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23
Jan 2022
Last Updated: 23/01/2022
Stray Views: Doubts remain about Harrogate Station Gateway
With councillors in Northallerton set to approve the scheme on Tuesday, one reader questions whether people not living in the Harrogate district are best placed to vote on its future. Also, a former Harrogate resident says he plans to return to the town but will move to Northallerton instead if the gateway goes ahead.
Letters
Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. Send your views to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk.
Do the councillors voting on the Station Gateway know what's best for Harrogate?
As we are all aware there has been quite a bit of publicity locally on the Harrogate Station Gateway project — mostly negative but some positive.
I object to the proposals as they stand and have written individually to each councillor sitting on the executive committee of North Yorkshire County Council on this basis.
The Station Gateway will not improve the visual appeal or the environment of the town centre. It is purely a highway engineer's solution to the problem and one which is focussed on cycling in an attempt to reduce car usage. It will be a disaster for the town. What a legacy to leave us!
It will be interesting to see how many of them out of courtesy respond prior to the meeting.
So far I have had a response from Cllr Carl Les, chair of the committee and Cllr Don Mackenzie, although at this stage both are non-committal.
Looking at the mailing list for the executive, it is interesting to note that out of the 10 members sitting only two are residents of Harrogate. The remainder are scattered to all corners of North Yorkshire but will be making a critical decision on the future of Harrogate. It makes you question how many of those councillors know Harrogate and how well and how many of them have actually visited the town.
I'm not against cycling even though the cycling lobby appear to get the most publicity, but just the way it has been pushed in Harrogate because NYCC have applied for available funding without any prior thought on how they are going to implement schemes. As I have said many times over the last few years, "putting the cart before the horse". I would respect them much more if they admitted they have got it wrong.
Much more could be achieved in Harrogate and make it a great town once again otherwise we will be left with a mess for the next fifty years.
Barry Adams, Harrogate
Station Gateway will turn shoppers away
Which idiot came up with the Station Gateway proposal - are they trying to kill all the shops in Harrogate?
Many years ago when they first brought in pay parking (20p per hour ), people were that angry everyone went to Clifton Moor, which had easy parking and was free. It took years to get them back.
Maybe the proposers live in Wetherby or Skipton Road and are jealous of the relatively free-flowing of traffic through town.
I can just see my 80-year-old mother-in-law going shopping with all those bags on her bike.
I don’t live in Harrogate anymore but we’re looking to return and relocate our shop there (not if this happens). Probably Northallerton for us now then.
John Dalton, Hornsea
Read more:
- Gas supplier objects to Tesco plans in Harrogate
- Inquiry reveals Harrogate Nightingale cost £31.6 million
Has Wallace Sampson visited the rest of North Yorkshire?
Further to your article on the economic power of the Harrogate area, one does wonder if Wallace Sampson, the chief executive of Harrogate Borough Council, has ever visited the North Yorkshire Council area and appreciated the economic contribution of Scarborough, Skipton or Northallerton.
He seems to be besotted by Harrogate town and its dying spa importance, and fail to realise how the spa town in the district was really supported by Ripon, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge, Masham and Pateley Bridge.
David Rhodes, Harrogate
Do you have an opinion on the Harrogate district? Email us at letters@thestrayferret.co.uk. Please include your name and approximate location details. Limit your letters to 350 words. We reserve the right to edit letters.
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