Councillors approved extending La Feria’s premises licence so the restaurant on Cold Bath Road can serve guests on its outdoor terrace until 11pm.

The new arrangement will be valid between April and September and means diners can now use its outdoor terrace later than 9pm, which was previously allowed.

La Feria, which is the trading name of Whaddya Know? Ltd, had a temporary licence for outdoor seating until 11pm last summer. North Yorkshire Council officer Wan Malachi confirmed to councillors on the licensing sub-committee today that the restaurant received no noise complaints during this period.

However, the application received three objections from residents near to the restaurant with one person saying late-night outdoor dining would “significantly impact our peace and quiet”.

The building was previously a pub for many years and was known as the Old Tradition, the Honest Lawyer and the Iron Duke.

The restaurant offers Spanish cuisine from the Andalusia region and opened on Cold Bath Road in 2016 after moving from a smaller premises on Royal Parade.

During the licensing meeting at Harrogate’s Civic Centre this afternoon (April 26), general manager Sarah Johnson told councillors the restaurant enjoys being part of the Cold Bath Road community and staff ask guests to be respectful when leaving.

Ms Johnson said:

“We are very sensitive to the neighbours and want to live in harmony with everybody on Cold Bath Road.”

Sarah Johnson

She added that regulars have requested the extension until 11pm and the more relaxed hours would help the business grow.

Ms Johnson added:

“We have to politely ask customers to leave by 9pm due to the restrictions. It can be challenging as people would like to stay longer and relax. Were a family-run and friendly restaurant, not a late-night bar or music venue. We’re just trying to extend a later dining experience in the summer for our guests.

“Our regulars say it would be lovely to sit out here a bit longer in the evenings. We survived covid as an independent restaurant so we would just like an opportunity to give staff extra hours and make more money for the business. Our restaurant is a favourite place for people to go.”

This satisfied the three councillors on the committee who approved the premises licence extension.

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Farmers and lorry drivers in North Yorkshire are being urged not to leave mud on the roads.

North Yorkshire Council said today people have been in touch reporting muddy roads following the recent wet spell.

It prompted the council to call on drivers of agricultural and construction vehicles to be responsible when using public routes.

Cllr Keane Duncan, the council’s executive member for highways and transportation, said:

“We understand that this is a busy time in the farming calendar, and that this year the prolonged period of rain is likely to have made conditions worse than usual.

“However, that makes it more important than ever that if farmers or construction vehicle drivers do need to use public roads, they take their responsibilities seriously.”

Cllr Duncan added drivers leaving mud risked legal action:

“If mud on the road results in injury, damage to property, loss or inconvenience, legal action can follow, with penalties ranging from fines to imprisonment.”

The council said farmers or construction vehicle operators must:

• Keep to their own farm roads whenever possible.
• Keep to low speeds and prevent mud from being deposited by removing any excess before driving on to roads.
• Be prepared to hire equipment to promptly remove deposits.
• Use authorised signs prominently positioned for road users to see.
• Clean the road as necessary during the working day and always at the end.
• Ensure that equipment and labour is available and is suitable for the soil and weather conditions.
• When using a contractor, ensure agreement is reached beforehand on who is responsible for mud on the road (signs, cleaning etc) and that suitable public liability insurance is in place.

You can report mud on the road here.

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A Liberal Democrats councillor has called for elections to be held for a future Harrogate town council in May 2024 rather than 2025.

In July, North Yorkshire Council agreed to pause work on the new council to undertake a third public consultation about how it will be formed.

Harrogate and Scarborough are the only two areas in the county without a parish council and the council is creating them at the same time.

But the Lib Dems have raised concerns that another consultation will mean a longer wait for Harrogate residents to be represented on a town council.

Harrogate Town Council would have far fewer powers than North Yorkshire Council or the former Harrogate Borough Council but it could run some local services.

Cllr Philip Broadbank

Cllr Broadbank, who represents Fairfax and Starbeck, raised the subject at a meeting in Northallerton last week.

He asked if Harrogate could be treated separately from Scarborough and if the process could be speeded up so elections can take place in six months’ time.

Cllr Broadbank said:

“Whilst new warding proposals for Scarborough will of course be new and take longer to formulate, boundaries for Harrogate town already exist.

“A consultation on whether Harrogate has single member or two member wards can be done quickly and allow elections next year rather than 2025 as currently envisaged.”

However, his proposal was knocked by Conservative executive member for corporate services David Chance, who said a decision had already been taken by councillors in July.

Cllr Chance said:

“The proposals for Harrogate and Scarborough have been brought forward together and delivered in tandem to deliver parity in our approach.”

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Last month, the council revealed the winners and losers of the 12 ‘double-devolution’ bids from parishes that would like to take control of assets in their areas.

These included Ripon City Council, which wants to take over the running of assets including the town hall and market square.

Knaresborough Town Council has been invited to develop a business case to run the town’s weekly market.

Harrogate was excluded from the process because it doesn’t have a parish council. If a Harrogate Town Council were created, it could bid to run services in the town such as looking after its parks or the Stray, operating car parks or managing the Royal Hall.

It has previously been suggested by North Yorkshire Council that residents would pay between £40 and £60 on top of their council tax each year to pay for the new council.