Housing Archives - Page 26 of 48

Plan approved to convert former Ripon City Club into house

A plan to convert the former Ripon City Club into a house has been approved.

The club was initially built as the Jepson’s Hospital, a ‘Blue Coat’ school for poor boys in the city, before it closed in 1927.

It was then taken over by Ripon City Club, which occupied the building on Water Skellgate before it closed due to a dwindling membership in December 2019.

According to documents submitted to the council, the number of members at the club 20 years ago stood at 300. However, the figure dropped to just 11 by the start of 2019.

Now, Harrogate Borough Council has approved plans to convert the building into a three-bedroom house.

The proposal was tabled in January by Joplings Property Consultants on behalf of applicant Mr Jeet Sahi.

The developer said in its documents:

“The proposed change of use to a single residential dwelling is required by the applicant for him and his family to occupy.

“The previous use of the building is redundant, the proposed change of use to residential is in line with planning policies to meet the demand for new residential housing.”

The club will become the latest in the Harrogate district to be earmarked for housing following the demise of its membership.

Last month, the government rejected an appeal to convert the former National Reserve Club in Harrogate into flats.

Contamination concerns delay decision on 53-home Knox Lane site

A decision on plans for 53 homes in Harrogate has been delayed after concerns were raised that the site is likely to be contaminated by coal and tar spillages from a former railway track.

More than 300 residents objected to the Knox Lane plans and also paid for their own experts to assess the site, which was once part of a railway that transported carriages between gasworks and Bilton Junction.

An agent for the developers Jomast told a Harrogate Borough Council meeting today that the firm had carried out initial ground investigations and was committed to providing more information to council officers who had recommended approval.

However, councillors said they could not support the plans until they had seen the full investigation outcomes for themselves.

The proposed development

There were also further concerns over flooding, the discovery of badger setts, a lack of public transport connections and that the development of the site near Oak Beck could cause “ecological damage”.

Councillor Robert Windass, a Conservative who represents Boroughbridge, said much more work was needed on the proposals which he described as “wrong, wrong, wrong”. He said:

“I’ve heard nothing from the developers or our officers that would make me wish to support this application.

“Unless I feel the applicant has done a proper contamination assessment and got a full report when it comes back to this committee, I’m afraid I won’t be supportive.”

The plans first submitted in April 2020 initially included 73 homes, but this was reduced to 53 after local complaints.

Despite further changes, residents have continued to strongly oppose the development with a total of 313 objections and no letters of support being submitted to the council.

Residents’ concerns are so strong that they commissioned a toxicology specialist to examine the proposals.

Dr Damien Bowen told today’s meeting that he believed “extensive investigations” were needed due to the health and environmental risks of the likely presence of contamination. He said:

“While the potential land contamination is considered, concerns over polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), other toxic metals and their known adverse health effects cannot be dismissed.

“Humans may be exposed to PAHs in the air, water and food, and when such a site is distributed these compounds are distributed into the environment.”

The field earmarked for development.

Ward councillor Paul Haslam also argued that these concerns have not been taken seriously enough by the council, which he claimed had taken no notice of “compelling” evidence that the plans should not be approved. He said:

“The developer’s hands seemed to have been held throughout this process, whereas residents have been ignored.”

The proposals – which include 30 homes classed as affordable – will be brought back to another meeting of the council’s planning committee in the coming months.

Plan to build 48 homes in Masham submitted

Plans have been submitted to build 48 homes in Masham.

Loxley Homes, which is based in Leeds, has tabled the application which would see the houses built on land south of Swinton Lane.

A mixture of one, two, three and four-bedroom homes are included in the plans submitted to Harrogate Borough Council.

As part of the proposal, 19 of the houses would be allocated as affordable housing.

In documents submitted to the council, Loxley Homes said the development would help the authority to meet its housing need while also providing affordable housing.

It said:

“The development will provide additional ‘affordable’ homes for local people in housing need who would not otherwise be able to afford a home in this relatively expensive area.

“The development will provide a ‘mix’ of high quality and energy-efficient homes in a sustainable location.”

Harrogate Borough Council will make a decision on the scheme at a later date.

Hot Seat: the Harrogate man with ambitious plans for Castle Howard

Harrogate man Rod Findlay takes a minute out of each day to take stock of where he is — working with one of the best views of one of Britain’s finest stately homes, Castle Howard.

Breathtaking as the estate is, with more than 200 listed buildings and monuments set over around 8,800 acres, there is much to do to ensure Castle Howard retains its prestigious reputation for generations to come.

The estate, 15 miles north of York, has been home to the Howard family for 300 years and is rich in history. The Great Fire of 1940 devastated the building decades ago and, more recently, covid has proved hugely disruptive.

Castle Howard’s worldwide reputation, enhanced by its many screen appearances in films such as Brideshead Revisited, meant it relied heavily on international visitors, mainly from China, so covid restrictions hit visitor numbers dramatically.

With every cloud comes a silver lining, though. Covid also made people want to seek out local places of beauty they had previously taken for granted, and the challenge now is to capitalise on that.

Mr Findlay started his career in law before moving into leadership roles in sports such as rugby league, golf and cycling. His current role as chief operating officer and company secretary at Castle Howard presents numerous challenges. He said:

Rod Findlay enjoys nothing more than a walk with his dogs.

“It’s really varied. You know, one day you are talking about Santa Claus and the next day you are talking about the long-term strategic vision for Castle Howard.

“That is interesting to me. We have a really ambitious plan to turn the house around. In the last few years we have done some work to look at the heritage deficit here.

“To look at Castle Howard, it’s a beautiful house but it needs investment.

“The mausoleum on the outskirts of the estate needs £18 million, the house needs £50 million, the gatehouse needs £15 million.

“It is a 300-year-old house so it needs continual investment. This is a long-term vision and requires a major change in our approach as we won’t get that money by putting up the price of scones.”

More than a house

Profit from the estate is invested in areas such as reports, conservation and restoration.

Castle Howard posted a loss of £2.1 million in its 2020 financial year, but recorded a profit the following year of £5.7 million.

A major reason for that quick turnaround was £7.5 million in upwards property revaluation on Castle Howard’s investment property portfolio, which is made up of the estate, residential accommodation and the holiday park.

So if an opportunity arose to expand its property portfolio in areas identified for development in the Ryedale Local Plan, Castle Howard would be keen to get involved.

The estate has bid to develop four areas of its 8,800 acres, which is made up largely of farmland and woodland.

There is, Mr Findlay says, a severe need for housing in the area surrounding the estate:

“We have a waiting list to get into our properties of 180 people. So it’s clear there are a lot of people who want to live and work in the area but they can’t find those opportunities.

“So if we increase the housing stock there’s another benefit as we can invest that money back into the estate, which also benefits the local economy.

“The first job is to get these properties included in the local plan, as it is currently listed as farmland. Then we can start work with a developer to bring them to life.

“We are keen to keep some control over the look and feel of these properties while the developments need to be responsible and sustainable.”

Can Harrogate improve its events?

Mr Findlay, who is originally from Newcastle, moved to Harrogate in 2014.

He has always enjoyed living in the town but the open spaces of Valley Gardens, Crimple Valley and the Stray enhanced his appreciation during covid lockdowns.

Castle Howard is embracing new kinds of events.

Mr Findlay believes the town should embrace more larger events. He said:

“I do think those large events will drive people.

“We certainly have seen that at Castle Howard where, we have attracted visitors we perhaps otherwise wouldn’t get with events like Cafe Mambo, Duran Duran and the Chemical Brothers.

“This attracts a demographic we’re not necessarily seeing. Harrogate shouldn’t shy away from those events, even if the town had a mixed experience like with the UCI.

“People should remember the positive benefits of those large scale events and I feel we should be using our incredible public spaces to that end all year round, weather depending.”

What next for Castle Howard?

Building work began at Castle Howard in 1699 but it took more than 100 years to complete, spanning the lives of three earls.

The estate has seen a lot in that time. While Castle Howard works well as a visitor attraction with around 250,000 expected annually, it’s clear the leadership will not rest on its laurels.

Mr Findlay and his team work for the Howard family, specifically Nicholas Howard and Victoria Barnsley, who are heavily involved in the business and its direction. He said:

“The family wants to make sure this is a place welcoming visitors for many years to come. It’s that long term vision which is important, we are talking about developments we will never see.”

Christmas is coming to Castle Howard.

There are lots of reasons to visit Castle Howard this year with Stately Superstitions: Eerie Encounters at the Castle from October 21 to 31 and Into the Woods: A Fairytale Christmas from November 12 to January 2.

Harrogate estate agents sees renewed interest in self-build homes

This story is sponsored by Linley & Simpson.

A Harrogate estate agency has seen renewed interest in the number of people looking to follow the European trend and build their own home.

The new homes department at Linley & Simpson believes there is a growing appetite in the community to take advantage of this approach amid the cost of living crisis.

As a result, it has launched a new research project to pinpoint how big the interest is.

On the continent, around one-in-three homes are self or custom build – yet in England, the figure is less than 10%.

In Harrogate district, even fewer are following this trend with government statistics showing that just 95 planning permissions for serviced plots have been granted since ministers launched the Right to Build initiative in 2016.

The legislation was designed to address concerns about affordability, and make it easier for people who wanted to build or commission their own home.

David Waddington, director of new homes at Linley & Simpson, said the cost benefits of self-build, coupled with a greater choice of prime plots coming to the market across Harrogate district, has recently increased the appeal of buying and building a personalised home in this way.

He said:

“According to the National Custom and Self Build Association, England has the lowest proportion of self-build homes in the developed world.

“There are big differences in the popularity of self-build across the UK but we believe there is a growing appetite for the concept across the Harrogate district.

“Our aim is to try to identify the size of this hidden demand.

“Much of the interest is location driven – demand for property in Harrogate is high enough for people to choose this route in order to get their dream home in the right place.

“It’s also being spurred on by cost of living pressures and rising inflation as there are significant stamp duty savings with self-build, as you are only buying the value of the land and not a complete house.

“Plots are usually available in rural, semi-rural and suburban areas so there’s no shortage of choice. And roads, sewers and services will already be connected so it’s a real turnkey solution, ready for immediate use.”

Many neighbouring areas have seen far greater numbers of self-build projects – Hambleton, for example, has had 124 in the same timescale while further afield, Cherwell in Oxfordshire reports almost 6,000.

In 2021, more than 12,000 people joined the Right to Build registers, which helps aspiring custom and self-builders find plots – a year-on-year increase of 31%.

If you’re interested in self-build homes and want to find out more, contact Lucy Collinge at Linley and Simpson on lucy.collinge@linleyandsimpson.co.uk or call 01423 540054.

Business breakfast: Ripon firm invests £250,000 in robot laser welder

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal.

Econ Engineering has invested £250,000 in a new robot laser MIG welder for its Ripon manufacturing base.

The company, which makes more than eight out of 10 winter maintenance vehicles on UK roads, is using the innovative machine to turn out cut and welded ‘din plates’ — the mounting used to attach plough blades to the front of gritters.

Creating din plates is a labour-intensive process and by automating this method, Econ says its team of welders can now concentrate on more intricate but less time-consuming jobs.

Econ Engineering managing director Jonathan Lupton said:

“Our new robot, which has already become a valued addition to the welding section, is now undertaking the more mundane but time-consuming jobs, which is allowing the welders to perform more interesting tasks.

“It is a superb piece of kit, and watching it work is just incredible. Several of our staff are currently being trained in how to programme and operate it, and in time it will be able to perform different welding tasks.”

Estate agent Tim Waring joins GSC Grays

GSC Grays in Boroughbridge has welcomed housing expert Tim Waring to its team.

Mr Waring is a chartered surveyor and RICS registered valuer who has 30 years of experience working in the Yorkshire property market.

He will be based at the recently opened GSC Grays office in Boroughbridge and said he is relishing the challenge of a new role.

“I am delighted to be joining GSC Grays at an exciting time for the company as they continue to expand and grow and I am looking forward to being part of their journey.

“There is always going be, in a tough economic climate, a flight to quality and the prime residential property market in Yorkshire will continue to thrive. It remains a fact that quality always sells.”

Guy Coggrave, managing director at GSC Grays, added:

“We are thrilled to be adding Tim’s extensive skills and unrivalled experience to our new office at Boroughbridge. At GSC Grays, our mission is to bring extraordinary people together to deliver an outstanding service and the quality of our staff is the key to our success.”

Harrogate council says it can’t take action on complaints of ‘poisonous’ construction dust in Kingsley area

Fed-up residents living in one of Harrogate’s busiest areas for new housing have called a ban on open-top construction lorries – but the council says it has no powers to take action.

After years of disruptions from the building of 700 new homes, Kingsley residents last night called on Harrogate Borough Council to only allow sealed wagons in and out of the area, which has rapidly expanded in size and will continue to do so for years to come.

John Hansard, a member of Kingsley Ward Action Group, told a full council meeting that the authority had an obligation to protect residents from harm and that this has “fallen very far short of acceptable levels”.

He said:

“We are simply requesting that we are no longer poisoned by harmful and dangerous construction waste.”

However, Cllr Tim Myatt, cabinet member for planning at the council, said the authority did not have evidence that the dust was toxic and that a ban on open-top lorries could not be enforced.

He said:

“It is a highly unusual practice to require sealed containers to transport items to and from development sites.

“This can not be retrospectively imposed as a planning condition and neither residents or members of the planning committee asked for this to be conditioned at the time of the application.

“Further, the local highways authority has informed the borough council that they would not be able to mandate the use of sealed containers.

“They believe the use of such can only be required for certain processes such as the removal of radioactive material and asbestos.”

Cllr Myatt also said housing developers had repeated their offer to clean roads and pavements in the area, but this was “vociferously opposed” by residents.

Construction work in Kingsley began in 2019 and residents have long complained that not enough has been done to minimise disruptions to their daily lives.

There have also been complaints that improvements to roads, public transport, health services and community facilities have not kept up with the level of new housing in the area.

Around 700 new homes are already built or under construction, with hundreds more in the pipeline.

Mr Hansard told yesterday’s meeting that without action from the council, residents would continue to be left to “suffer the consequences”.

He said:

“These wagons have continually polluted Kingsley Road over a three year period, causing potential long-term serious illness for residents.

“We reluctantly understand that the road has to be used for access to the construction sites, but this must not be at the risk to the health of residents.”

Action to tackle Yorkshire Dales second homes receives ‘overwhelming support’

Further action to tackle rising amounts of second homes and holiday lets in the Yorkshire Dales National Park looks set to become part of a plan which will shape the area until 2040.

A meeting of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority today will consider responses to a consultation on its Local Plan, which features policies designed to increase housing for local residents.

The proposed policies come ahead of North Yorkshire County Council’s executive considering introducing a 100% council tax premium on second and empty homes in the Dales.

The North Yorkshire Rural Commission concluded last year that the shortage of affordable housing was among the greatest challenges to resolve.

An officer’s report to the park authority meeting states the consultation has confirmed “overwhelming support” for all new housing to be for permanent residents.

However, officers have highlighted some respondents had dubbed the measure too weak and had stated all new housing should be targeted at local need only, as permanent occupancy would still mean younger residents faced competition from retirees.

While community leaders say it is only fair people retiring from working a lifetime in the Dales, such as farmers, should be able to continue living in the area, concerns have also been raised that about 30% of national park residents are aged over 65, about double the national average.

The consultation has also found support for the authority attempting to get housing built on specific sites it has identified, as finding suitable land for housing in the national park has proved to be a major hurdle in developing affordable housing.

Views were split over whether requiring developers to provide up to 50% affordable housing on sites in certain areas of the park is achievable.

Ahead of the meeting, Upper Dales councillor and park authority member Yvonne Peacock said the current policy of restricting new housing to those with local connections often prevented “desperately needed new blood from coming in and working here”.

She said fostering the economic wellbeing of local communities was made a higher priority by the authority.

Cllr Peacock said:

“Having a policy restricting new homes to people who permanently live in them is a better policy as many of the barns that have been converted have ended up as holiday cottages.”

National park officers said the next stage of the Local Plan would see a consultation on the possible housing sites. The target is to provide sufficient land for 850 new homes between 2023 and 2040.

Officers are currently assessing and mapping potential sites and updating housing development boundaries around 100 settlements.

A list of potential sites and maps will be issued for public comment in the next few months.

Delayed decision on Knox Lane housing plans set for October

Councillors will now decide whether to approve plans to build 52 homes at Knox Lane on October 4.

The original date of September 13 was delayed following the Queen’s death.

Harrogate Borough Council postponed all council meetings that were due to take place this week as a mark of respect.

North East property developer Jomast wants to build the homes on a field off Knox Lane in what has been a controversial and long-running planning application.

Council officer Andy Hough has published a 30-page report for councillors that says the development should be given the green light once certain conditions are met and there being no objection from the local flood authority.

In his conclusion Mr Hough said:

“The site is located within a sustainable location for housing and has been designed in such a way that the layout takes into account the constraints of the site, whilst ensuring that it retains and builds upon the natural features of the site.”

The plans have faced fierce objections from local residents in Bilton.

To many living there, the fields on Knox Lane represent one of the last green spaces in the area.

At the time of publication, there have been 311 objections to the plans from residents and zero submissions of support.

Government rejects Harrogate working men’s club flats plan

The government has rejected plans to convert a former Harrogate working men’s club into flats.

The National Reserve Club, on East Parade, formally closed in July 2021 following a unanimous resolution by members. It was also known as ‘The Nash’.

The organisation had been registered as a working men’s club since July 11, 1913, when it was known as the Harrogate Battalion National Reserve of the West Riding of York Club.

ID Planning, which submitted a plan to convert the club into flats on behalf of Ashleigh and Caroline Wells, took Harrogate Borough Council to appeal after it refused its conversion plan in May this year.

The council said there was insufficient evidence that the building could no longer be used as a community facility.

But the developer said in a statement to the government that the reasons for rejection were “unfounded”.

It said:

“Based on the assessment provided, it is considered that the reasons for refusal of the planning application given by Harrogate Borough Council are unfounded and the proposed development accords with all relevant local and national planning policy.”

Robert Walker, a government planning inspector, said in a decision notice that he could not conclude that continued use of the site as a community facility would cause “planning problems”.

He said:

“I recognise that there are residential properties nearby, including flats in the appeal building.

“However, the appeal site is located close to the town centre in a mixed area on a busy street. It is not in a quiet residential area.

“Such a location and relationship to upper floor flats or other nearby residential properties is not unusual.

“Moreover, the former working men’s club operated on the site for a considerable number of years and no substantive evidence has been provided of problems from its past use.”

Mr Walker added that there had not been “sufficient evidence provided to justify the permanent loss of the existing community facility”.

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More than a house

Can Harrogate improve its events?

What next for Castle Howard?

If you’re interested in self-build homes and want to find out more, contact Lucy Collinge at Linley and Simpson on lucy.collinge@linleyandsimpson.co.uk or call 01423 540054.

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Estate agent Tim Waring joins GSC Grays

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