Burniston Road tenfoot flooding

John Fareham and John Abbott are making progress with flooding problems on Burniston Road tenfoots and the adjoining Kelvin Hall School playing fields.

After we were contacted by local residents regarding this problem we made contact with the residents and saw that their concerns were legitimate. We were informed by drain-cleaners called by Kelvin Hall School that previous attempts at repairs had probably done far more harm than good, coming close to wrecking the drains, and that there were issues to be pursued with Yorkshire Water as well as with officers of the Council. Basically – and further investigations will take place in due course – it would appear that as well as the damage caused by the previous attempts to clear the drains, tree roots from London Plane trees on the school grounds were probably clogging up the drains. It goes without saying that we will continue to pursue this matter until we secure an appropriate outcome.

Commonwealth Homes residents' safety

John Fareham and John Abbott are working to resolve issues with snow and ice accumulating on the grassed area inside Commonwealth Homes.

While conducting our mobile bus forum for December, we made our scheduled stop on Appleton Road and saw the iced-up state of your lawns and in particular the large patch of ice in the middle.  We therefore got in touch with the officers as a matter of urgency and asked them to take the necessary steps to ensure the safety of residents.  It may be the case that, under present budgetary and organisational circumstances, there may be some delay, but equally it goes without saying that we will continue to pursue this matter until we get a result.

Aneurin Bevan Lodge site after the travellers

John Fareham and John Abbott report that since travellers have now left the site of the former Aneurin Bevan Lodge, steps have been put in place to render it secure.

This could be something to do with the fact that on Wednesday October 24^th at 10 am the Council was to go to court and get permission to tow away their vehicles.  Most of the vehicles had left by the night before the hearing.  All of them were gone by the following day. As they had done so before the matter came to court, it was not legally possible to get the three-month ban on their returning the Council would otherwise have sought.  However, the community-payback organisation have since cleared up the rubbish and the officers have now padlocked the gates - after repeated requests from both of us - to make the site secure.

Kelvin Hall School flooding

Your local Conservative Councillors JOHN FAREHAM and JOHN ABBOTT are working to resolve problems with potential flooding from Kelvin School playing fields.

During the latest of our pioneering and trail-blazing mobile bus forums on December 12^th local residents brought to our notice concerns regarding the part of the school grounds where construction vehicles had been parked. This was, they said, compressed enough for rainwater to gather there and not drain away, which could lead to flooding if the rain were to be heavy enough. We have therefore contacted the officers and asked them to take the matter in hand as it could have serious implications both for local residents and the Council.  It goes without saying that we will continue to work on this issue until a solution is in place. We expect to be hearing from the developers soon and we are grateful to the school for their co-operation in this matter.

YPI floodlight enforcement

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured further action on the YPI leaving their floodlights on too long.

Having received complaints from local residents that the YPI were at it again with their floodlights after the time the planning conditions said they had to be switched off, complaints which were accompanied by detailed timings, we raised the matter on their behalf with the enforcement officers.  They replied to the effect they had written to the YPI to remind them of the planning conditions relating to the use of the floodlights and that a continuing breach of those conditions would leave them open to formal enforcement action.  We will of course be happy to hear again from anyone who thinks these lights are on too long and will pass the information on to the officers. Meanwhile the officers will also be inspecting the site themselves as staff time permits.

Bricknell Avenue central reservation

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured undertakings that damage to the Bricknell Avenue central reservation caused by recent contractor workings will be attended to.

In the course of delivering the September-October issue of CONTACT! we noticed that the grass verges were getting chewed up by contractors’ vehicles as a consequence of the recent road works.  We therefore referred the matter to the officers who say that the issue has been passed on to those concerned to ensure that when the road works are finished reinstatement works will be carried out.  It goes without saying that we will continue to take an interest in these verges and  that we will continue to keep an eye on progress until all is well.

Newland Park resurfacing update

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the resurfacing of Newland Park was due to commence on November 26th.

Some have commented about the seemingly long period of no parking. These works were originally to have been undertaken in October but the officers felt the weather then was unsuitable for resurfacing.  One would have thought there was a better chance of getting suitable weather in October than in November – but the work is now due to go ahead and we will of course stand ready to assist local residents should there be any issues arising out of the manner in which the work is being carried out. We authorised these works from funds under our local control a while ago and they have taken a while to come through but weather may still delay them.

Aneurin Bevan Lodge travellers

John Fareham and John Abbott have been told they have secured the removal of the unauthorised traveller encampment on the former Aneurin Bevan Lodge site on Hotham Road North.

Having been tipped off by local residents that they were arriving, we went to see for ourselves. We found several caravans already on site with the accompanying towing vehicles and a petrol generator already in use.  Others were expected to arrive and indeed arrived later. We  therefore  notified the police, since the travellers appear to have gained entry to the site by force, and  notified officers of the Council. We were told the necessary steps would be taken to get court action to shift the travellers. On the evening following their arrival, the travellers were served with Section 77 notices to leave by 9 am Monday morning. If they haven’t gone by then, the Council will go back to court to ask for permission to evict them. In the longer term it is of course for our local MP to press for improved powers to deal with such situations as this.

County Road flyover - reopening date

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the County Road North flyover will reopen on Monday October 15^th.

The original date for reopening was to have been November 11th, but now that the officers think that enough work has been done to make the bridge safe they have, as we previously reported, been looking at ways of doing the rest of the work while the flyover reopens. There will however be temporary traffic lights to ensure the safety of those continuing to work on the underside of the bridge by guaranteeing controlled two-way traffic.  We thought it a good idea to pass on this information as soon as possible, as we know these works have been a problem for local residents, but at least now there is light at the end of the tunnel.

County Road flyover reopening

John Fareham and John Abbott have news regarding the likely reopening date of County Road North being earlier than at first anticipated.

We have had concerns about the duration of the work and the effect on traffic raised by local residents and even by our colleagues across the Hull-Cottingham boundary. We are therefore pleased to announce that we have been told by the officers that the damaged concrete has now been removed from the flyover. This not only gave the engineers a rough idea of how much work needed to be done but also ideas as to how, albeit at increased cost, they could arrange for some of the repairs to be done with the bridge re-opened to traffic.  As a result the flyover is expected to be open to traffic again by around 13/14 October.

YPI first flats application - appeal result

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the appeal against the Council’s original decision to turn down the first application, that for 89 flats, on the YPI front car park has been turned down by the Planning Inspectorate.

The full findings of the Inspector are available from the Planning Inspectorate website. They say that this plan would have damaged the view of open greenspace and that no sufficiently over-riding counter-arguments were offered by the appellant.  The Inspector also says the design would go against the national Planning Policy Framework by not addressing the connection between people and places or integrating new development into the built environment.  Moreover, the loss of open space would also be unacceptably harmful to the character and appearance of the area.  The inspector concluded that the occupants of the flats would have no trouble getting a bus, and that arguments relating to noise and nuisance were not really applicable, but that these were not reason enough to allow the appeal.

YPI planning application for phone mast

John Fareham and John Abbott have details of a planning application for a 20m/65ft high telecommunications mast to be erected on the YPI grounds.

At the time of going to press full details were only visible by visiting the Planning offices in Kingston House and were yet to be uploaded to the Council website. The details we have apart from that are that the mast will have two aerials, three dish antennas and three base cabinets plus ancillary equipment in a fenced-off area adjoining the YPI access road.  If you wish to pass comment one way or the other the application reference number is 12/00840/FULL, and you can write to Planning Services, Kingston House, Bond Street, Hull HU1 3ER or E-mail dev.control@hullcc.gov.uk. In either instance it would be helpful, though not strictly necessary, to have your comments in before 12 October 2012.

The planning rules on telecoms masts are slightly different. Any mast under 15m/49ft high is automatically decided on by the officers; over that height and as soon as somebody passes comment, for or against, it automatically comes to Committee.   The criteria the Committee will then use are set out in Section BE14 of the City Plan which states that “telecommunications equipment will be allowed if the apparatus is sited and designed, taking account of operational needs, to minimise its impact on amenity. 

Chanterlands Avenue road works

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the postponement of road works being carried out on Chanterlands Avenue by Northern Power Grid until essential repairs to the County Road North flyover have been completed.

A number of local residents have drawn our attention to the fact that one lot of road works at any given time may be acceptable, but two lots look more like gridlock in the offing.  We therefore contacted the officers who got on to Northern Power Grid. They in turn agreed that all their works on Chanterlands Avenue would stop, whether completed or not, and the road would be fully opened before County Road North was closed down for repairs and work on Chanterlands Avenue would not resume until work on the flyover was complete.

Newland Park resurfacing

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the resurfacing of Newland Park carriageways to take place in October.

This work follows on from extensive consultation between ourselves and the Newland Park Residents’ Association and, surprised as we were to find them reporting a majority of local residents preferring black to red tarmac, if that is what local residents want that it what we will do. It goes without saying that John and I will wish to attend to any issues arising out of quality of workmanship or other matters relating to the manner in which the work is carried out.”

Playing field blocked off to travellers

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the placing of two large concrete cylinders in front of the entrance to the former William Gee site as an obstacle to travellers who may wish to get on there in the future.

We have made this attempt at effective traveller-proofing of open land in the city after it became obvious to us and the officers that plain, bog-standard locks and chains were neither use nor ornament in stopping people with certain readily available tools. It has taken a good deal of effort to ensure that these obstacles were put in place quickly but it is clear officers took us seriously when we said local residents had had enough of travellers and that a proper solution needed to be put in place to keep them off.

Kenilworth Avenue foliage trimming

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the trimming of bushes overhanging Kenilworth Avenue.

We have referred the state of the bushes surrounding the cemetery to the officers on the grounds that local residents were complaining that they had to walk down Kenilworth Avenue in single file.  This we considered unacceptable, and so did the officers. As a result  they have arranged for the longer overhanging branches to be trimmed – which will already have been done by the time you read this – with the regular “flailing” to get the rest of the foliage sorted scheduled as per usual.  It goes without saying that we will continue to take an interest in this matter until the pavement on the odd-numbered side of Kenilworth Avenue is fully accessible to pedestrians.

St Mary's Nursing Home planning application

John Fareham and John Abbott have details of a planning application for a substantial expansion of the premises of St Mary’s Nursing Home on Chanterlands Avenue.

As they stand, the present premises will accommodate 38 elderly people.  The plan is to build an extension which will increase the capacity by a further 64 bedrooms so that the existing premises can accommodate people with such problems as dementia, and the more advanced nursing requirements that go with them, and the new part can hold people who do need looking after because of such health problems as stroke rehabilitation or because of simply being elderly and frail. The plan also makes provision for a longer access road and more on-site parking. If you wish to express an opinion for or against the application the reference number is 12/00683/FULL and the contact details remain the same as usual – e-mails go to dev.control@hullcc.gov.uk and letters to Planning Services, Kingston House, Bond Street, Hull HU1 3ER. Full details of the application are available to download from the Planning page of the Council website.

Murrayfield Road and Huntley Drive mowing

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the mowing of the overgrown grass verges on Murrayfield Road and Huntley Drive.

Whilst passing by on other business we noticed that the state of these verges left something to be desired – namely, thorough attention with a lawn-mower.  We therefore contacted the officers who have since replied that those doing the mowing were more or less back on schedule after the unseasonal growing conditions we have had of late – all that rain hasn’t exactly shortened the grass – and that they would be made aware of Murrayfield Road and Huntley Drive and would be round within the next few days.  It goes without saying that we will continue to pursue this issue in the future and will seek to keep the corporate centre up to speed.

Newland Park street sweeping

John Fareham and John Abbott have been seeking improvements to the street sweeping arrangements in Newland Park.

John Fareham says, “A number of local residents came to our last forum-on-the-move but one and raised their concerns about the general standard of street cleaning here and particular about the state of the gutters.  The officers have replied that the crews were instructed to clean when possible Newland Park at the beginning of the day before it started filling with cars. They also stated a revised cleansing schedule was introduced a week or so ago and that the changes are a result of issues and omissions raised by John and myself, local residents and staff. A new performance framework has also, they tell us, been introduced to enable the service to more robustly monitor cleansing staff performance / quality of work undertaken. Newland Park has litter bins emptied, de littered and hand swept as required every Monday and the visited by a mechanical sweeper every 2 weeks on a Friday.We remain concerned, however, about the state of the gutters and will continue to raise this with the officers.”

Travellers served with possession order

John Fareham and John Abbott report that Hull City Council have secured a court order granting the Council immediate possession of the former William Gee playing fields occupied until recently by travellers and that steps are in hand to secure the site against further incursions.

At 10 am on Wednesday August 1st Hull City Council went to court, as we had been planning it should do before the travellers left, and gained immediate possession of the site on the basis that the travellers will not be allowed back for three months. We have also been enquiring of the officers what is to be done about the clearing up of bags of rubbish and less salubrious materials. We were told that the order to send in a cleaning crew had been placed and would be acted upon within 48 hours, but that a 2-ton block of concrete would be placed where it would stop travellers getting onto the site. Both of us have of course been asking the officers to move as quickly as they can to make the site secure as this contingent of travellers have been moving rapidly from one site to another.

YPI application rejected

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the planning application to build 61 houses on the former YPI front car park has now been rejected by Hull City Council’s Planning Committee.

The officers’ recommendation to Committee was for the plan to be approved.  Nevertheless the arguments long advanced by local residents – too many people, loss of amenity, the prospect of parking problems – weighed more heavily with the Committee and the application was rejected unanimously, as I proposed and Labour’s Councillor Julia Conner seconded, slightly ahead of several others including Alan Clark who were attempting to do so. Obviously the applicants retain the right to appeal; if they choose to do so, we will of course let local residents nearby know and give details of how to appeal and who to appeal to.

Kelvin travellers again

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the Council went to court to remove travellers from their unauthorised encampment on the former William Gee playing fields on Wednesday August 1^st.

John Fareham says, “It was our understanding that the officers will be applying for immediate possession of the site.  Prior discussion of the problem suggested that the Council might seek to have the possession order be sufficiently generous to the Council and to local residents in terms of how long it applied and how wide an area it covered. This is, of course, not the first time travellers have used this site or others nearby in recent years, and we do of course sympathise with those local residents whose residential amenity has been disturbed by the sound of travellers using generators and other machinery.”

Hotham Road North trees

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured work to remove the plants that were growing around the roots of Hotham Road North.

We have received a number of complaints about this matter from local residents, not just in Hotham Road North but elsewhere.  We have therefore taken photographs of these intrusive plants and have submitted them to the officers. They have passed the task on to the Council’s tree section. We understand they in turn will be scheduling the pruning to be done shortly. It goes without saying that John and I will continue to pursue this matter until we secure an appropriate outcome. We will also refer that matter to the officers again in the event of more such plants turning up.

Travellers on Kelvin playing fields

John Fareham and John Abbott worked to remove the unauthorised traveller incursion on the site of the future Kelvin Hall School playing fields.

The travellers began arriving early in the evening of Tuesday July 17^th and, whilst there was some doubt as to whether they used force to gain access to the site, there was no doubt in our minds or those of local residents, especially those subject to noise nuisance from generators, as to whether they should still have been there. We therefore got in touch with various officers of the Council to urge them to carry out such actions as would enable eviction proceedings to go to court with a good chance of success by all means but to do them as expeditiously as they can and to move these travellers on as soon as the law would allow.

Kenilworth Avenue street light

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the repair of a malfunctioning street light on Kenilworth Avenue that was shining in broad daylight.

We were out delivering newsletters when we noticed that this street light was shining at an hour of the day when most people might have expected to be at work.  We therefore referred the matter to the officers. We have since been assured that an order was placed for the work and that it was done within five working days. We have also been told that someone will, by the time you read this, have gone back to check that the repair work had been carried out and that the street light in question now comes on and goes off when it should.  Of course, if we see any other street lights not working, or if local residents tell us about one that isn’t, we will call those problems in and follow them up till they are resolved.

YPI access road enforcement

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured enforcement action on the YPI in respect of the access road, requiring it to be made two-way along its entire length.

The notice was served on YPI after not hearing from them when they were going to start work on the road. A design for the changes had already been sent to the Council and approved in March. The notice was served on 21^st June and takes formal effect on 24^th July unless YPI choose to appeal.  If they don’t they have two months in which to get the work done. We have both, however, seen vehicles on site and men at work suggesting the YPI may already be taking steps to comply with the notice.

County Road North waste land as allotments

John Fareham and John Abbott are providing funding for the conversion of the Council’s patch of open land on County Road North into allotments.

We were both happy to provide Community Initiative funds for this purpose. Bringing this piece of land back into use for something proper helps meet the demand for more allotments. It also goes some way towards guaranteeing that this land will never get into the mess local residents first told us about. (This was, as readers may recall, because the officers did not know which part of the Council owned it.) There may not be many allotments on this land, but the weeds that used to cover it will be Public Enemy Number One to its new users. We might well have the temerity to call that a result.

Southfield Road feral pigeons

John Fareham and John Abbott are working to resolve problems with feral pigeon infestation of the Chanterlands Avenue rail bridge and its impact on Southfield Road.

During the local elections a number of residents in streets nearby were complaining about this problem and we have been liaising for some time with the officers to approach the problem from two angles.  The first is to resolve issues as to whether the Council or Network Rail are responsible for dealing with pigeons using the bridge as a home and social venue. The second is, pending a full solution being put in place, to ensure that pigeon faeces are cleared off the pavement and do not cause health problems.  On receiving information from local residents that pigeons were a problem on Southfield Road too we contacted the officers who undertook to arrange for the pigeon mess to be cleared away and to continue to seek resolution of the issues with Network Rail. It goes without saying that we will continue to pursue this matter until we secure an appropriate outcome.”

Litter on Bishop Alcock Road open land

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the clearing of the grassed area formerly occupied by the Bishop Alcock Road shops.

During the latest in our pioneering and trail-blazing series of forum-on-the-move events we noticed further litter on this site including vodka bottle labels and other indicators of possible anti-social behaviour. We therefore contacted the officers to draw their attention to the matter and they have since arranged for community-payback people to clear the rubbish. We will of course continue to keep an eye on this location with a view to keeping it in good order pending action being taken on the long term future of the site.”

School playing field fences

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured undertakings that broken fencing on the prospective Kelvin Hall School playing fields will be repaired.

We became aware of concerns that a rather large pool had arisen and was now accessible via two breaches in the fences surrounding the playing field.  Given the possible safety implications, arising out of rumours of local children using this pool for recreational purposes, we contacted the officers responsible for the Kelvin building project and they told us that the building contractors would be told to repair the fences as soon as possible.  It goes without saying that we will continue to pursue this matter until we have secured an appropriate outcome.”

County Road North – National Avenue crossing safety problems

John Fareham and John Abbott are working to resolve problems with the safety of children  crossing County Road North and National Avenue.

John Fareham says, "John and I have both been receiving separate representations from local residents regarding the lack of continuity in crossing patrol provision on County Road North and the lack of any provision at the County Road North-National Avenue junction – this when there is a crossing patrol provided in tandem with the traffic island and push-button crossings at Bricknell Avenue. We have therefore referred the matter to the officers who will be carrying out a survey to confirm levels of demand for a crossing patrol at the junction. It goes without saying that John and I will continue to pursue this matter until we secure an appropriate outcome.”

Location of burger van near Wises Farm Road/Woolsheds Close/Haverflats Close

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured conditions attaching to the operation of a burger van which should prevent its being a nuisance to residents of Wises Farm Road, Woolsheds Close and Haverflats Close.

The May meeting of the Council’s Licensing Committee considered an application for a 9ft. long burger van to sell food to those who work on the National Avenue industrial estate. We were able to draw the Committee’s attention to the fact that the proposed site was too close to local residents’ homes and the Committee agreed to the application being approved subject to the van being parked further down, near the Golf Centre and in a position to be agreed between the applicant, the officers, and ourselves.

Brompton Close tree trimming

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured further tree trimming and the prospect of future tree planting on Brompton Close.

As local residents will be aware we have taken a keen interest in tree maintenance here and have received confirmation from the officers that some additional careful pruning will be carried out in the near future.  In addition, as the current trees are in what the experts call “early maturity”, the planting of further trees, intended to take their place in due course, will be put on the Council’s winter tree planting programme for 2012-13.  It goes without saying that we will continue to take an interest in the state of local trees and will pursue work if we think it is necessary.

Carriageway repairs

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured undertakings of carriageway repairs on Bricknell Avenue between Strathcona Avenue and Ancaster Avenue; on Hotham Road North between Bricknell Avenue and the Barrowman public house; on Bishop Alcock Road between Hotham Road North and the City boundary; on Slingsby Close; and on Goddard Avenue.

These repairs will be conducted using new and experimental carriageway patching materials and form part of a wider programme of work across the ward. It goes without saying  that if these do not prove satisfactory we will expect to have the work done again with more conventional materials and that when we have a start date we will pass it on as soon as we have it. The general situation across the city as regards carriageway repairs is not ideal but we have pressed for Bricknell Ward to receive, at the very least, its fair share of carriageway repair resources.