Developer to seek costs over Knox Lane housing appeal

A developer behind an appeal to build 53 homes on Knox Lane in Harrogate will seek costs from North Yorkshire Council.

Councillors on the authority’s Harrogate and Knaresborough planning committee rejected plans for the homes off the street in the Bilton area in September last year.

Teesside developer Jomast has appealed to the government’s Planning Inspectorate after it said the plans were recommended for approval by council officers on four separate occasions.

A public inquiry into the matter is due to be held on July 23 and is expected to last for five days. A venue is yet to be confirmed.

The Planning Inspectorate will then make a decision at a later date.

Knox Lane

Meanwhile, the developer has applied to be awarded costs as part of its appeal.

In documents submitted to the government, Patrick Stone, of planning agent Spawforths which is representing Jomast, said the authority “demonstrated unreasonable behaviour” during the planning process.

He said:

“The council acted unreasonably in overturning the professional judgement of the case officer that the application was assessed to be in line with local and national policies and recommended for approval.”

The move means the council could face high costs if it loses on appeal.

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The council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area planning committee rejected the application in September 2023.

A 45-page report by council case officer Andy Hough before the meeting said the application was “considered to now be in compliance with development plan policy” and should be approved.

But councillors cited concerns about land contamination and the lack of a travel plan to go against Mr Hough’s recommendation. The site is alongside a narrow cul-de-sac and not close to a bus route.

Cllr Paul Haslam, who represents Bilton and Nidd Gorge, spoke on behalf of residents at the meeting. He said:

“There have been over 500 objections to this application from residents. Not because they are ‘nimbys’, but because they believe the council is making a mistake.”

Two arrested after man stabbed in Harrogate

A man was stabbed in the Mayfield Grove area of Harrogate last night (May 12).

North Yorkshire Police said in a statement today it received reports that a man had suffered stab wounds just before 7.30pm last night.

The statement added:

“Officers attended and found a man had suffered an injury to his hand.

“A short time later two men were arrested in connection with the incident. A 27-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of robbery and a 32-year-old man was arrested for wounding with intent. Both currently remain in police custody.

“Following the incident, the victim received treatment in hospital for minor injuries.

Police reassured residents today by describing it as an “isolated incident”.

Superintendent Teresa Lam, senior commander for the Harrogate district, said:

“Thankfully incidents of this nature are extremely rare in Harrogate, and they will not be tolerated. An investigation is now underway to establish the full circumstances.

“I would like to stress that we are treating this as an isolated incident and do not believe that there is any ongoing wider threat to the general public.”

Mayfield Grove

Mayfield Grove

However, it is not the first serious incident in the Mayfield Grove area in recent years.

Vitalijus Koreiva, 37, was jailed at Leeds Crown Court in 2022 for murdering Gracijus Balciauskas in a flat on the road.

In the previous year Daniel Ainsley was sentenced to 22 years in prison for murdering 48-year-old Mark Wolsey at a bedsit on the road.

Police urged anyone with information about the latest incident or doorbell footage to call them on 101 and quote incident number 12240083406 or to contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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Harrogate business park could get 10 more units

Plans have been submitted for phase two of the Harrogate West Business Park which could see 10 industrial units constructed for businesses to rent.

The Burley Bank Road site is alongside Penny Pot Lane and is close to the Army Foundation College.

Teakwood Investments Ltd has already built several industrial buildings at the business park including the headquarters for Harrogate firm Envirovent which opened in 2022.

Designs by Harrogate-based SPX Architects show the 10 units would vary in size with the smallest being 307 square metres and the largest 2,908 square metres. They would all be between seven and nine metres tall.

In total, the units would create 12,535 square metres of commercial floor space.

The site would be accessed and exited through the existing industrial park estate road, Bardner Bank.

According to the plans, service yards have been designed with sufficient space for HGVs to turn.

A design and access statement attached to the application said the business park has a “very minor impact” on nearby roads.

However, so far one resident has objected to the proposals fearing congestion from vehicles and HGVs.

They said:

“Local residents rightly are unhappy as property/amenity values will reduce and Burley Bank Road will become a car and HGV rat run to the A59.”

North Yorkshire Council has also received several letters of support from businesses interested in taking up units at the site.

Yorkshire Flapjack said they currently operate from a unit at the business park and would be interested in expanding to a larger one.

They said:

“The speed at which the phase 1 development was taken up by 13 different businesses has been testament to the pent-up demand for this type of commercial propertiy in the town.”

North Yorkshire Council will decide on the plans at a later date.

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Business Breakfast: New partner appointed at Harrogate accountants

Harrogate accountancy firm Lithgow Perkins has promoted Stuart Abbott to partner.

Formerly the company’s trusts and tax manager, Mr Abbott will work alongside partner Joe Taylor on tax advice and planning for current and new clients.

Mr Taylor said:

“Stuart has outstanding knowledge and expertise in his specialist areas, and strong and trusted relationships with many of our clients. His promotion is thoroughly deserved.”

Local opticians recognised for sustainability

Bayfields Opticians and Audiologists has achieved net zero carbon status for its practices in Harrogate and Knaresborough after helping residents recycle their old eyewear and contact lenses.

The business was given the sustainability endorsement following an auditing by not-for-profit organisation Net Zero Eyecare.

Old glasses and cases, contact lenses, and packaging that cannot be disposed of in recycling bins at home can be recycled at each practice.

Megan Harper, sustainability manager at Bayfields, said:

“We’d urge anyone with an old pair of glasses to bring them into a practice and pop them in our recycling box to avoid them going into landfill and helping us contribute to a more sustainable future.”

Harrogate Chamber to focus on regeneration tonight

The May Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce meeting will be held tonight (May 13) from 5.30pm- to 8pm at Cedar Court Hotel.

This month’s meeting will commence with the AGM, followed by guest speakers, Julian Rudd, head of regeneration (south) for North Yorkshire Council and Stuart Holland and Paul Hatherley from Harrogate Civic Society on the subject of a neighbourhood plan for Harrogate.

Harrogate care home residents celebrate Cinco de Mayo

Granby Resident Brian and his partner with Mexican musician, Rafael

Residents at Granby Care Home in Harrogate had a Mexican-themed party to celebrate the Cinco de Mayo festival.

It was the first stop on their ‘Cruise Around the World’ armchair travel activity which will see residents at Brighterkind care homes, experiencing the culture of other countries.

The care home’s magic moments coordinator, Lydia Jackson, said:

“It’s been a very exciting first port of call on our world cruise, none of us had been to Mexico before, so everyone enjoyed experiencing the culture and loved the food.”

Have some news to share about your business? Send it to us at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk

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Felling Bishop Monkton topiary cockerel did not breach planning, council says

The felling of a giant topiary cockerel in a village between Harrogate and Ripon did not breach planning rules, North Yorkshire Council has said.

The 30ft hedge, which had been a feature of the village for generations, was felled in Bishop Monkton last month.

The 100-year-old hedge stood proudly in front of Cockerel Cottage and garnered local and national attention during its lifetime.

Its disappearance led to furore among villagers.

In a letter from the council, seen by the Stray Ferret, residents were last week told an investigation was launched into the felling following complaints of a potential breach of planning control.

But planning enforcement officer, Christopher Keddle, who wrote the letter, concluded “no breaches have taken place”.

Mr Keddle said after reviewing all the evidence, he found the cockerel was a hedge, rather than a tree, which “does not require consent from the council” to cut down.

He adds:

“Furthermore the council couldn’t prevent the owner from growing the cockerel shape out, even if the hedge was retained, we had no control whatsoever regarding the shape of the hedge.”

Mr Keddle also said one complainant had commented on the listed status of the property, adding:

“Finally, there has been comment regarding the listing of the property. Hedges, trees, flowers etc. are never included within the listing and therefore the hedge would not be protected.”

Mr Keddle said as there is “no breach” the case will be closed.

Bishop Monkton Today reported one villager who had complained was “unhappy” about the council’s findings, but added they had “no plans” to appeal.

The Stray Ferret reported on the felling at the time, as villagers were left horrified by the move.

Gary Cross, landlord of the Masons Arms in the village, said he knows the owners, who were not named, and understood the cockerel blocked light and became difficult to maintain.

He added:

“It was a pretty big object and attraction. Some residents are very upset about it. But they don’t have to live next to it.

“With the beck flooding, a lot of their garden was subject to flooding and it held pools of water, which was difficult to deal with. The owners have been there two or three years and tried to work with the cockerel but it had just become so big.”

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Readers’ Letters: Does North Yorkshire Council not know how a drain works?

Readers’ Letters 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.  

The following three letters are in response to the extreme flooding in Knaresborough earlier this week. Roads were under water, homes were flooded and residents evacuated. The council denied the conditions of the drains played a part, but some residents feel otherwise.  

Does North Yorkshire Council not know what a drain is and how they work?

I think the Stray Ferret should take a stand on behalf of all Knaresborough folk and demand that they do something about it.

I live up Ripley Road and can tell you that the drains on High and Low Bond End and Ripley Road haven’t been cleaned out properly for at least 30 years.

Steve Newbould, Knaresborough

Here on Hambleton Close we had a near miss – although both our neighbours took on water.

I have consistently notified North Yorkshire County Council (that was) about the state of drainage in Knaresborough. Each time I receive hollow words of acknowledgement, but nothing is done.

The autumn leaf-fall and the failure to sweep the roads only added to this catastrophe.

What do we pay our council tax for?

Ralph Thrower, Knaresborough

We have reported the blocked drains for years and no works seems to have been done.

Last week we were down to one working drain on our street and we directly reported it to the council.

We have issues with Waterside becoming a river even with normal levels of rainfall.

We warned the council numerous times it would flood, as the water has nowhere else to go other than through the houses.

Mark Johnson, Knaresborough

Maybe Keane Duncan’s defeat means he will ‘finally fix our roads’

This story follows the York and North Yorkshire mayoral election last week. Labour’s David Skaith took home the crown, leaving Tory councillor Keane Duncan defeated.

Thank goodness for the mayoral result, which hopefully now means we are also done with Mr Keane’s tedious photo opportunities (hopefully!).

For months he’s courted the camera and delivered on little else. Even the well-hyped ‘100 days in Peggy’ went suspiciously quiet.

Maybe now he can finally concentrate on the job he has, including fixing our roads for starters.

He might want to take Peggy for a drive down Pannal Ash Road and sample the disgraceful state of a public highway.

Simon Ewing, 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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Harrogate disability charity launches accessible walking route packs

A Harrogate disability charity has launched a range of accessible route packs to help more people to access the outdoors.

Open Country has produced a range of ‘breakfree’ packs offering inspiration on great places to walk, wheel, stroll, or cycle, covering the Harrogate district.

The charity helps people with disabilities to access the countryside. It offers daily activities for disabled people, including walks, conservation projects, allotment clubs, tandems clubs and adventure clubs.

The packs have been launched to celebrate National Walking Month, which takes place in May.

The Harrogate routes include the Beryl Burton cycleway, Staveley Nature Reserve, Pateley Bridge Glasshouses and the Valley Gardens.

A spokesperson for Open Country said:

“The free packs have been specially developed with wheelchair users in mind, but they could also support anyone who might struggle with exercise, limited mobility or even families with pushchairs.”

“Each trail features clear, colour maps for each location, with all the information needed to help plan a trip out, including access to facilities and points of interest.”

Open Country walks

The ‘breakfree packs’ also cover Leeds, Wakefield, Wharfedale and York. A range of audio walks are also available on the Open Country website or on their YouTube channel, so that people can enjoy fully descriptive walks from the comfort of their own home.

The charity also provides advice for landowners and organisations on accessibility issues through its Countryside Advice Service.

Packs are available to download here or the charity can to deliver or post packs in bulk to organisations. To request packs contact community@opencountry.org

An available breakfree map from Open Country, the Beryl Burton cycleway

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Photo of the week: sunrise over Harlow Carr

This week’s photograph was taken by Julie Addyman, capturing  the sun rising over Harlow Carr.

Photo of the Week takes centre stage in our new-look nightly email newsletter. The newsletter drops into your inbox every evening at 6pm with all the day’s stories and more. To subscribe, click here.

(Image: Julie Addyman)

Photo of the Week celebrates the Harrogate district. It could be anything from family life to capturing the district’s beauty. We are interested in amateur and professional photographs, in a landscape format.

Send your photographs to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk for a chance to be featured next week. We reserve the right to adjust and crop images to fit into our format.

Controversy over taxi fare rise in North Yorkshire

Taxi passengers in North Yorkshire are facing having to pay five per cent more per mile in the face of appeals to increase and lower maximum permitted fares across the county.

North Yorkshire Council’s executive agreed to the daytime rates rise, extending night-time rates time to eight hours from 10pm and increasing the maximum call-out charge from £1 to £1.50 after hearing taxi drivers were divided over the rates which should be charged.

If the move is not contested, day-time taxis will be able to charge £4 for the first quarter mile and 20p for every extra quarter mile or 35 seconds of waiting time.

Ripon cabbie Richard Fieldman told the leading councillors the 70 drivers from Whitby to Harrogate he represented were opposed to the proposals.

He said:

“What you see before you today is totally unacceptable for those that work nights and the unsocial Christmas period. The proposal gives no increase to those working these hours which less and less drivers are prepared to work these days.”

The meeting was told one of the proposed changes, to start higher rates from 10pm rather than 11pm, would have a minimal impact on night-time drivers.

He added:

“It is ironic that officers recognise that drivers need rewarding for late-night unsocial hours with abusive, alcohol and drug-fuelled customers, yet are failing to provide them with the same increase as the day-time drivers.”

Mr Fieldman said the £1 per mile call-out charge had remained the same for many years and when combined with higher fuel costs had become “unviable in a vast rural county” to travel significant distances to pick up passengers who only wanted to go a few miles.

The meeting heard drivers were refusing to do these types of journey, leaving some passengers unable to get home. In addition, areas such as Northallerton, Thirsk, Ripon and Skipton had serious shortages of drivers working unsocial hours and the proposals would ensure even less cover.

Ripon councillor Barbara Brodigan told the meeting recent changes in Barnsley similar to the North Yorkshire proposals had led to too few or no taxis being available during holiday periods and at night-time.

However, Cllr Kevin Foster, who represents Colburn, an area with amongst the highest levels of deprivation in the county, said he received a lot of complaints over the cost of taxi fares.

He said the public needed to be made aware taxis did not have to charge the maximum permitted fares.

Several executive members said they felt the proposals represented a reasonable compromise.

While the fare increase will be subject to consultation if anyone objects, managing our environment executive member Councilor Greg White said some people had called for the maximum charges to be lowered to make North Yorkshire more competitive with nearby areas.

He said a three-mile trip in Barnsley would cost £8.90, but in North Yorkshire it would be £14.98.

A report to the meeting showed while a 20-mile night-time journey in North Yorkshire would cost £68.67, in Bradford passengers would be charged £42.40, in Leeds and £49.45 in East Riding.

Cllr White said:

“We are already more expensive than Bradford, Durham, East Riding, Lancaster, Leeds, Redcar and Cleveland and York. So I’m really keen that we don’t get to the situation where we do an injustice to the people who use the taxi service by making those taxis become unaffordable.”

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Harrogate residents react to road reopening

A week ago, traffic started flowing again on a road in Harrogate that had been blocked for 18 months.

Bogs Lane and Kingsley Road together form a horseshoe shape off the A59 Knaresborough Road. The bridge where they meet was closed to facilitate one of the many new housing developments in the area.

The route serves thousands of residents and is also used as a rat run or cut through to avoid the A59. Emergency vehicles travel along it when the barrier at Starbeck level crossing is down.

So are residents pleased to see the road fully back in use or did they prefer living in a quieter neighbourhood?

The Stray Ferret talked to residents this week and visited the site to speak to councillor Chris Aldred, a Liberal Democrat who represents High Harrogate and Kingsley on North Yorkshire Council.

The road closure has ended.

Cllr Aldred said most residents he’d spoken to — particularly those in the new developments — appeared happy to have the full use of the road back.

When we met, a woman who lives in Barratt Homes’ Kingsley Meadows passed by and said she often drove to Knaresborough and unblocking the road had saved a lengthy detour.

Claire Mortimer, whose salon The Nail Garden is attached to her home in Kingsley, supported the re-opening. She said:

“The closure has been hard for my business as I have clients that travel far so it’s been annoying they’ve had to go the long way for so long.”

Kevin Francis agreed, saying he moved to the area in 2019 because of its “great links to other areas”, adding:

“Bogs Lane being closed has had a real impact on our day-to-day lives.

“Working to the east of Starbeck we had been shunted onto the High Street and spent many an hour clogging up the A59.”

Daniel Jefferson said the road “provides an important additional link around Starbeck”.

He added:

“Since the temporary closure of Bogs Lane I’ve felt like we’ve seen a significant increase in traffic congestion both exiting Kingsley Road and through Starbeck which I also believe has contributed in additional road traffic accidents occurring along these routes, significant increase emissions and congestion.”

‘More speeding cars’

But Nicola Woods is among those who have the opposite view. She said the reopening encouraged speeding motorists with little respect for the many cyclists and horse riders that used the road, adding:

“At times it is tricky getting in and out of my driveway which is again caused by the speed of some vehicles coming round the bend near Hillbank Road, I have had some near misses.

“The past few months whilst the road has been shut I have seen an increase in people walking and cycling down Bogs Lane. It will be interesting to see what affect the re-opening of the road has on this.”

Tim Redshaw said Bogs Lane was an unclassified road that could not sustain the increased volume of traffic. He said:

“Having lived in Starbeck most of my life l’ve seen how the traffic flows have changed, and the negative effects it’s creating. To keep building on the green belt land we till recently held so dear is a very big mistake.”

New footpath

The new footpath

The road re-opening is not the only change. New traffic lights have been installed near the entrance to Redrow’s Kingsley Manor development and a footpath has been created alongside it towards Bogs Lane to make walking safer.

Darren Long, whose family lives on Kingsley Road, said he didn’t understand why traffic from the Redrow site is now forced to turn right onto Kingsley Road.

“It’s a very odd decision. On a daily basis, we see residents turning around in the Barratts junction to go back over Bogs Lane way. It totally baffles me.”

Mr Long also called for traffic calming measures on Kingsley Road “as the speed of the traffic on here from some rat runners and residents is absolutely frightening”. He added:

“We’re regularly overlooked in this area and it’ll unfortunately take a fatality for the council to act on this I suspect.”

The road closed to allow Redrow to work on its Kingsley Manor development.

Cllr Aldred said the new footpath and road surface looked good but the old crumbling footpath across the bridge needed upgrading. He added:

“I’m going to ask for that to be done, as the new footpath makes it look terrible.  Highways also need to do something about the potholes on the approach from Kingsley Drive — they are awful.”

He added he suspected not everyone had realised yet the road had reopened, and the volume of traffic could increase in the weeks ahead.

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