Letters Archives - Page 8 of 9

Letter: ‘Empty homes are in places where people don’t want to live’

This letter was sent to the Stray Ferret by Russell Davidson, a well-known Harrogate lawyer and former board member of Bradford and Northern Housing Association, in response to an article by Alex Goldstein in the Stray Ferret on empty homes last weekend.

Dear Editor,

Having read Alex Goldstein’s article some facts need correcting. The majority of empty homes in the UK are substandard and in places where people simply do not want to live. A small number are high value homes owned by overseas investors which are rarely occupied yet unaffordable to most people.

I used to sit on the board of one of the largest housing associations. We had empty homes that we had to get rid of because they were situated in areas where there were poor job opportunities or, simply, decaying inner cities. In one area, we built a brand new housing estate on local authority land. Unfortunately the local authority insisted on tenant nomination rights and decanted its worst council house tenants into that brand-new estate. Six families made life hell for everybody else, and so everybody else moved away. We ended up demolishing the entire new estate.

As far as Harrogate is concerned, it is misleading to point to over 2000 empty houses in the area (many of which are high value) and make a case that somehow dealing with that is going to solve the pressure to live in Harrogate, much of that pressure being directed towards less valuable three bedroom houses anyway. It would involve the council starting proceedings to compulsorily purchase those homes, a process which the council simply could not afford. Moreover, a large number of those houses are empty for a reason, such as pending probate issues.

As well as too many empty homes being in the ‘wrong’ areas, another issue is the structural tilt of the development market towards the 12 largest construction companies, some of which outbid the small builders on residential development sites. That tilt is getting worse because of the huge rise in the cost of building materials and labour shortages.

The government agency in charge of this issue, Homes England, needs to be a lot more radical in its thinking.

Regards

Russell Davidson

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.

Stray Views: Why my friends won’t be returning to drunken Harrogate

Stray Views 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. See below for details on how to contribute.

Why my friends won’t be returning to Harrogate

Friends from Ilkley and Harpenden in Hertfordshire visited Harrogate today. They were totally horrified by the anti-social behaviour of the drunks by the war memorial on their way to Bettys and the art galleries in Montpellier and beyond.

They will not be back in a hurry and will undoubtedly tell all their friends that Harrogate is incapable of keeping the down-and-outs away from our major tourist attractions and that Harrogate is no longer the “nice” town of its historic reputation.

Should Harrogate care? These friends are wealthy retired folk with money to spend who were intending to visit the Sutcliffe Galleries, the Walker Galleries and the lovely new Watermark Gallery.Can I ask in total desperation, what will it take for our increasingly woke and insular council and its placid police force to understand the damage that is being done to the image, attractiveness and financial well-being of our town from their inability to deal with this very simple-to-solve problem and urge them to prevent a potentially irreversible reputation decline for our lovely town?

Tim Emmott, Harrogate

Station Gateway: economic concerns need addressing

Independent Harrogate, which represents more than 180 businesses. supports the proposed ‘Station Gateway‘ in general but we do have some serious concerns that it might have a negative impact on the local economy.

The scheme fails to address the need for park and ride schemes, a large number of electric car charging points and extensive safe cycling routes away from traffic that link with low-traffic neighbourhoods, therefore reducing congestion and in turn reducing carbon emissions.

And, to prevent congestion and an increase in carbon emissions, Station Parade must retain its two lanes, with enhanced cycling facilities reserved for East Parade.

We support James Street remaining fully open whilst supporting the narrowing at its junction with Station Parade to aid pedestrians crossing the road.

We urge North Yorkshire County Council to meet groups to discuss the finer details of the proposals.

William Woods, Independent Harrogate

Why is Kex Gill work taking so long?

Given that it is now more than two years since the Kex Gill route was finalised and finance was put in place, it is staggering that North Yorkshire County Council is now warning the scheme could be delayed because it hasn’t bothered to secure the land, in precisely the same way no one thought to consult the Duchy of Lancaster regarding the much-delayed Otley Road cycle path. Do they never learn?

David Howarth, Harrogate

Stray Views: Don’t blame dog mess on long grass

Don’t blame dog mess on long grass

May I respectfully suggest that long grass is not the reason for dog fouling. It is due to irresponsible dog owners breaking the law.

Nigel Heptinstall, Darley

Rossett School is fantastic!

So often the press around schools and education is negative. I just thought I’d like to highlight the fantastic reception my daughter has had at Rossett School since she started there in September 2020.

Written off by her previous school as not academic, she came to the school quite depressed about life. Life at Rossett has utterly changed her into a hard-working girl with an array of options ahead of her.

This is a remarkable turnaround and the school should be applauded for taking in a pupil who had such a low opinion of herself and turned it around inside an academic year. The teaching has been fantastic during a very challenging time for educators and pupils alike. Thank you, Rossett!

Nick Bentley, Harrogate

These bins are a menace

I read the letter from Mr Angus Turner ‘Do something about these awful bins’ on Princes Street with interest.

There is another location in Harrogate where planning permission for a bar was granted subject to the provision of refuse storage within the premises. The proprietor did not abide by this condition and locates his commercial refuse bins permanently on a public footpath. Harrogate Borough Council has stated quite clearly there is nothing it can do to stop this eyesore and danger to the public.

When questioned about the danger to the public by blocking a footpath the response was that there is another footpath on the other side of the road. When asked if the other footpath was similarly blocked what action they would take – to which, surprisingly, there was no reply.

North Yorkshire County Council highways department has also clearly stated this situation has nothing to do with it.

Graham Hope, Harrogate

Stray Views: Noisy cars are a blight on Harrogate life

Time for a Harrogate museum?

Having read some articles by Harrogate historian Malcolm Neeson, recently published by the Stray Ferret, I was reflecting on how many historical exhibits there must be in and around Harrogate, which are in storage possibly.

As the town centre is now changing following the pandemic, there are lots of empty properties available.

Could now be the time for Harrogate to celebrate its history by creating a museum? This might complement the excellent Royal Pump Room Museum and enhance the historic walks in Harrogate in the future.

Jane Malster, Harrogate

Vaccinated people should not have to pay for covid tests when we go abroad

I can not get my head around the fact we have had second covid injections but when we go on holiday we have to pay for a test.

We have to pay nearly £100 to test before we go into a country and the same amount again when we come back. Now we have had second injections we still have to wear masks and test. It’s puzzling a lot of people. I thought the vaccine would be the end of it.

If it isn’t, why put everyone through the injection? Fully vaccinated people should not have to pay to do a test. It’s wrong and costs a lot of money, especially if there are a few adults in the family.

Diana Pollitt, Harrogate

Noisy car exhausts blight Harrogate life

We have recently moved to Harrogate from the south to live and really like it here.

We live in the Granby area near the Skipton Road and there is one aspect of the traffic that troubles us and that is cars that have very noisy exhausts, which I assume have been modified.

They accelerate up to or after the traffic lights and presumably carry on like this wherever there is a stretch of open road around Harrogate.

They are a blight on this beautiful town; both the loud noise and associated extra pollution they cause when they accelerate.

Is it legal for these vehicles to have this capacity to make this extra loud noise? I know some cities in Europe are addressing this problem with noise detectors that work similar to speed cameras.

Linda Loy, Harrogate

Stray Views: recycling rules make recycling difficult

Malcolm’s history walks are a real treat

How fortunate we are to have local historian, Malcolm Neesam, who is so interested in the history of Harrogate that we can all enjoy two virtual walks with his knowledge of the town.

The walks are beautifully set up on the best website I have seen with maps, photos and information clearly displayed. A real treat!

Thank you, Malcolm!

Audrey Culling, Nidderdale

Recycling rules don’t make recycling easy

I queued to get into a recycling depot with a fridge in a trailer. No trailers were allowed but I managed to get rid of it anyway.

Maybe I just fell foul of a rule that has been in place for a while, but I wonder how North Yorkshire County Council expects people to get rid of bulky items, which either won’t fit n a small car or are too dirty. Garden clippings, for example, which are too numerous for the fortnightly garden waste collection or too wet and leafy to decently burn yet will go into the large recycling skips.

Trivial but infuriating.

Pete Dennis, Harrogate

We are lucky to have birdsong – do your bit to keep it going

Many of us living in or around towns such as Harrogate and Wetherby and surrounding villages may not realise just how lucky we are to still have nesting and breeding swallows, house martins and swifts.

Unfortunately, they are all suffering declining numbers. These birds are nest site faithful, returning year after year. Swifts actually live in colonies that will have taken years to build.

This all means that if their nests or nest holes and crevices are knocked down or blocked up, it can be the end for them as there is often nowhere else to go.

So this is a plea to everyone to help look after these birds: keep the sounds of summer going by helping to keep Yorkshire skies full of the happy chittering and screams of these birds: help by keeping their old nests and put up more swallow/house martin nest cups and swift boxes if you possibly can.

Friedy Luther, Spofforth

Stray Views: one-way proposals spark safety concerns in the Saints

One-way traffic safety concerns

I fully support the changes specific to Oatlands Road, including the 20mph speed limit, double yellow lines along the Stray and additional safety crossings that will improve the safety of pedestrians and cyclists. But I am really not sure if speed bumps help. Experience in St Winifred’s Road shows that people tend to accelerate between them.

However, I do not support the introduction of one-way controls at St Winifred’s Road and St Hilda’s Road.

Under this proposal, all traffic from Oatlands wishing to enter St Hilda’s Road, St Catherine’s Road and St Ronan’s Road (about 180 properties) must travel down St Winifred’s Road or approach along St Catherine’s, St Hilda’s or St Leonard’s roads from Hookstone or from Wetherby Road at St Winifred’s Avenue where there is already a real pinch point.

Traffic will still be allowed to enter St Winifred’s Road from St Winifred’s Avenue but not allowed to exit onto Oatlands. This means any delivery drivers and visitors will have to do a three-point turn. Refuse collections will need to be re-routed.

From 8.30am every morning there is only single file traffic for the full length of St Winifred’s Road due to parking on both sides of the road by Harrogate hospital workers.

Cyclists most certainly will not have a safe passage from St Winifred’s Avenue to Oatlands, having to cycle against one-way traffic and three-point turns.

I have tried to envisage what will happen at school drop-off and pick-up time. Many driveways at the Oatlands end of St Winifred’s Road are already blocked by cars waiting to pick up children. Imagine delivery and other drivers having to turn around in these circumstances with many schoolchildren passing on the pavements.

There are real safety and environmental concerns raised by the one-way proposal and surely an in-depth and professional study should be undertaken before this proposal progresses further.

David Leah, St Winifred’s Road, Harrogate

Bilton’s iron bridge was once wooden

I just have to write a small note for those of us who are now quite elderly and who lived in Bilton in their youth. What you now call the iron bridge was known as the wooden bridge as it was, of course, made of wood. It was not dark and gloomy but light and airy and a wonderful place to stand and spot trains!

On another note, thank you for the Stray Ferret. I live in the United States and miss my dear Yorkshire and Harrogate in particular very much so my daily dose of local news brings me great comfort.

Bridgett Parrette, United States

Harrogate needs wardens

As a resident of Harrogate I would love to see some wardens dedicated to keeping the town and park areas free of unsociable behaviour, unsuitable clothing for town wear and littering.
What are the chances of you taking up the cause?

Linda Shackleton, Harrogate

Stray Views: Don’t turn the Stray into a beer garden

Don’t let the Stray become an uncontrolled beer garden

I am aware Harrogate Borough Council has said (subject to feedback from the Duchy of Lancaster) consideration is being given as to whether hospitality businesses can use limited parts of the Stray.

Whatever the proposal is, I object most strongly. When this was allowed last summer it was a most unpleasant experience having to battle your way through groups of people obviously influenced by alcohol.

The area of the Stray in question on Montpellier Parade looked a disgrace and gave the wrong impression of Harrogate. We do not want a proliferation of tables and chairs all over Montpelier Stray or indeed any part of West Park Stray.

Will the free and unhindered use and access to those parts of the Stray still be allowed for all and not just restricted to customers frequenting those particular outlets? And what about those that cannot expand onto the Stray?

The council should honour and uphold the purpose of the Stray Act. If it is ignored this time then it will inevitably happen again, which will open up a can of worms. Why should some hospitality outlets be treated differently to others who do not have such opportunities?

The Stray Act is in place for a good reason to safeguard the Stray against encroachment from all quarters. It protects and limits the use of the Stray so that it remains an intrinsic and a unique asset of community value for the benefit of the town and its visitors as a whole.

It is not for commercial exploitation and benefit by a limited few, especially as some uncontrolled beer garden.

What is the point of a law if it is broken when it becomes inconvenient to an individual or certain parties, including local authorities?

Why is the council therefore seeking a consultation on the interpretation of a law which is already in place? Is the council, as custodian of the Stray, incapable of making such a management decision?

Barry Adams, Harrogate

Consider making Parliament Street in Harrogate two-way

As a transport and distribution professional of over 50 years experience, it is obvious that one traffic lane on Station Road is going to massively slow traffic on this major Harrogate throughway. Two lanes are vital and an ageing population is hardly likely to be encouraged to bike to and through the town.

The problems will not be solvable until another way through the centre is opened up and perhaps looking at making Parliament Street two-way should at least be considered. With Debenhams going it is no longer the main street in Harrogate and two-way traffic would be the cheapest of all solutions.

Brian Hicks, Pateley Bridge

Councillor’s ‘wild’ covid death claims are inaccurate

Regarding the wild claims by this councillor, based on his experience as a funeral director:

1 Does he not know that the excess death figure is a verifiable guide as to how many deaths were from covid, not only for the UK but for every country in the world that records those statistics [most of them]?

2 There may be more — because influenza hospitalisations have dropped dramatically — as well as other illnesses. Hence associated deaths will have dropped.

3 Car accident deaths are very likely to have dropped because of months of lockdown.

Therefore the figure is likely to be actually more than the excess death rate.

Teresa Liddell Shepherd, Harrogate

Got 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.

Stray Views: Harrogate’s army college brings discipline and opportunities

Harrogate’s Army Foundation College saves young people

I used to work at the Army Foundation College in Harrogate. People need educating on what takes place there. Some of these children don’t have great home lives, some want to make a career for themselves and do them and their families proud.

Education there is fab and does the world of good for the students that hated school and gives them a second chance. They leave there and go to phase two. Not one of them would go from there to a war zone!

I’m so glad people saw sense and kept it going as some of the junior soldiers may have gone down the wrong path without being able to join up. It creates a sense of achievement being able to join up at a young age, the proof is in the amount that join and stay in.

It’s a college with extra fitness and a little more discipline, what’s wrong with that?

Mrs Smith, Harrogate

Network Rail has questions to answer about tree felling

Your journalist reports that ‘some trees have been felled’ at Hornbeam Park. As a Harrogate resident living on Tewit Well Road, I want to report that all the trees have been felled. Tell it as it is, please.

We now have a situation where residents are having to prevent some of the young people of Harrogate putting themselves at risk and using this newly cleared area for their own purposes. When the line had mature trees, we may have the occasional leaf on the line, but we certainly didn’t have youngsters jumping over to sunbath, party etc.

I’m afraid Network Rail has a lot to answer for here. A poor ecological management decision has left local residents policing an area that was once a mature habitat for local wildlife.

Who was the ecologist who advised Network Rail? Are they not accountable for the habitat decimation that we have been left with? How can they say anything other than recovery will take years? Is Network Rail pleased with the result?’

Not impressed.

Charlie McCarthy
Local resident

Questions that need answering about Beech Grove

As a resident and local business owner of 11 years, I and many others strongly believe the Low Traffic Neighbourhood experiment on Beech Grove creates more congestion, longer car journey times and increased carbon emissions on surrounding roads.

Otley Road currently has major road works and the planned 20-week cycle lane construction will cause further disruption and congestion.

There are many unanswered questions for North Yorkshire County Council:

What is the overall aim of this Low Traffic Neighbourhood?
In the latest council meeting we were told that the cycling groups are being consulted to make these decisions. Why are the cycling groups being consulted and the residents and businesses, who pay taxes and rates, not consulted?
How do you measure success or failure?
What data are you collecting and where from?
Which company are you using to analyse this?
Did you count how many cyclists and motorists use the roads, before you closed them?
Is information collected during the same months of the year, so you can directly compare activity in all seasons and weather?
Is it the best time to do this during a lockdown?
Why did NYCC approve all the housing developments, each with 2-3 cars, when 84% of people expressed that Harrogate was congested in the 2019 survey?
What’s the projection of people who will swap their cars for bikes and what is this based on?
Far more people walk than cycle and yet the pavements are shocking, they are left for months after the Autumn leaves fall without being cleared and go untreated in ice and snow. How does this encourage people to walk?
Where is the evidence that there is an appetite for more cycling?

I have spoken to many residents and businesses and cars are critical for the school run, appointments, visiting relatives, holidays, tourism but, most importantly, to access businesses.

Cars are the lifeblood of many businesses and thousands of jobs depend on them. Banning them cannot be the only solution.

Lucy Gardiner, Harrogate Residents Association

Why is government spending so much on roads?

Why does this article about cuts to rural roadworks contrast that with the funding provided for the Station Gateway and active travel schemes?

It looks to me like it’s deliberately giving the impression that the former is being sacrificed in order to pay for the latter, which is completely untrue. The two things have nothing to do with each other.

I suggest it would be altogether more relevant to point out the government is spending over £27 billion on new roads, which will increase car use, development, destruction of the countryside and pollution (to which electric cars are at best a partial solution) while allowing our existing road network to fall into an ever worse state of disrepair.

Malcolm Margolis

Rossett, Harrogate

Stray Views: Harrogate needs to embrace traffic-reduction schemes

We must accept plans that reduce car use

Of course the Station Gateway plans for Harrogate will cause some traffic congestion, but how else do we move towards less use of the car?

As the population increases we cannot continue with today’s use of cars. The roads are not big enough, the car parks are full, and we have global warming threatening to melt the polar ice and flood many parts of the UK.

So I welcome a ‘one lane’ Station Parade with paving and plants and space to sit and chat. We need to make changes to make using a car less desirable. That’s why petrol and diesel are heavily taxed, and that tax needs to be increased.

We need to travel less, work nearer to home, work from home, shop nearer to home, go on holiday nearer to home. And when we need to travel, we will use walking, cycling, buses and trains. This is why some of the proposed changes today encourage cycling and do not cater for increased numbers of cars.

The change won’t happen overnight, and us older people might still use cars most of the time. The car will still have a place, but the car must not continue to dominate. It is interesting that my two grandchildren are in no hurry to learn to drive. They are both old enough to drive and have been passengers in cars all of their lives, but it seems they have a different view on things.

Andrew Willoughby, Knaresborough

Litter blights our beautiful Stray

The Stray is looking better and better now. But there is an amount of rubbish lying around, especially beside the green huts.

Could there not be a bin next to these huts? Also, why are some of the bins placed side by side, next to each other, leaving large areas on the Stray with no facilities at all?

And we older people would welcome more seats around the Stray, as well, please.

We hope for a sunny summer!

Sheila Macdonald, Harrogate

Repair the green shelters on West Park Stray

I travel on the West Park Stray on a daily basis and my heart sinks every time I pass the two semi-derelict shelters.

They have never had any repair or maintenance on them apart from being decorated in an awful green colour. What do visitors think when they encounter them? What were wonderful shelters have become, on Harrogate Borough Council’s watch, unsightly.

Because of their leaning structure they are also becoming unsafe and could be lost to the town. Has the council any scheduled plans in place for refurbishment before the shelters fall down?

Ken Richardson, Harrogate

Stray Views: How many Harrogate parents got their first choice of school?

Stray Views 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.

The criteria for secondary school places

Come to Harrogate they say. Pay an inflated house price for the quality of local schools, low crime levels and green spaces.

Let’s face it, the majority of parents choose to live in Harrogate for access to outstanding schools. That’s why we moved here. But that is all well and good if you can actually access these schools.

When March approaches, parents continuously press the refresh button on their email to see if they live close enough to or have been committed enough to their faith to secure a place at the nearest ‘outstanding’ community faith school.

Disappointingly, this year the computer said No. My friends felt confident that their commitment to church, alongside their proximity to St Aidan’s would secure them a place.

Instead, they were offered their fourth choice, and although North Yorkshire County Council claim 90 per cent of children got their first choice school, I wonder how many children from Harrogate this applied to?

What frustrates even more, is when a child who lives less than a mile away is overlooked for a child who lives more than 10 miles away, even though both parents have shown the same amount of commitment to their faith. Surely the council have some environmental principles by giving places to those who can walk to school over someone who needs transport to get there.

As a family who show commitment to our faith, alongside paying an inflated price for our house, we are now not convinced that living here is worth both of these things.

Kate Tiffen, Harrogate

Simple, cheap ideas to boost Harrogate

Now is not the time for Harrogate to rest on its laurels. The old saying ‘a business stood still is a business in decline’ is true. It’s not until you live in the town centre that you realise just how many visitors we have every week.

Some places, like Glasgow and Liverpool, have changed dramatically over recent years, catching up Harrogate for attractions and facilities.

These and other towns are giving Harrogate stiff competition for the exhibition and events industry, which has been the lifeblood of the town for the last 50 years. Our hotels and the supporting service industries rely on visitors to survive but what have we done and what should we be doing to keep Harrogate ahead of the competition?

The simple photo opportunity picture frame at the top of Montpellier is a good example of catering for the tourists that didn’t break the bank.

We need 50 more suggestions as good as that and implement the best 20 ASAP. The following ideas have been thought of before but would still be an asset.

Illuminated fountains at the Prince of Wales Christchurch and New Park roundabouts – any one entering the town from North South East or West would be impressed with their visit even before they got out of the car.

Rename the town Harrogate Spa with welcome signs a mile or so before each roundabout saying Welcome to Harrogate Spa.

Having directed tourists to Bettys they were impressed by the war memorial area and commented how lovely it was – at night it’s black – why isn’t the column floodlit to form a centre of attraction that would enhance the overall impressions of the town?

The war memorial illuminations, along with stone cleaning the column, should be given priority. The council’s park department does a great job throughout the town. I am just concerned that if we don’t ring the changes quickly visitors to the the town will dwindle and so will we.

David Birtles, Harrogate

Birk Crag litter hero and villains

My family and I walked through the woods at Birk Crag on Sunday. I was really disappointed at the amount of litter, particularly beer bottles, drinks cups and cartons up there on the crags and in the woods.

I was wishing I had a bag and gloves, when we met a family whose son was picking litter for his Duke of Edinburgh Award. He cleared all the litter at the top of the crag. I went from cursing my fellow citizens to congratulating this family. Well done to them.

Perhaps those of us who care should follow their example.

To those who left the litter, take this advice: ‘leave only footprints, take only memories’. It’s only unspoilt if you leave it that way.

John Brown, Harrogate

Read more:

Why my friends won’t be returning to Harrogate

Station Gateway: economic concerns need addressing

Why is Kex Gill work taking so long?

Read more:

Don’t blame dog mess on long grass

Rossett School is fantastic!

These bins are a menace

Read more:

Time for a Harrogate museum?

Vaccinated people should not have to pay for covid tests when we go abroad

Noisy car exhausts blight Harrogate life

Read more:

Malcolm’s history walks are a real treat

Recycling rules don’t make recycling easy

We are lucky to have birdsong – do your bit to keep it going

Read more:

One-way traffic safety concerns

Bilton’s iron bridge was once wooden

Don’t let the Stray become an uncontrolled beer garden

Consider making Parliament Street in Harrogate two-way

Councillor’s ‘wild’ covid death claims are inaccurate

Harrogate’s Army Foundation College saves young people

Network Rail has questions to answer about tree felling

Questions that need answering about Beech Grove

Why is government spending so much on roads?

We must accept plans that reduce car use

Litter blights our beautiful Stray

Repair the green shelters on West Park Stray

The criteria for secondary school places

Simple, cheap ideas to boost Harrogate

Birk Crag litter hero and villains