harrogate Borough Council.

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The two organisations can apply to a court for a closure order if they have concerns about antisocial behaviour and criminal behaviour on premise.

Since then, the property has been allowed to reopen and officers have held community engagement events with concerned residents.

At an event held in June, many residents said they were worried about crime in in general in the area – not just individual properties.

Meanwhile, Philip Allott, North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, pledged to push for more police officers on Mayfield Grove.

He visited the street last week to hear concerns over anti-social behaviour and crime on Mayfield Grove and nearby Nydd Vale Terrace and Mayfield Terrace.

Mr Allott told the Stray Ferret:

“I will ask the police to step up neighbourhood policing in this area. I will ask them to target the drug dealers and make it hard for the supply chain to operate.”

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning and welcome back. It’s Connor with you this morning bringing you all your latest traffic and travel news.

The aim of these blogs, brought to you by The HACS Group, is to make sure your journey is as smooth as possible.

I’ll include all the latest roadworks, traffic hotspots and any delays to public transport.

If you spot anything or get stuck in a jam, give me a call on 01423 276197.

9am – Full Update 

Thank you for checking in with the traffic and travel blog this morning. We do hope you find the service useful. I am heading over to the news desk now but I will be back from 6.30am tomorrow.

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning except for a few spots around the Harrogate district:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

8.45am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning except for a few spots around the Harrogate district:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

8.30am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning except for a few spots around the Harrogate district:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

8.15am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning except for a few spots around the Harrogate district:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

8am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning except for a few spots around the Harrogate district:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

7.45am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning except for a few spots around the Harrogate district:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

7.30am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning, today’s traffic hotspots are likely to show up a little later. Keep checking in.

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

7.15am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning, today’s traffic hotspots are likely to show up a little later. Keep checking in.

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

7am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning, today’s traffic hotspots are likely to show up a little later. Keep checking in.

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

6.45am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning, today’s traffic hotspots are likely to show up a little later. Keep checking in.

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

6.30am – Full Update 

Roads 

The roads are looking clear so far this morning, today’s traffic hotspots are likely to show up a little later. Keep checking in.

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

Ripon’s Jack Laugher in Olympic diving final

Jack Laugher is bidding for further Olympic glory this morning.

A superb series of six dives took him into the men’s individual three-metre springboard final, which can be seen live on BBC TV from 7am.

The former Ripon Grammar School student, whose family home is in Littlethorpe, finished in third position behind China’s XIE Siyi and Wang Zongyuan in today’s semi-final.

Early-bird television viewers, who tuned in a 2am UK time, saw Laugher score 514.75 points in a stylish and controlled performance at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre.

Photo of Spa Baths

It all started here – Spa Baths, Ripon where Jack Laugher was taught to swim at the age of 3 by Sylvia Grice MBE

If he can repeat the highly-disciplined display of diving excellence that he achieved in the semi-final, he has an outstanding opportunity to add to the Gold and Silver medals that saw him make history five years ago.

He and then partner Chris Mears, became the first-ever GB diving medallists, when they fought off a challenge from China to claim Olympic Gold at the Rio 2016 games.

Six days later, Laugher added Silver in the men’s individual springboard event, finishing behind China’s Yuan Cao.

The challenge from the Chinese pair of XIE Siyi and Wang Zongyuan, cannot be under-estimated, but it’s all to play for when the 12 finalists take to the springboard in Tokyo.

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Second tap terminal in Harrogate to help homeless people

Harrogate District Street Aid has launched a second contactless tap terminal to help homeless people.

The second terminal is at the Victoria Shopping Centre and follows in the footsteps of the first at Marks and Spencers on Oxford Street.

With each tap of a bank card, £3 goes to Harrogate District Street Aid. Since the launch in October 2019, people have donated more than £14,000 to the project.

Harrogate Borough Council is behind the project which provides financial support for those in need. Homeless people can apply for grants up to £500.

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To date the Harrogate District Street Aid has given out 16 grants for training courses, clothing for job interviews and wellbeing support.

Cllr Mike Chambers, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for housing and safer communities, said:

“Harrogate District Street Aid is about making a real change to people who find themselves on the street and I am delighted that we have been able to provide a second tap terminal in Harrogate town centre.

“Some people assume that giving a few pounds to a beggar is helping them. Sadly, in some instances it may actually keep them on the street.

“Through Harrogate District Street Aid, we can work with our partner organisations to make best use of the money that has been kindly donated, work with homeless people and make a real difference to their lives.”