Lib Dem leader accuses Tories of ‘pinching’ Harrogate Station Gateway ideas

The leader of the Liberal Democrats in Harrogate and Knaresborough has accused the Conservative transport chief of “pinching” their ideas for the £11.2 million Station Gateway.

North Yorkshire Council is hastily assembling new proposals for the scheme after admitting its previous plans failed to follow the correct procedure in the wake of legal action.

Councillor Keane Duncan, the Conservative executive member for highways, revealed last week that two of the most controversial aspects of the scheme — reducing Station Parade to one lane and pedestrianising James Street — would be scrapped.

A detailed new plan has yet to be published but it is expected to include improvements to Station Square and One Arch and upgrading traffic signals.

Lib Dem leader Pat Marsh said the Lib Dems suggested dropping the Station Parade and James Street proposals at an online meeting of the council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee working group on October 31 — shortly before Cllr Duncan’s announcement.

She said the 13 members of the area constituency committee are due to walk around the gateway site tomorrow (Thursday, November 8) with a senior officer at the council.

Cllr Marsh said the visit would enable the council to better understand the area and consider a “better connected” Lib Dem plan for the town centre.

She said previous gateway proposals “started nowhere and ended nowhere”.

Cllr Marsh said:

“There are simple solutions that would connect the town better. They would enable cyclists to feel safer and not upset motorists.”

She added she would reveal full details of the proposals after tomorrow’s meeting but said they included improvements to the public realm near the train and bus stations, keeping the Station Parade taxi rank where it is and “tidying up” the area around the train station car park.

Cllr Marsh said:

“What we feel we have come up with is a better connected scheme.

“We are not playing politics — that is why we put something forward and offered to do a walk round.”

The Stray Ferret has asked Cllr Duncan to respond to Cllr Marsh’s comments but has not had a response.

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Harrogate BID says amended Station Gateway scheme ‘should proceed’

Harrogate Business Improvement District has said the town’s £11.2 million Station Gateway scheme should proceed amid plans to scrap major elements of the project.

Yesterday, Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways at North Yorkshire Council, said reducing Station Parade to one lane and pedestrianising James Street would need be dropped from the scheme in order for it “to be successful”.

The move comes as council officials are currently drawing up alternative options for the project after the previous proposals were paused last month.

In a statement, Harrogate BID chair Dan Siddle and BID manager Matthew Chapman said the organisation would back the scheme under the new plans.

They said:

“Whilst we accept the Station Gateway Project has been a divided subject we believe, after consulting with sector representatives within the BID membership, that the project should now proceed.

“The local authority has listened to the concerns raised, adapted the project to a plan that works for the majority and given assurances that the finished product will further enhance the Harrogate welcome and experience.”

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Mr Siddle and Mr Chapman added that the organisation felt the £11.2 million worth of funding would be “amiss to reject”.

The statement added:

“This level of investment to town and city centres is a once in a generation opportunity that Harrogate BID feels would be amiss to reject. Looking at the data that demonstrates how and where town centres are heading the Station Gateway Project will be the foundation of many more centrally funded projects that keeps Harrogate as a key destination for residents and tourists alike.

“As an organisation we must stress we do not see this project as anti-car or pro-cycling, purely one which will give people more choice on how they wish to travel to and move around our town.

“Furthermore, this funding, which has to be used towards this gateway scheme has earmarked some fundamental and positive improvements to public realm that we fully support if, as promised, is finished to a first-class standard.”

Full proposals on how the gateway scheme will be amended are expected to be put before senior North Yorkshire councillors at a later date.

The council halted the scheme immediately after lawyers acting on behalf of local property firm Hornbeam Park Developments launched a judicial review.

As a result, the authority announced it would draw up alternative options which would focus on “a high quality pedestrian-focussed public realm scheme, with improved access into the bus station, and better traffic flow through co-ordinated signal timings”.

Major elements of £11.2 million Harrogate Station Gateway scheme to be scrapped

Two major parts of Harrogate’s £11.2 million Station Gateway project look set to be scrapped.

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways at North Yorkshire Council, said reducing Station Parade to one lane and pedestrianising James Street would need be dropped from the scheme in order for it “to be successful”.

The move comes as council officials are currently drawing up alternative options for the project after the previous proposals were paused last month.

The original plans included reducing a 300-metre stretch of Station Parade to single lane to make space for cycle lanes and the part-pedestrianisation of James Street.

Cllr Keane Duncan.

However, Cllr Duncan, who is also the Conservative candidate for Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, said new proposals for the gateway project required major changes.

He said:

“We need to make fundamental changes to the gateway if we are to secure investment for Harrogate.

“The proposal to reduce Station Parade to a single lane has been the most divisive element. To be successful, we would need Station Parade to remain as two lanes.

“And plans for James Street would need to be removed from the scheme’s scope altogether.”

The council halted the scheme immediately after lawyers acting on behalf of local property firm Hornbeam Park Developments launched a judicial review.

As a result, the authority announced it would draw up alternative options which would focus on “a high quality pedestrian-focussed public realm scheme, with improved access into the bus station, and better traffic flow through co-ordinated signal timings”.

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Full proposals are expected to be put before senior North Yorkshire councillors at a later date.

Cllr Duncan added that the new scheme would still be able to deliver public realm improvements.

He said:

“A new gateway proposal would allow us to move forward with first-class public realm improvements to Station Square, give One Arch the attention it needs and tackle congestion by upgrading the myriad of uncoordinated traffic signals.

“We have a final window of opportunity to produce a deliverable and beneficial scheme. This will not be easy, but I am committed to a cross-party effort. Constructive conversations are already taking place between Conservative and Liberal Democrat councillors.

“My hope is to achieve a revised project plan with clear support from the public.

“I hope that residents and businesses can be encouraged by the pragmatic effort under way and the prospect of key changes to the Gateway that would see more controversial elements removed.”

Call to spend Harrogate Station Gateway money in Skipton if scheme falls through

A councillor has said funding intended for Harrogate’s £11.2m Station Gateway should be spent in Skipton if the scheme falls through.

Last month, senior Conservative councillors in Northallerton agreed to consider different options to rescue Harrogate’s troubled transport project.

The most likely option for North Yorkshire Council is to focus on its less controversial aspects, which might include public realm improvements at Station Square and One Arch, in an attempt to deliver the scheme in some form.

But alternative options could also fail to win support and the council may decide to scrap it altogether.

Station Square

Rather than handing money back to government, Andy Brown, the Green Party councillor for Aire Valley  told the council’s Skipton and Ripon planning committee this week the Harrogate money could be used to improve Skipton’s own £7.8m Station Gateway scheme.

Like Harrogate, it’s being paid for through the government’s Transforming Cities Fund but has proved far less controversial with the public than across the A59.

The planning committee met on Tuesday afternoon in Skipton to consider replacing a footbridge over the Leeds and Liverpool canal, which forms part of the Skipton Gateway proposals.

Councillors approved the replacement bridge but its design was strongly criticised as it does not offer ramped disabled access.

Cllr Brown queried if Harrogate Transforming Cities Fund money could be spent on the bridge to improve accessibility.

He said:

“We should be sending a message [to the council] that they seek every alternative source, including if the Harrogate scheme falls through, to achieve disabled access”.

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A report prepared for the council’s Conservative-run executive in September confirmed that funding would be able to be transferred from the Harrogate scheme to Skipton or Selby with approval from the government.

It said:

“In principle, this funding may be able to be reallocated to either or both the Selby and Skipton Transforming Cities Fund projects in North Yorkshire. Written approval from the funder would be required which would be requested should this be necessary.

“The full business cases for these projects would have to justify any proposed reallocation in addition to agreement from the funder.”

North Yorkshire Council has said it will put forward its next steps for the Harrogate Station Gateway before November.

Harrogate MP hopes Station Gateway money can be spent in town

Andrew Jones MP has said he hopes North Yorkshire Council will use money earmarked for the £11.2m Station Gateway to create a more welcoming space in Harrogate.

Last week, senior Conservative councillors in Northallerton agreed to consider different options in an attempt to rescue the troubled transport scheme.

In August, the council pressed pause on the project due to a legal challenge from Hornbeam Park Developments and Mr Jones described it as a “timed-out dead scheme”.

However, he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service he is still wanted the government’s Transforming Cities Fund money to be spent in the town.

A report prepared for councillors last week said one option could be to reallocate funds to other gateway schemes in Skipton and Selby if a solution in Harrogate is not found.

Should government give permission to modify the scheme in Harrogate, it appears the council will focus on its less controversial aspects, which might include public realm improvements at Station Square and One Arch.

The MP said he has lobbied government ministers about allowing the gateway money to be spent in Harrogate.

Mr Jones said:

“I fully support using the Transforming Cities Fund monies in Harrogate. This funding was allocated to Harrogate and I have urged ministers to allow the funding to be spent in Harrogate.

“The council’s decision to consider options for Station Gateway is not unexpected. Some aspects of the scheme were very positive, not least the public realm improvements. I would urge the council to fund the public realm improvements as a priority to create a more welcoming space in the town centre for residents and visitors.”

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In an interview with the LDRS earlier this month, the council’s executive member for highways Keane Duncan said the Gateway is “not dead – yet, but it is fair to say it’s on life support”.

He added: 

“Andrew [Jones] wants to secure investment for Harrogate. The Liberal Democrats say they want to secure investment for Harrogate. I do too, and I will do my best to deliver on that objective.”

North Yorkshire Council has said it will make a decision on what happens next with the Station Gateway before November.

West Yorkshire Combined Authority, which won the initial funding from government, has said it has accepted the principle of a modified scheme. The Department for Transport has also indicated initial support for a modified scheme but has not yet formally responded.

The DfT has reiterated that the Transforming Cities Fund money must be spent before March 2025 at the latest.

‘Collective will’ at council to rescue £11.2m Harrogate Station Gateway

Senior councillors at North Yorkshire Council have agreed to consider different options to rescue the £11.2m Harrogate Station Gateway scheme.

At a meeting of the council’s Conservative-run executive in Northallerton this morning, executive member for highways Keane Duncan said there was a “collective will” to secure the “£11m prize” from government to deliver a transport scheme in Harrogate.

The original plans included reducing a 300-metre stretch of Station Parade to single lane to make space for cycle lanes, part-pedestrianising James Street and overhauling Station Square.

A report to councillors today said North Yorkshire Council may now focus on the most popular aspects of the scheme. It does not mention active travel or cycling.

The report added the project was likely to have been scaled-back due to inflationary pressures so some of the changes may have taken place anyway.

The meeting heard the other options were either continuing with the scheme as it is, which may bring more legal peril for the council, or scrapping it entirely.

The council paused the project last month due to a legal challenge from Hornbeam Park Developments.

Cllr Duncan said today:

“There is a collective will across the council that we try and secure investment for Harrogate, this is an £11m prize.

“It’s right we don’t kill off the gateway at this point in time, it is important we take a step back to look at all of the options and see what is deliverable.

“Let’s secure investment, not for investment’s sake, we should exhaust all options to find a way forward.”

Councillors agreed to allow officers to work on detailed options for the scheme.

A decision on what the council intends to do is expected before November but time is running out as the government has said the money must be spent before March 2025.

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‘Save the Station Gateway!’: Harrogate cycling campaigner issues plea

Cycling campaigner Malcolm Margolis has appealed to councillors to save Harrogate’s under-threat £11.2m Station Gateway.

It follows the publication of a report ahead of a meeting of North Yorkshire Council‘s Conservative-run executive on Tuesday, which says the council may now focus on the most popular aspects of the scheme to get it back on track.

However, the report does not mention active travel or cycling and the council could still decide to abandon the project altogether.

The original plans included reducing a 300-metre stretch of Station Parade to single-lane traffic to make space for cycle lanes, part-pedestrianising James Street and overhauling Station Square.

The council paused work on the project last month due to a legal challenge from Hornbeam Park Developments.

Mr Margolis spoke on behalf of Harrogate District Cycle Action campaign group at a meeting of the council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee today.

He said:

“We are asking you for the good of our town to save Harrogate Station Gateway. Along with many others, we think the plans are very beneficial.

“Some of you think the same, others don’t. You agree with some key elements but not others such as making Station Parade one-way or part-pedestrianising James Street.”

Mr Margolis said scrapping the scheme or removing the active travel elements risked damaging the council’s reputation with government “for years to come”. when it came to winning active travel funding.

Other failed bids

He referred to other failed bids, including for cycle lanes on Victoria Avenue and Knaresborough Road, the scrapping of cycle lanes on Oatlands Drive and Otley Road as well as the decision to discontinue the Beech Grove Low-Traffic Neighbourhood.

Mr Margolis warned the council would be doing a “massive disservice” to Harrogate’s residents if the Station Gateway funding is not used.

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The campaigner also read out a letter he received from Conservative MP Andrew Jones in June 2023 when he described the project a “big test” for North Yorkshire Council to show that it can deliver projects. Mr Jones said the scheme had been the subject of “often inaccurate and vociferous criticism”.

However, after the judicial review was submitted by Hornbeam Park Developments in August, Mr Jones called the Station Gateway a “timed-out dead scheme”.

North Yorkshire Council officer Mark Codman read out a statement in response to Mr Margolis.

He said:

“The committee notes the statement from Harrogate District Cycle Action.

“The project is being considered by the executive on September 19 and area constituency committee members will be able to consider the next steps as appropriate at the executive meeting.”

Council prepares alternative options to save £11.2m Harrogate Station Gateway

Council bosses are preparing to submit alternative options for Harrogate’s £11.2 million Station Gateway project.

In a report due before senior councillors next week, North Yorkshire Council recommends coming up with a ‘descoped’ gateway scheme after the previous proposals were paused last month.

The report, which does not mention cycling once, said the revised scheme would retain the popular elements of the gateway.

It said it would focus on “a high quality pedestrian-focussed public realm scheme, with improved access into the bus station, and better traffic flow through co-ordinated signal timings”.

It added the Department for Transport, which funded the gateway through its Transforming Cities Fund, had “indicated initial support for a modified scope but have not yet formally responded”.

The council halted the scheme immediately after lawyers acting on behalf of local property firm Hornbeam Park Developments launched a judicial review.

Now it is hastily preparing new measures to prevent the funding from being lost.

Richard Binks, head of major projects at the council, said in the report:

“Other options could be to progress with the scheme originally conceived, either with the proposed Traffic Regulation Orders, but having objections considered at a public inquiry or alternatively revisiting some of the TRO proposals, such as not restricting loading hours; or to cancel the scheme in its entirety.”

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Councillors will consider the report at an executive meeting on September 19.

Council officers are then expected to bring further options for the gateway to an executive meeting in October or November.

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways at the council, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that he remains hopeful the £11.2 million of government funding will be spend on a transport improvement scheme for Harrogate.

Cllr Duncan told the Local Democracy Reporting Service the scheme was “not dead yet”, but was “on life support”.

However, he added that the project will have to be altered for it to stand a chance of succeeding.

Harrogate Station Gateway ‘on life support but not dead yet’

North Yorkshire Council’s transport leader Keane Duncan has said he remains hopeful that £11m of government money will be spent on a transport improvement scheme around Harrogate Station.

But he admits the troubled Station Gateway project will have to be altered for it to stand a chance of succeeding.

The Conservative councillor discussed the scheme, which was paused last month following a legal challenge from Hornbeam Park Developments, in an interview with the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Cllr Duncan, who is standing for the Conservatives in next year’s first York and North Yorkshire mayoral election, talks about how the council got into this situation, whether it has failed cyclists and pedestrians in the town and what will happen now.

North Yorkshire Council’s executive will meet on Tuesday, September 19 to decide its next move regarding the project, which aims to improve walking and cycling.

Lay out the options for the Station Gateway and what the most realistic outcome is?

There are essentially three options now open to us. The first option is to push ahead with the current gateway plan – a plan that will almost certainly be challenged again and therefore time out.

The second option is to axe the gateway completely – a decision that will see £11m of investment lost and diverted elsewhere by the government.

The third is to produce an alternative scheme that achieves public support and has a realistic chance of success.

My sincere hope is to find a way forward that secures £11m of investment for Harrogate.

Did the council prepare contingency plans for the gateway money and could it be spent elsewhere in Harrogate?

The Transforming Cities Fund investment cannot be spent on anything other than some form of Transforming Cities Fund project. While it would be possible to revise the current gateway scheme, it is incorrect and insincere for anyone to suggest funding can be directed to entirely different projects.

We have never had that ability, and we do not have that ability now.

It is always easiest for politicians to walk away, to give up, to standstill. Doing nothing is always more expedient than trying to do something.
But I believe very strongly we should exhaust every avenue before rejecting £11 million out of hand.

This section of Station Parade would be reduced to single lane traffic under the scheme.

What do you think about Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones’s comment that the gateway is a “timed-out dead scheme”?

The Gateway is not timed out – yet. The gateway is not dead – yet. But it is fair to say the gateway is on life support. Andrew wants to secure investment for Harrogate. The Liberal Democrats say they want to secure investment for Harrogate. I do too, and I will do my best to deliver on that objective.

Will the Department for Transport extend the Transforming Cities Fund deadline if you decide to put forward a different scheme or make changes?

We must spend TCF funding by March 2025 at the absolute latest.
We are now in a race against time to meet this deadline and secure investment for Harrogate.

While the timetable is very tight, it does remain possible to deliver a scheme, albeit perhaps not necessarily exactly as first planned.

We are working very closely with the Department for Transport and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority. Their support will be absolutely critical.

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The council has admitted errors were made in the consultation stages. Who is being held accountable and do you feel let down?

The gateway decision was rescinded for the simple reason that the loading restrictions proposed for James Street require a public inquiry to be held if an objection is received.

Our legal team quickly accepted this requirement had not been met.
It is surprising that the legal counsel we engaged failed to advise us of this key, fundamental point and it is right that the council pursues that.

But my focus right now is not on apportioning blame or on looking back at the past. It is on the tricky challenge of determining what to do next.

As executive member you inherited the project from your predecessor Don Mackenzie. If you had the project from the beginning what would you have done differently?

I was not involved at the start. I wasn’t part of the discussions. When I inherited the scheme, I pursued the fairest and most democratic possible course of action I could. I made clear I would let Harrogate’s councillors decide the way forward.

The majority backed the scheme and I followed their will. The Liberal Democrats have since wobbled in the face of pressure and backtracked. They have shown they cannot provide leadership or direction for Harrogate. They cannot stand by a decision.

I am prepared to do what I takes to deliver investment. The Liberal Democrats are not being quite so clear and straightforward with the people of Harrogate.

James Street traffic order

Cllr Duncan says he’s “surprised’ the council’s legal counsel didn’t say the loading restrictions proposed for James Street required a public inquiry.

Harrogate District Cycle Action has criticised the council’s track record in delivering active travel in the town. Do you accept this criticism and will the gateway situation make it more difficult to win funding from government for future schemes?

While fair challenge and scrutiny is very much welcome, relentless criticism from some cycling campaigners is totally counterproductive to delivering the active travel improvements they are seeking.

A further, significant deterrent to progress is unhelpful division between motorists and cyclists, sometimes stirred up by deliberate provocation. It creates a very difficult context to deliver any change or progress in Harrogate.

I have attempted to heal divisions in my role. I removed Beech Grove so we could take a step back and think of an alternative. I halted phase two of the widely-condemned Otley Road cycleway. That’s allowed us to devise a £585,000 transport package with much wider benefit.

We can make progress and we are making progress, but this is never straight forward. We need a more strategic view and looking ahead to devolution we will have that opportunity.

Chris Bentley is a wealthy local businessman who owns Hornbeam Park Developments. He could effectively put a stop to £11m of investment, which narrowly has the support of the public, into Harrogate town centre. How do you feel about this?

Legal challenge is a risk to any project. It is a fact of reality. We cannot eliminate that risk, but we should be mindful of it and we should do what we can to minimise the risk as we seek to secure positive investment for Harrogate.

Since the Uxbridge by-election, the Prime Minister and the Conservatives have come out against some active travel schemes. If the gateway is shelved, will this help or hinder your hopes of becoming mayor?

My position on gateway will not be determined by whether it helps or hinders me electorally. Chasing popularity is not governing. It is not acting in the public interest. It is knee-jerk, reactionary politics that will continue to let Harrogate down.

I will be a mayor who is prepared to make decisions, even if they are tough, to fight for what I believe in, even if it may not be universally popular, and to be honest about the steps we need to take to address the very serious and growing transport issues Harrogate is facing.

Station Gateway: Council won’t have to repay government if project is scrapped

North Yorkshire Council will not have to repay government money it spent on consultants for the Harrogate Station Gateway project if it is scrapped.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service revealed in June that the council had paid global consultancy WSP more than £2 million to draw up its business case and undertake designs for the Harrogate active travel scheme.

All costs so far incurred on Station Gateway, including the consultants’ fees, have been paid for by the council and reimbursed by the government through its Transforming Cities Fund.

But, according to a council spokesperson, the government would not ask for the money back, which is one less headache for the under pressure authority when it comes to the troubled project.

The gateway has been in the works for years but is now in major doubt after North Yorkshire Council said earlier this month that it had “rescinded the decision to proceed” with its proposals due to a legal challenge.

In a statement, the council said it would not be proceeding at the moment to avoid “further costs and delays” after a judicial review was launched by lawyers acting on behalf of Hornbeam Park Developments over the way the council consulted residents and businesses.

A report will go before the council’s Conservative-run executive next month with recommendations for what happens next.

At a meeting of North Yorkshire Council’s Conservative-run executive last week in Harrogate, council leader Carl Les said it was a “matter of some urgency” that the gateway report is published and chief executive Richard Flinton said this would likely be ahead of an executive meeting on September 19.

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