There are hopes Ripon City Council could be running Ripon’s town hall and market place by April next year, according to the council leader.
The council submitted an expression of interest at the end of last month to North Yorkshire Council to be part of a “double devolution” pilot scheme that would see it take control of some of the city’s key assets.
These were previously owned by the abolished Harrogate Borough Council before being handed to the new unitary council on April 1.
If successful, council leader Andrew Williams, who also sits on the North Yorkshire Council as an independent, says the pilot scheme in Ripon could be up and running in time for the next financial year in April 2024.
North Yorkshire Council will choose six pilot schemes from across the county after considering each expression of interest.
Cllr Williams told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that he believes Ripon’s bid is one of the most ambitious submitted to the council and they have a “proven track record” of delivering services after previously taking over the lease of Hugh Ripley Hall from HBC.
He said the city council would commit to refurbishing and repurposing the town hall, which he said had been neglected by the old Harrogate-based authority.
“Quite clearly there’s been no investment in the building for years. It hasn’t been painted in 20 years and vast areas are laying idle so there may be a mix of things could be done.
“It’s a blank canvas but we think it could be used to generate economic activity in Ripon. It could be used as a museum to display Ripon’s historical artificats and I’d like to see North Yorkshire Council use it as a customer service point for residents.
“Part of the building could also be converted into rentable office space. Something needs to be done but we know there’s plenty of potential.”
Cllr Williams also said the city council would look to tidy up the market place and could use surplus revenue from car parking charges towards the refurbishment of the town hall.
Improvements to city centre public toiliets, which also formed part of the council’s expression of interest, would also make the city more appealing to tourists and businesses, he added.
“There’s grass growing out of the market square, such as been the poor maintenance of it.
“We believe collectively as a city council that we can draw more visitors to Ripon and bring businesses to the city centre. If the city looks smart and going places people are more likely to spend money here.”
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