Harrogate’s first Mosque could open at former Home Guard club

Harrogate’s first-ever Mosque could open at the former Home Guard club on Tower Street.

Plans have been submitted by the Harrogate Islamic Association (HIA) to convert the building, which was also a Victorian hospital, into a place of worship for Muslims.

The HIA was established in 2011 and has been looking for a permanent place to convert into a Mosque for years. Other attempts to find a home have fallen through.

Around 100 worshippers currently meet in the Quakers’ Friends Meeting House on Queen Parade.

Zahed Amanullah, from the HIA, told the Stray Ferret that they hope to run religious, community and charitable events at the building. It would also support Syrian and Afghan refugees who have moved to the area.

Harrogate Islamic Association

The building had been on the market for £500,000 and Mr Amanullah said the HIA will have to raise funds to complete the purchase, which is subject to planning permission.

He said:

“We thought this is our best chance to have somewhere in the town centre. The location is fantastic.

“We recognise its historical value and we want to be mindful of that when we restore the building. We will retain its period features. We’re not going to put a minaret up or anything like that, it’s needed as a space. Nothing will be added.

“We see ourselves as part of the fabric of the town. We’re all in Harrogate because we love Harrogate. We have a very diverse community of Muslims from Asia, Africa and England, but the nearest mosque is more than 15 miles away.

“It’s a rare vacant spot where there are no facilities for the community and it will easily handle our weekly needs.”

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Harrogate historian Malcolm Neesam told the Stray Ferret that the building has historical importance to Harrogate. It was originally the town’s second hospital from 1873 until 1883 before being used as Harrogate’s first custom-built Masonic Hall.

It was also where Harrogate’s Crimean War hero Sgt Major Robert Johnston died.

With the advent of the Second World War in 1939, the local Home Guard began using the building as a social club to relax with a drink and play snooker.

Since 1987, the ground floor has been used by various businesses including Sweet Tooth Munchies.

According to a letter from a former Home Guard club member that is contained within planning documents, the club was forced to disband and close the venue in 2015 because it did not have enough money to repair a leaking roof.

There have been two planning applications in recent years to demolish the building and build four flats in its place, but they were both withdrawn.

Harrogate Borough Council will make a decision on the latest planning application at a later date.

Harrogate’s former registry office demolished ahead of rebuild

A Victorian villa in Harrogate that was formerly a registry office and a Citizens Advice Bureau has been demolished.

Hornbeam Park Developments has planning permission to build new grade A offices on the site of Victoria Park House on Victoria Avenue.

The developer will rebuild the facade and some walls as part of the new building, which will include a two-storey extension.

It was previously owned by Harrogate Borough Council, which sold it for £1m in 2016 to help fund its move to new headquarters at Knapping Mount.

A report in 2017 said the building suffered from extensive subsidence, mould and was no longer fit-for-purpose.

Computer generated images of how the building will look.

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A plan to demolish the villa and replace it with a modern-looking office block, submitted later that year, received an objection from Historic England.

The public body said the building, which was built in 1864, “epitomises the special character and identity” of Harrogate. It said plans to demolish it would “strike at the heart” of what makes the town unique.

Plans to build this modern office block on the site were scrapped after objections.

Following this, the council said it would no longer support the application and the developer withdrew it.

New proposals, which retained the facade of the existing building, were approved in November 2018 by the council’s planning committee.

Ripon company awarded £106,000 contract for car park resurfacing

A company has been awarded a £106,000 contract to resurface Ripon’s biggest car park.

The Cathedral car park, on Victoria Grove, has 193 bays and sits in the view of the city’s cathedral.

A.E. Duffield & Sons Ltd, which is based in Ripon, will take on the work as part of a Harrogate Borough Council contract valued at £106,512.47.

The council said in its contract notice that the site has become worn and hazardous to members of the public.

It said:

“Over the years the current surface of the car park has become pot-holed, with large areas of loose tarmac resulting in trip hazards to members of the public, and claims for vehicle damage.”

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The contract is for a complete resurfacing of the car park, and to increase the number of parking spaces to 206, along with 10 disabled bays.

The council will also require the contractors to undertake trunking and ductwork in preparation for the installation of electric vehicle charging points.

A separate contract will be procured to install the charging points.

The work is due to start on January 17 and end on February 11, according to the company.

There have been calls by Ripon city councillors for the bays in the car park to be made wider.

Harrogate train line boost with extra service every hour

Northern has introduced an additional service on the Leeds, Harrogate and York line, meaning there will now be two trains every hour.

The train provider held a launch event yesterday at Knaresborough station, which is one of the stations to benefit from the extra capacity.

Representatives from North Yorkshire County Council and Harrogate Borough Council, York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership and Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones attended.

Network Rail carried out a £9.8 million upgrade of the signalling system and track layout to facilitate extra trains this time last year.

York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership secured £9.6m for the work from the government’s Local Growth Fund.

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Mr Jones said:

“This investment in local rail is much-needed and welcomed.

“The signalling upgrade and the improvement project will see more and faster services operating between Leeds, Harrogate and York.

“This is one more in a long list of improvements in our rail services which have seen more direct services to and from London and improved rolling stock on the local line.

“It is fantastic news that we have been able to double the capacity on this section of the line.”

North Yorkshire County Councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for access, said:

“This timetable improvement, which owes much to the county council’s £10m track and signals upgrade scheme of last year, complements our transport priority of improving east-west connectivity across the county and region.

“The enhanced timetable is another step towards encouraging people to use public transport rather than their cars. It also supports the visitor economy and anticipates growth in residential and commercial development along the A59 corridor.”

Pictured are: (left to right) Andrew Jones MP, David Dickson (chair of York and North Yorkshire LEP), Cllr Don Mackenzie (North Yorkshire County Council), Tony Baxter (Northern regional director) and Wallace Sampson (Chief Exec at Harrogate Borough Council).

Harrogate business groups call for Station Gateway to be revised

Three Harrogate business groups have called for the Harrogate Station Gateway scheme to be halted after the latest consultation found a majority was opposed to the scheme.

The results, published yesterday, revealed that of 1,320 people who replied to an online survey, 55% feel negatively towards the initiative, 39% feel positively and five per cent are neutral. One per cent said they didn’t know.

North Yorkshire County Council, which is leading on the scheme, is set to decide whether to proceed next month.

But a statement issued yesterday by the county council suggested it and Harrogate Borough Council, which is also behind the scheme, remain in favour.

A joint statement today from Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce, Harrogate Business Improvement District and Independent Harrogate, accused those behind the project of ignoring criticism and urged them to “put the brakes on”.

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The statement said:

“Despite concerns raised by businesses, the civic society and residents who will be directly affected by the proposed scheme, it’s full steam ahead.

“As we have said on many previous occasions that we welcome investment in the town centre and encourage active transport, and during the first round of consultation we put forward a number of alternative suggestions regarding the cycle lanes, James Street and the A61, which have been disregarded. Negative comments are also ignored.

“In the summer, we conducted our own poll, and the majority of those who responded were against reducing the A61 from Cheltenham Parade to Station Bridge to a single carriageway, and pedestrianising James Street.

“At last month’s Chamber meeting, an overwhelming number of those present were not in favour of the proposals.

“With covid having had such a massive impact on business, and our hospitality sector once again suffering due to the latest Omicron strain, can our town centre economy endure a further 12 months of disruption to deliver this project?

“We ask the county council to put the brakes on this scheme, take into account our views, and come back with a revised plan that the majority of business and the public will wholeheartedly support.”

What is the Harrogate Station Gateway?

The Harrogate scheme is one of three projects worth a combined £42m in Harrogate, Skipton and Selby funded by the Leeds City Region Transforming Cities Fund, which encourages cycling and walking.

They are being delivered in partnership by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council, Craven District Council and Selby District Council.

The Harrogate scheme aims to make the town centre more attractive and encourage cycling and walking.

The most contentious aspects are plans to reduce a section of Station Parade to single lane traffic, part-pedestrianise James Street and re-route some traffic off Cheltenham Parade into neighbouring streets.

If the scheme goes ahead, work will begin by the middle of next year.

Developer resubmits Hampsthwaite surgery conversion plan

A developer has resubmitted plans to convert a former Hampsthwaite doctors’ surgery into a house.

Dr Bannatyne and Partners, which was based at Winksey Cottage, High Street, in the village, closed in March.

The surgery was part of Church Avenue Medical Group and shut down after practitioners felt the cottage was no longer a viable place for a medical practice.

Harrogate Borough Council rejected previous plans last month on the grounds that the applicant had not demonstrated that the site had been empty for more than three months.

Now, Mozaffar Mari, the developer who bought the property, has resubmitted plans to the council to convert the building into a house.

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In its supporting statement, the developer said the property has been empty since February 26 when the practice managers ended services on the site.

It includes a letter from the surgery confirming its sale of the property to Mr Mari.

The developer added that the council had used “less reliable information from third parties” rather than its supporting statement when deciding to refuse the previous proposal.

It added that the building had been previously used as a house before becoming a surgery and could be “readily converted back” into a home.

The council will make a decision on the proposal at a later date.

‘No transport reasons’ to reject new Harrogate store, says Tesco

There are no “transport-related reasons” to turn down a new Tesco on Skipton Road in Harrogate, according to the developers.

The supermarket giant has lodged proposals to Harrogate Borough Council for a new store, five years after pulling out of a similar development.

It would be built on the former gasworks at New Park and would include a 38,795 square feet store and a petrol filling station.

Tesco has harboured ambitions for a new store in the town for almost 20 years. The retailer previously had plans approved in 2009, but pulled out after opposition from local traders.

Although many people have welcomed the prospect of a new supermarket in the north of Harrogate, some are concerned about the impact of extra traffic on what is already a busy area, plus access to the site.

Tesco has commissioned London-based consultants Markides Associates to produce a range of reports, including a transport assessment, to support its planning application.

The assessment says “extensive pre-application discussions have taken place with North Yorkshire County Council” about the application and says “the safety of the local road network will not be compromised”.

New roundabout

For access to the store, a new roundabout would be created on Skipton Road.

The assessment also pointed out that the development would align with North Yorkshire County Council’s scheme to widen Old Beck Bridge, which is to the east of the site.

According to the report, Tesco’s new store would “result in a decrease in the number of trips” to the site compared with its previous proposal, which was for a larger store.

The document says that the store would attract a total of 908 fewer car journeys on a weekday peak time and 522 on a weekend compared with its previous application.

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Under its original plans, which included a larger store, 1,303 journeys would be made during the week and 1,032 on a weekend.

The report said that the current plan would be “significantly lower” than the previous Tesco proposal.

It added:

“This transport assessment has demonstrated that the development proposals will result in a decrease in the number of trips generated by the site compared to the extant permission for the A1 Tesco superstore.”

Online shopping affects traffic

The report also claims that there is likely to be a decline in the number of trips to the store because of a “step change” in customers using online shopping.

It says the number of car journeys to supermarkets have reduced over the last 10 years, which has coincided with lower car parking demand.

Using national data on trips to food stores, Tesco says in its report there has been a “51% reduction for Friday evenings and 24% across Saturdays” on journeys to supermarkets. It said this shows a “clear reduction in vehicle trips generated by supermarkets”.

It claimed that the covid pandemic has also contributed to online demand at its own stores.

As a result, Tesco said it expects to see the trend continue into the future.

The report said:

“It is impossible to predict the long-term effects of covid-19 on people’s supermarket shopping choices.

“However, Tesco have experienced a step-change in the demand for online food shopping over the last eighteen months and it is anticipated that this growth is likely to continue into the future, which may result in even lower traffic generation than estimated.”

Car parking

Tesco has proposed that 181 car parking spaces, nine parent and toddler spaces, six electric vehicle charging points and 24 cycle spaces are created.

Twelve blue badge parking spaces would also be provided.

The developer has said in its assessment that the car parking proposed would be appropriate as the maximum number of spaces occupied it expects at any one time is 110 on a weekday and 166 on a weekend.

Markides Associates concluded in its report that it believes there is no reason to reject the proposal on transport grounds.

It said:

“Markides Associates are of the view that there are no transport-related reasons why the development proposals should not be supported.”

Harrogate council plans environment festival in new year

Harrogate Borough Council is planning to host a festival across the district in the new year to raise awareness of climate change.

The project, which has a working title of Winter Festival, looks set to take place in February 2022, according to a contract advertised by the authority.

The event is expected to involve street performance and art installations.

Stockport-based Maynineteen Ltd has been given the £50,000 contract to lead the project.

The events company has been tasked with coming up with ideas that “generate footfall and interest” in Harrogate, Ripon, Masham, Knaresborough, Pateley Bridge and Boroughbridge.

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A spokesperson for the council said more details on the event would be revealed in the new year.

The spokesperson added:

“The Winter Festival is a working title for a project which is likely to change. 

“The project aims to raise awareness of the global climate change and environmental issues we are all facing. It will involve art installations and street performances, for example, and we’ll have some exciting news in the new year.”

Council officials said the contract has been paid for through the government’s Welcome Back Fund, which was designed to “promote a safe environment for local trade and tourism, particularly in high streets as their economies reopen”.

In April, the government granted the borough council £144,714 as part of the fund.

Majority are negative towards Harrogate Station Gateway, consultation reveals

The majority of people feel negatively towards the £10.9 million Harrogate Station Gateway scheme, the latest consultation has revealed.

The results, published today, reveal that of 1,320 people who replied to an online survey, 55% feel negatively, 39% positively and five per cent neutral. One per cent said they didn’t know.

A decision on whether to proceed with the scheme looks set to be made next month.

Although most people do not support it, and there is the threat of legal action from businesses opposed to the scheme, the councils backing the scheme may decide to proceed.

Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, said a report would be sent to the council’s executive, probably next month, recommending what action to take.

But he said he was still to be persuaded that “an £11 million investment in the town centre needs to be turned away”.

Cllr Mackenzie said he didn’t envisage many changes if the scheme does proceed, although he suggested cycle storage and access to some businesses affected by the initiative could be amended.

He added the scheme acted on the wishes of the 2019 Harrogate Congestion Study, which 15,500 residents took part in and revealed strong support for better walking and cycling infrastructure, public transport and encouragement to leave cars at home when making short journeys and opposition to building a relief road.

The main concerns

This was the second round of consultation on the scheme, which aims to make the town centre more attractive and encourage cycling and walking.

The most contentious aspects are plans to reduce a section of Station Parade to single lane traffic, part-pedestrianise James Street and re-route some traffic off Cheltenham Parade into neighbouring streets.

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Don Mackenzie talking at the Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce meeting.

Many of those who responded positively to the consultation were motivated by benefits for walking and cycling, better use of public space and making the town centre a more attractive place for residents and visitors.

Most of those who responded negatively were concerned about the impact on traffic flows, congestion, air quality and local businesses, while some local householders expressed the view that vehicles would be diverted on to their residential streets.

Councillor Phil Ireland, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability, said:

“This scheme offers a fantastic opportunity to secure the largest investment in to Harrogate town centre for 30 years, revitalising the town centre for the benefit of residents, visitors and businesses and ensuring that it is sustainable and can respond to changing consumer demands and expectations.

“The feedback provided during the course of both public consultations is really important to ensuring that we get the best scheme possible and I am grateful to everyone who took the time to respond.”

The full report on the findings of the Harrogate consultation, which ran from 18 October to 12 November, can be read here.

What is the Harrogate Station Gateway?

The Harrogate scheme is one of three projects worth a combined £42m in Harrogate, Skipton and Selby funded by the Leeds City Region Transforming Cities Fund, which encourages cycling and walking.

They are being delivered in partnership by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council, Craven District Council and Selby District Council.

If the scheme goes ahead, work will begin by the middle of next year.

 

 

 

Council reveals Christmas and New Year bin collection times

Christmas and New Year bin collection dates have been announced by Harrogate Borough Council.

The new arrangements cover the period between December 20 and January 14 when residents’ rubbish and recycling will be collected on earlier or later dates depending on their usual slots.

There will be no collections on December 27 and 28, or January 3.

The festive period is a busy time for collection crews with more waste being produced than any other time of year.

A lot of this waste can be recycled or reused, so residents are being urged by the council to make an extra effort and recycle all that they can this Christmas and New Year.

Cllr Andy Paraskos, cabinet member for environment, waste reduction and recycling at the council, said:

“It may not be the number one priority for some residents during the festive period. But this year there will be changes to waste and recycling collections.

“Some collections will be earlier so I’d urge residents to check their waste and ensure it is presented before 7am on collection day.

“I’d also like to encourage residents to recycle as much as possible by checking what can and can’t be recycled.”

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Collections will be made on the following dates:

What can be recycled?

Collection crews don’t usually accept materials that won’t fit in a black box or blue bag, but they will take this extra recycling over the festive period.

Residents will need to sort these extra items in clear plastic bags so crews can see what is inside.

Items that can’t be recycled at the kerbside – including electrical items and toys – can be taken to one of the three household waste recycling centres in the Harrogate district.

The sites on Harrogate’s Wetherby Road and Penny Pot Lane, and Ripon’s Dallamires Crescent, will be open between 8.30am and 4pm everyday except Wednesdays, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

Anyone who is unsure about their usual collection dates should go to www.harrogate.gov.uk/inmyarea