North Yorkshire Council considers offloading public toiletsCouncillors approve Knaresborough land train trialKnaresborough’s Waterside to be closed for a weekSunday Picture Quiz Answers: July 6Plans for extension at Knaresborough Waterside home approved

North Yorkshire Council has approved plans to demolish two outbuildings on Knaresborough’s famous Waterside to facilitate a housing extension.

The three-storey property is in a prominent location on Waterside Road, which runs along the banks of the river Nidd and is a popular walking route for tourists.

The owner of the home stated in planning documents that the outbuildings connected to it are in a poor state of repair and block sunlight from the rear windows.

They asked the council for permission to demolish them to add a new 2-storey extension to their home.

Larger plans for the extension were refused in 2022 and for a second time in 2023 after the council criticised its design saying it was “excessive” and would feel “oppressive and overbearing” to the adjacent property.

A third application was submitted earlier this year which the developer said addressed the previous reasons for refusal.

It said the design had been scaled back to reduce its impact on the neighbouring properties and the wider Knaresborough Conservation Area.

Documents added:

“The design aesthetic has been paired down in the latest proposal, removing the larger contemporary elements found in the previous applications. The new extension has a traditional form constructed from traditional materials but utilises contemporary glazing to maximise the amount of natural light entering the extension.”

The resubmitted plans received an objection from statutory consultee Knaresborough Town Council, which said the extension would cause “unacceptable issues of privacy” for the neighbours.

However, the changes satisfied a council planning officer who approved the plans on April 26.

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Knaresborough’s Riverside Cafe owners bid farewell after 13 years

The owners of Knaresborough’s Riverside Cafe have sold the business after 13 years.

The independent cafe, situated under cliffs alongside the River Nidd on Waterside, is a favourite haunt for numerous tourists and cyclists, as well as local people.

Partners Phil Smith and Tim O’Hara will serve their last coffee and cake as owners tomorrow before Michael and Louise Bland, who own Vivido Bar and Restaurant on Cheltenham Crescent in Harrogate, take over.

The cafe is expected to close for a week before reopening, with the previous owners helping out for a short period.

Mr Smith said it felt like the right time to go, adding:

“We had no experience in catering when we took over but we have worked hard and learned by our mistakes to make it a successful business.

“It’s a beautiful place to work, overlooking the viaduct, and we have made lifelong friends.

“But it’s grown and grown and has become a bit of a monster.”

Mr Smith said regular customers from Wakefield, York and Lincoln were due to visit today to bid farewell and he expected tomorrow to be emotional.

But he said Mr and Mrs Bland would “breathe new life” into the business and he and Mr O’Hara would support them before taking life easier. The six staff will stay on under the new owners.

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Ms Bland, who lives in Leeds, said she and her husband had been friends with Mr Smith and Mr O’Hara for years and they “fell in love with the place” when they visited and later jokingly said they would like first refusal if the cafe ever came up for sale.

Vivido celebrated its fourth anniversary last week and Ms Bland, who lives in Leeds, said the Italian and Mediterranean venue was now running well and she and her husband were excited by the prospect of operating daytime and nighttime businesses.

She said she hoped to reopen the cafe next week but no date has yet been finalised. Ms Bland said:

“It’s a successful business so the plan is not to change too much. We need to have a little time to see how things work and we will only change things if we feel it can be improved.”

Business case to be drawn up for Knaresborough road train

A business plan is to be drawn up for introducing a road train in Knaresborough.

The steep slope between the town centre and the river can deter people from visiting both locations. Some visitors who walk along Waterside are not even aware of the town centre, and vice versa.

A road train and cliff lift have both been suggested as solutions.

Now Knaresborough Chamber of Trade and Commerce and Knaresborough Town Council have agreed to work together to build a business case for a road train.

The train would probably run from Conyngham Hall car park to York Place car park, which would also ease pressure on town centre parking.

Peter Lacey, an executive member of the chamber, said:

“It’s a serious proposition. We will do a robust assessment of the business case then conduct an appraisal on how to deliver it.

“We could have a trial and perhaps even hire one for a week over summer.”

Mr Lacey said the service could be provided by a private company, the town council or by a not-for-profit local company set up specifically for the purpose.

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He added he regarded a road train as complementary to a cliff lift rather than an alternative.

A cliff lift, he said, would be an “iconic piece of architecture and major project that took a long time to deliver” whereas a train would be more functional and deliverable quickly.

Mr Lacey said a second-hand road train similar to the Candy Cane Express that carried Christmas visitors around Harrogate would cost about £150,000.

But he said there was also the possibility of exploring a more expensive electric train similar to a large golf buggy and both ideas are would be investigated.

 

Man found guilty of assault after confrontation on Knaresborough’s Waterside

A Birstwith man has been found guilty of assaulting a man and damaging his BMW after an altercation on Waterside, Knaresborough.

Aaron Peter Wilson, 43, had been riding a bike east along the road when his pedal collided with the black car, which was being parked by its owner.

Wilson did not stop at the scene, but carried on riding along the road.

Giving evidence at Harrogate Magistrates Court today, the victim said:

“I got back in and I pursued him with the car and parked up probably about 10 metres away from him. I got out and went to go and confront him.

“He was standing in the middle of the road with the bike at his feet. He was inflated, aggressive. He had flexed muscles and was trying to look a bigger person than he was.

“He was very threatening.”

He said Wilson then put his bike between the two of them, before grabbing the victim’s shirt around the collar, causing a deep scratch to his shoulder. He added:

“I was being choked because I had a button-up collar. The buttons were done up, except the top one.”

A member of the public arrived on the scene and the pair tried to stop Wilson leaving by blocking his path. Wilson then began knocking on nearby doors, before entering the garden of a house and lying down.

Meanwhile, the victim had called the police, who arrived a few minutes later and arrested Wilson.

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Defending, Martin Townend of Watson Woodhouse Solicitors, argued Wilson was acting in self-defence after the collision, which took place around 10.30pm on July 24 this year.

Mr Townend said the victim began shouting at Wilson and chased him in his car, with the other man joining him in a way that left Wilson fearing for his safety.

Giving evidence, Wilson – whose address on the court lists was in High Birstwith but who was said in court to be of no fixed address – said:

“Thank God I went into that property and laid down. They didn’t cross the threshold.

“They were threatening me. That’s why I went into the property and laid down, just hoping the police would turn up.”

However, magistrates were unconvinced by his argument and said his evidence as a whole was “really not consistent”.

They found him guilty of both causing damage to the BMW and assaulting the man by beating him.

Further charges

Wilson then changed his plea on two other charges relating to an incident at Nidderdale House on Cambridge Road, Harrogate, on July 16. He admitted assaulting a man by beating him, and using threatening or abusive words or behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress.

He also entered a guilty plea to causing more than £1,100 of damage to a Volvo in Harrogate on July 3.

Magistrates requested a pre-sentence report before he appears again for sentence on January 12.

In the meantime, he remains in prison for breaching a community order handed to him on a separate charge.

Road train could transport people around hilly Knaresborough

Discussions are underway to purchase a road train to help people get around Knaresborough more easily.

The train would connect Waterside and Market Place and make it easier for tourists to visit the entire town.

Some Waterside visitors are deterred by the steep climb to the town centre and others don’t even realise there is a thriving town centre nearby.

Ways to connect the two areas have been a topic of debate for years, but following discussions between Knaresborough Chamber of Trade and local businessman Tony Bennett, the idea may become a reality.

The train would pick people up from various locations and transport them round the town.

It would be similar to the Candy Cane Express train that operated in Harrogate last Christmas but run on a commercial basis rather than for free.

Initial ideas would see the train run from Conyngham Hall, along the river then up the hill to Market Square and York Road — a similar route to the town’s bed race.

The Candy Cane Express road train that ran around Harrogate over Christmas.

At a chamber meeting this week, business owners said they often spoke to tourists who visited Waterside and the River Nidd without knowing there was a bustling high street just up the hill.

Knaresborough’s hilly terrain can make it difficult for some to climb up the castle steps so it is hoped the land train would make Knaresborough a more accessible destination for people.

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Knaresborough Chamber of Trade committee member, Peter Lacey, told members plans were still at the discussion stage but if it went ahead it would probably operate as a standalone commercial venture run by Mr Bennett.

Mr Lacey told last night’s meeting:

“We have spoken with a supplier who has been doing this for years and can help us source the train and with council permissions. We will support anyone who wishes to run the project as we see it being an asset to the town and its businesses.

“We don’t know for sure when it will be up and running but I’d be disappointed if it wasn’t by the summer.”

Plans for an electronic cliff lift have been put forward by Renaissance Knaresborough but the group said it hadn’t made much progress due to coronavirus.