Stray bonfire raises record-breaking £6,500 for charity

The 50th Stray bonfire and fireworks on Saturday night raised a record-breaking £6,568.42 for charity, organisers have announced.

Harrogate RoundTable, a group of local men aged 18-45 who organise charity and community events, will donate the proceeds to Friends of Harrogate Hospital.

If anyone missed the chance to donate, a GoFundMe is still open.

John Carter of Harrogate RoundTable said:

“Harrogate RoundTable would like to thank everyone who came along to enjoy the bonfire and fireworks display on the Stray. It’s the 50th year that we’ve put on the event and it was a fantastic night!

“As always the event was free for everyone to attend, however, we’d like to thank the Harrogate public for their generous donations to raise funds for this year’s charity The Friends of Harrogate Hospital. We also want to thank all the volunteers for their hard work over the whole weekend.”

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Harrogate RoundTable is also asking attendees and the wider Harrogate public for their views on how to take the event forward in future years.

An online survey has been created which can be accessed here.

 

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning, it’s Connor back on the traffic and travel desk early this morning hoping to help you avoid disruption on the roads and rail lines.

These blogs, brought to you by The HACS Group, aim to keep the district running smoothly.

If you get stuck in traffic or spot something, and it is safe, then give me a call on 01423 276197.

9am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet. Remember that from tomorrow Leadhall Lane will be closed for two weeks of carriageway resurfacing.

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8.30am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet. Remember that from tomorrow Leadhall Lane will be closed for two weeks of carriageway resurfacing.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

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8am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet. Remember that from tomorrow Leadhall Lane will be closed for two weeks of carriageway resurfacing.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

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7.30am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet. Remember that from tomorrow Leadhall Lane will be closed for two weeks of carriageway resurfacing.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

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7am – Full Update 

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The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet.

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6.30am – Full Update 

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The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet.

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Skipton Road set for six months of disruption as new bridge plans approved

Motorists using Skipton Road will face six months of disruption after plans were approved to demolish and replace a footbridge near the New Park roundabout.

North Yorkshire County Council is behind the plans to replace Oak Beck Bridge, which the council says is in poor condition.

The road is heavily used by traffic, especially by people visiting Aldi, B&Q and Pets at Home on the Oak Beck retail park.

Works are set to take place from January 2022 until July 2022 and temporary traffic lights will be used throughout. The road will remain open to single-way traffic.

A council spokesperson said it would be able to say how much the works will cost once it has appointed a contractor.

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The bridge is close to where a new Tesco supermarket is proposed at the site of the old gas works.

Plans for the new store include a petrol station, 200 parking spaces and a new roundabout on Skipton Road.

A public consultation on the plans ended in October. A full planning application is expected to be submitted before the end of the year.

Sneak Peek: Crimple Hall opens after £6 million investment

Crimple Hall is finally ready to swing open its doors to the public this weekend with a well-stocked food hall, plenty of Christmas goodies and the plants it is known for.

Many locals will know Crimple Hall as a garden centre but over the past year it has had a huge investment to make to add on a food hall, restaurant and event space.

The food hall has an in-house bakery, 12-metre butcher’s counter and chef cooked ready meals. All the food and produce is locally sourced and fresh.

The food hall

Director of Operations, Keren Shaw, said they wanted to make Crimple Hall a destination for local people; somewhere they can shop and eat:

“We want to be a hub for the community. It’s an incredibly unique place to the area. We use local producers, we have our own in-house bakery too. We’re really excited to get it open and have people in.

It’s great to have seen it go from a shell to now living and breathing it.”

A few people have been invited down this week but this weekend is when it will open fully. Visitors can expect plenty of food and lots of Christmas decorations.

The food hall is based in a 20,000 sq ft space and has an industrial feel with its distinctive peaked roof.

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Christmas has arrived at Crimple Hall. There’s everything from trees to lights to robot polar bears!

Ms Shaw said the whole concept was environmentally-focused from the solar panels on the roof to Crimple’s very own milk float where people can come back with their glass bottles to re-fill.

In the future, the team is hoping to add glass bee hives to provide honey for the food hall.

So far the new venue has opened up around 60 new job opportunities to the local area.

The 160-seater restaurant welcomed its first customers today.

The restaurant and garden centre will open 8- 5pm, and bar until 7pm. The food hall will open 8-7pm and on Sunday all areas are open 10-4pm.

Harrogate van driver caught nearly four times over drink-driving limit

A man driving a works van in Harrogate was almost four times the drink-driving limit when he was stopped by police during the afternoon.

North Yorkshire Police said in a statement it received a tip-off shortly after 1.30pm yesterday about a man driving a van with a works logo on it who was potentially under the influence of alcohol.

The 60-year-old man was pulled over on Skipton Road and asked to provide a roadside breath test. The statement added:

“He initially refused, so was arrested on suspicion of failing to provide. On returning to the station, the man blew 135 – the legal limit is 35. He was charged with drink driving.”

Sergeant Paul Cording, from North Yorkshire Police roads policing group, said:

“The fact that this man had been driving as part of his job yesterday and provided such a high reading is astonishing. The actions from the member of the public who called us with this information yesterday has probably saved a life.”

“I would encourage anyone who suspects a person to have drink or drugs in their system and is driving or about to drive to call us immediately on 999.”

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Sun Colonnade lit up in first part of Valley Gardens improvements

Harrogate Borough Council has installed a new set of lights in the Sun Colonnade in the first of a series of winter improvement in Harrogate’s Valley Gardens.

The council spent £15,000 on LED lighting to make the area, which has been subject to anti-social behaviour, more attractive and safer.

In the coming weeks the council plans to steam clean the Sun Colonnade and remove some of the heavy ivy, which would encourage growth of other vines.

The council is also planning to add lights to the trees along the lime tree walk, adjacent to the Sun Colonnade

It comes ahead of a £240,000 refurbishment of the nearby Sun Pavilion, which is set to be complete by February next year.

The Sun Pavilion improvements include reconstructing the floor, new underfloor heating and insulation as well as new floor coverings.

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A spokesperson for the council said:

“The new lights in the Sun Colonnade have been installed to improve and enhance this area of the gardens.

“The energy efficient LED lighting comes on late afternoon and then goes off late at night and will provide lighting to this area for many years to come.

“We have a whole programme of maintenance and improvements in Valley Gardens this winter, including steam cleaning the Sun Colonnade and removing some of the heavy ivy from the roof to allow more light through and other vines to flourish, as well as installing tree lights along Lime Tree Walk.

“Valley Gardens is both popular with residents and visitors and we want to enhance the use of this beautiful space to allow us to do more in the future.”

No fines yet but council vows to replace missing Stray ‘no parking’ signs

Harrogate Borough Council has vowed to replace missing and damaged signs that warn drivers not to park on the Stray.

The signs went up in September in response to concerns that parked cars were regularly straddling the cycle lane and the Stray on Oatlands Drive.

The signs say this is a breach of the Stray Act and could result in a £100 fine.

Harrogate District Cycle Action welcomed the move and the council and the Stray Defence Association hoped the move would prevent tyre damage on Stray land.

However, soon after the signs appeared the Stray Ferret published pictures of motorists ignoring them and cars have continued to line the Stray as before, most commonly at weekends when activities like football take place.

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Despite the evidence, the council told the Stray Ferret it had not yet handed out any fines for breaches.

A council spokesperson said:

“The signage on Oatlands Drive, that reminds people not to park on the Stray, will be reinstated as we continue to work with the county council to try and find a more permanent solution.

“To date, no fines have been issued.”

It is unclear if the signs have been vandalised or fallen over. But some of the dozen installed are damaged and strewn on the other side of the road.

Some of the signs are damaged.

 

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning, it’s Connor back on the traffic and travel desk early this morning hoping to help you avoid disruption on the roads and rail lines.

These blogs, brought to you by The HACS Group, aim to keep the district running smoothly.

If you get stuck in traffic or spot something, and it is safe, then give me a call on 01423 276197.

9am – Full Update 

That is all from the traffic and travel blog this morning.I will be back from 6.30am tomorrow.

Roads

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

8.30am – Full Update 

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Road closures:

Temporary lights:

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Buses

8am – Full Update 

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Road closures:

Temporary lights:

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Buses

7.30am – Full Update 

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Road closures:

Temporary lights:

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Buses

7am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

6.30am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

Harrogate police officer keeps job after running red light and crashing

A Harrogate police officer who was found guilty of dangerous driving after running a red light at 50 miles per hour and crashing has kept her job.

DC Quita Passmore was responding to reports of an officer in distress on May 5 in 2018 when she drove through red lights at the junction of Otley Road and Cold Bath Road.

Patricia Bulmer and Janet Roberton, who were travelling in the car she hit, sustained severe injuries, including broken bones as well as a punctured lung.

Passmore received a 10-month jail term, suspended for two years, and was disqualified from driving for two years at Bradford Crown Court in February.

North Yorkshire Police subsequently held a misconduct hearing, two years after the incident, in May this year.

During the trial, Passmore admitted that her conduct amounted to gross misconduct and the panel agreed. The panel, which had the power to dismiss her, opted instead to issue a final written warning.

Following the outcome, the Stray Ferret has written several times to both the Crown Prosecution Service and North Yorkshire Police to ask when CCTV from the night of the crash, which was shown in court, would be released.

The CPS did not respond numerous times before passing the enquiry onto North Yorkshire Police. North Yorkshire Police told us it was in fact the responsibility of the CPS.

We were then told by both organisations this week that the video was “no longer contemporaneous” and would therefore not be released.

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Last week North Yorkshire Police released a compilation of video footage showing what it described as “some of the worst driving” in the county by members of the public as part of a new “fatal five” campaign focussing on the most common causes of fatalities.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said:

“The officer faced the allegation that she had breached the standards of professional behaviour Duties and Responsibilities and Discreditable Conduct.

“The officer admitted that their conduct amounted to gross misconduct and the panel concluded the same. The outcome was a final written warning.”

Harrogate food hall to close after just six months

Harrogate’s first food hall is to close just six months after it opened in the former Jamie Oliver restaurant on Parliament Street.

Solita Food Hall Harrogate, which is set over two floors and a rooftop terrace, started serving customers in May.

It has six different stalls, all under the Shoot The Bull brand, and also welcomes other independent businesses on board. It created 30 jobs.

Founder Chris Harrison, chief executive of Shoot The Bull, told the Stray Ferret earlier in the year he hoped Harrogate would welcome the concept with open arms. However, Mr Harrison confirmed today that the Harrogate venue will close at the end of the year.

He added that staff would be offered employment at the next restaurant set to take on the building.

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Tomahawk Steakhouse, which had been planning to move into the empty Bistrot Pierre restaurant on Cheltenham Parade, is now planning to move into Solita Food Hall’s space.

The steakhouse had planned to open in January but with the change of location it is unclear at this stage when it will open for business.

A post on its Facebook page said:

“We’ve decided to go BIG and move into the former Jamie Oliver site on Parliament St! Expect an amazing roof garden that will be usable 52 weeks of the year!”

Co-founder Howard Eggleston has been planning to bring his steakhouse brand to Harrogate for four years.