New homes approved in Goldsborough despite objectionsKnaresborough’s 1,000-home estate with no community facilitiesHarrogate district councils object to Allerton Park asphalt plant plan

Parish councils near a waste incinerator near Knaresborough have questioned whether a decision over setting up an asphalt manufacturing facility on the site should be taken out of a council’s hands.

The parish councils represent numerous villages surrounding the Allerton Waste Recovery Park off the A1(M).

They claim North Yorkshire County Council lied to them about the impact of the incinerator, and that its councillors had pledged the rural area would not see further industrial-type developments.

The comments follow numerous communities across the county accusing the Conservative-run authority of putting big business interests above those of residents.

They have been lodged in response to Tynedale Roadstone’s application to the county council to create an asphalt manufacturing plant across a 2.1-hectare grass and scrubland site at the waste recovery park.

The site, which is an existing and partially complete and restored landfill, features other uses such as a concrete batching plant and the processing of 320,000 tonnes of waste a year from York and North Yorkshire councils.

The firm said the site had been chosen because plastic from the waste recovery plant would be used in the production of the final asphalt road surfaces product, cutting transportation, while its proximity to the A1(M) meant vehicles could enter and exit the site without having to pass through villages.

Planning documents submitted by the firm said the site is “extremely well screened from view” and locating the plant there would “protect” other employment sites in the area.

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It said:

“The application proposes a land use that is wholly in-keeping with the nature of this site and complements those existing land uses currently operating on the park.”

However, some residents have said they are as concerned about the impact of the proposed asphalt plant, particularly due to the potential of dust unintentionally spilling from the site, while mixing of hot bitumen could allow the release of a pungent, acrid smell.

‘A one-off isolated proposal’

In objections to the scheme, parish councils said when the incinerator had been approved in 2014 they had been assured by the county council that it was “a one-off isolated industrial proposal” in what was acknowledged as a rural location.

In its response, Arkendale Coneythorpe and Clareton Parish Council has highlighted how councillors went on record to say the incinerator would not be the stimulus for further industrial ribbon development along the A1(M) corridor.

A parish spokesman said: 

“If this development is allowed to proceed what the county council promised these local communities will have been proven to be false and we would be right to feel let down by the democratic process.”

In its objection, Goldsborough and Flaxby Parish Council said as the county council had past and present interests in the site, an independent consultant with no specific interest in the plant should be commissioned to assess its impacts.

The parish council’s objection said it questioned “the legitimacy of this planning application being reviewed and considered by North Yorkshire County Council planning authority”.

The parish council said:

“North Yorkshire County Council officers made a big thing about how little the nearby incinerator would impact visually, with it being located in a quarry.

“Plainly that was a lie or at the very least a highly optimistic assessment. The incinerator can be seen from miles away including the east side of Harrogate and up the Yorkshire Dales.”

In response, Cllr Derek Bastiman, whose executive portfolio includes waste disposal, said:

“The application for the Allerton Waste Recovery Park was thoroughly debated at the time and the planning process was rigorously followed. Full consideration was given to any environmental impact on nearby residents and the surrounding landscape.

“The application now submitted by Tynedale Roadstone is entirely separate and relates to an area of land separate to the AWRP lease area. Like any planning application, it will be considered in accordance with planning policy.”

Flaxby parish council calls for government to reject eco-homes

Parish councillors in Flaxby have called on the government to refuse a proposal for a nine-home eco-development in the village.

Holmes Planning Ltd has appealed a decision by Harrogate Borough Council to refuse the development off York Road.

It would have seen houses built to environmental standards and include solar panels, air-source heat pumps and super-tight insulation. The houses were planned to be custom built.

Following refusal by the authority, the developer took the decision to the government’s Planning Inspectorate.

However, in a letter to the government, Goldsborough and Flaxby Parish Council said the previous reasons for refusal still stand.

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It added that a lack of custom build homes in the district was “simply not enough of a justification to permit the building of nine individual self-build houses on the land in question”.

The letter said:

“We are parish councillors, ordinary people with neither the skills nor the knowledge to quote such housing policies inside out, simply representing the residents of Flaxby, whose homes and lives would be detrimentally affected should this planning appeal be approved.”

But, in documents submitted for the challenge, the developer argued that there were not enough custom build developments in the district.

It said:

“The appellant submits that the custom self-build deficit is so severe, and likely to get worse, that this material consideration outweighs any departure from the Harrogate District Local Plan and that the appeal site is suitable for custom self-build and the appeal, if allowed, would be secured for custom self-build through the Unilateral Undertaking.”

A government planning inspector will make a decision on the plan at a later date.

‘Do you need to wait until somebody is killed by a speeding car?’

A parish council near Knaresborough has written to 32 North Yorkshire county councillors urging them to make 20mph the default speed limit in their area.

Goldsborough and Flaxby Parish Council said in the email action should be taken now to reduce the current 30mph limit before somebody is killed.

The council wrote the letter in support of the 20s Plenty campaign, which is a national initiative to make a 20mph speed limit normal on residential streets and in town and village centres.

The email says drivers “put their foot down” in Goldsborough even though it has a primary school. It adds that only about 15% of all the roads have pavements on both sides, forcing them to walk on the highways,

Goldsborough

The red arrow shows the playground entrance in Goldsborough.

It adds:

“There is a high proportion of elderly residents in Goldsborough, many of whom may have hearing issues and reduced sight, and are physically less able to move out of the way quickly.

“There are not many street lights in the village and, as such, at dusk or in the dark, it is not easy for drivers to see people walking in or crossing the roads.”

Flaxby speed signs ‘in wrong place’

The email says the current 30mph signs in Flaxby “are completely in the wrong place, and drivers have already entered the village before they see the speed signs and even think about slowing down”.

It adds a speed survey in 2018 revealed 17.5% of motorists travelled over the 30mph speed limit. The correspondence also raises concerns about the lack of street lighting and the number of HGVs driving through the village to visit the weigh-station at Gill’s Farm, just past Coneythorpe.

Flaxby

HGVs often go along Shortsill Lane in Flaxby, which has no pavements.

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The email says:

“Do you really need to wait until somebody is killed by a car speeding through a North Yorkshire village before you begin to tackle this important issue?”

North Yorkshire County Council is the highways authority for the county. The parish council wrote to 32 county councillors that sit on boards, panels and committees that could influence speeding decisions.

Caroline Greenhalgh, vice chairman of the parish council, told the Stray Ferret it had received just two responses from councillors so far, saying the matter was being considered.

 

 

More homes added to 600-home Manse Farm development in Knaresborough

More homes are to be added to the 600-home Manse Farm development in Knaresborough.

Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee yesterday granted approval for an extra 24 properties at the site, which is being built out by developers Taylor Wimpey and Linden Homes.

Councillors also approved changes to the road layout in order for the site to link up with separate proposals from Taylor Wimpey for 400 homes at the nearby Highfield Farm.

The Highfield Farm plans have yet to be granted planning permission and, if approved, would mean building over 1,000 homes to the east of Knaresborough in what councillors previously described as a “new village” being tacked onto the town.

The extra homes at Manse Farm were approved despite an objection from Goldsborough and Flaxby Parish Council, which said:

“The total 1,000 approved houses on the east side of Knaresborough, at the Manse Farm and the neighbouring Highfield Farm developments, are already excessive and inappropriate.

“Adding more housing in this soon-to-be congested area is not supported and we strongly recommend reducing the housing density at this, and each of the other developments, to make this a more rewarding living environment.”

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No loss of green space

Speaking at a meeting today, Becky Lomas, an agent for Taylor Wimpey, defended the increase in house numbers, saying it would provide more smaller family homes for the area.

She said:

“The uplift in dwellings is as a result of looking at the mix of housing – we have looked at what was previously proposed and there are now more smaller family homes.

“The uplift is also only in the developable area of the site, so we haven’t reduced any green space, public open space, landscaping or wildlife corridors.”

Also included in the Manse Farm development are plans for a new primary school, which will cater for families moving into the new homes.

In May, Elevate Multi Academy Trust was appointed by the Department for Education to run the school, which will provide 210 places for pupils, with the capacity to take in a total of 420 children if needed in future.

The project is expected to cost in the region of £5m and will be funded by North Yorkshire County Council using government grants, together with a £2m contribution from the developers.

Elevate Multi Academy Trust already runs Meadowside Academy, Aspin Park Academy and St John’s C of E Primary School in Knaresborough, as well as nine other schools in Yorkshire.