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08
May 2024
Harrogate Station Gateway: consultants' fees rise to £2.1 million
Consultants' fees for the £12.1 million Harrogate Station Gateway scheme have risen to £2.1 million, the Stray Ferret can reveal.
We have also discovered Conservative transport chief Cllr Keane Duncan wanted to share the latest gateway plans with the Stray Ferret to avoid "public discontent" but was advised against it by a council director.
The findings are contained in a North Yorkshire Council response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request submitted to find out who made the decision to keep the latest plans secret.
Work on the watered down scheme is due to start in September.
Cllr Keane Duncan, the council's executive member for highways, revealed some details in January, as reported here. But the full plans have not been released, despite considerable public interest in the scheme.
Our FOI request asked for details of correspondence relating to the decision not to release the plans — and for the latest spending on consultants.
The council gave the following breakdown of consultants' costs to global consultancy firm WSP to November 2023.
It said since then it had spent a further £82,358.64, making a total of £2,088,567.27.
'Public discontent'
Emails reveal Cllr Duncan was unaware the cost of the gateway had risen to £12.1 million when reported by the Stray Ferret.
He emailed Karl Battersby, the council's corporate director of environment on March 8 asking for clarification and suggesting the council request a correction.
Mr Battersby pointed out the £12.1 million figure was contained in a report by West Yorkshire Combined Authority, which was overseeing the funding allocation from the Department for Transport, even though North Yorkshire Council is leading on the scheme.
Richard Binks, head of major projects and infrastructure at the council, then said the full business case now included £1,489,442 for risk/inflation/contingency. Details of the other costs of the scheme were redacted in the response to us.
Cllr Duncan then referred to requests to see the revised plans by the Stray Ferret, which is referred to as 'SF' in the correspondence:
In a further email he says "I am thinking I connect the SF and share these plans?"
Cllr Duncan then said:
But Mr Battersby replies:
Cllr Duncan replies to say "OK, I agree".
Two months on from the exchange, the plans remain secret.
New update
The council is progressing gateway schemes, which are mainly funded by the government's Transforming Cities Fund, for Selby and Skipton as well as Harrogate.
In an update report to next week's full council meeting, Cllr Duncan says it "continues to make progress on work on transformative gateway schemes to improve access to three of North Yorkshire’s rail stations".
It adds:
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