Allderidge Avenue graffiti again

John Fareham and John Abbott have chased up and secured the removal of graffiti from the street sign on Allderidge Avenue.

While CONTACT! 1381 was going the rounds we noticed that the cleaning of this sign, which should have been undertaken a day or two earlier according to the information we received from the officers, had not in fact even been started. We therefore shared our concerns about this with the officers who arranged for the work to be done the following morning. We both visited the site – John Abbott in the evening we found out about this and John Fareham the following morning - and we both e-mailed the officers that evening and again in the morning.  The officers moved quickly in response, confirming the job was done by lunchtime, but given the propensities of those with spray cans we beg leave to doubt that this is all they will get up to and will insist on a prompt further response should more graffiti appear.

Chanterlands Avenue depot appearance

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured an interim solution to the problem of loss of visual amenity for those whose homes face the Council depot on Chanterlands Avenue North.

We have been liaising with the officers on this and it has been proposed that the concrete buildings in the depot be painted green to make their appearance less offensive in the hope that this will suffice as a temporary measure until the foliage at the front has had the chance to grow enough to provide proper screening. We now understand the job has been passed to NPS who will do the work as soon as they can obtain the correct kind of paint. It goes without saying that if this does not prove sufficient we will consider other options, but part of the issue hitherto has been finding a solution which does not have negative impact on the traffic situation by either blocking drivers’ views when they leave the depot or hiding them from motorists on Chanterlands Avenue North as they turn onto it. We are outraged by how long this has taken -  it is a simple matter but we have seen the Council passing the buck from department to department.

Hull to Scarborough bridge remodelling

John Fareham and John Abbott report that work is soon to begin on the remodelling of the bridge over the Hull to Scarborough rail line.

The legal documentation to purchase the additional land needed for the works has been signed and has been exchanged with the vendor – not all the land to be used originally belonged to the Council – and the contractors who have been selected to do the job will then be eager to get started. A decision record to formalise the deal in Council procedural terms can be signed as soon as the text has been slightly amended.  The officers have undertaken to ensure local residents on both sides of the bridge are kept aware of anything that may affect them but we too will ensure that such information is passed on to residents on this side of the bridge.

Allderidge Avenue street lights

John Fareham and John Abbott would like to know what local residents' preferences are with regard to modern or replica old-fashioned replacement street lighting for Allderidge Avenue.

John and John are, for their own part, entirely relaxed as to which option residents prefer, but given the limitations placed on funding for such works and the time for which it is available, they would appreciate hearing as soon as possible, and ideally by the end of June, from local residents who have preferences one way or the other in this matter.  They will of course go along with the majority view as to which form of lighting is preferred, but local residents may wish to bear in mind that replica lamp standards cost approximately twice as much as the modern variety, possibly because there is less demand for, or more complexity in, marking replicas of old fashioned street lights.

Bricknell Avenue resurfacing

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the north side of Bricknell Avenue will be resurfaced this summer on the completion of the current cabling connection works.

Local residents will, of course, be well aware  that the carriageway has been dug up a second time in order to install new jointing pits in which to connect cables, which could only be installed once the full cabling route was established.  As soon as the works currently under way in Cottingham are completed, the resurfacing works can be scheduled and the officers expect that the will be going ahead in June or July depending on when the weather is suitable. Of course, we will be open to input from local residents as to whether this work is a complete resolution of issues with vehicles causing vibration in buildings and will work to resolve any such problems if it isn’t.

Allderidge Avenue graffiti

John Fareham and John Abbott have arranged for the removal of graffiti on the sign at the entrance to Allderidge Avenue.

As local residents may appreciate, we pass this way often, and having seen the markings on the sign we reported them to the officers.  Nothing having happened as a result, we reported the matter again, referring to the persons responsible in terms of appropriate vigour, and this time we received an undertaking from the officers that the work would be done the following day or the working day after that.  It goes without saying that if any more vandals try mistaking your street sign for a wipe-clean board we will attend to the matter again – graffiti are not clever and simply obliterating half a sign with spray paint is vandalism pure and simple.

National Avenue bin

John Fareham and John Abbott have arranged for the relocation of a litter bin on National Avenue that was being used as a stepping-stone by vandals to access National Avenue allotments.

This matter was drawn to our attention by an allotment holder who had seen this bin being used in just such a fashion and could not understand at all why the bin was on that side when the houses were on the other side and bin users might well have been expected to prefer not to cross the road to get rid of sweet wrappers or the like.  We therefore contacted the local area team who now understand that the bin will be moved further down National Avenue and away from the allotments within the week so that it cannot be climbed on to get into the allotments. John, Andrew Percy and John have forked out Community Initiatives funding over the years to improve litter bin provision nearby and we now hope that getting this one on the correct side of the road will improve its throughput of litter.

Wyke College traffic flow

John Fareham and John Abbott have made a start on changes to traffic flow around Wyke College through improved College parking arrangements.

As a result of correspondence between ourselves and Wyke College, we are pleased to inform local residents that the College will, from the start of the autumn term in September, be allocating 21 parking spaces for College students. This may or may not be as many places as are needed but we will continue to work with the officers and with local residents to improve traffic flow around this junction. After all, keeping the Burniston Road – Hartoft Road – Grammar School Road loop clear is not just of concern to motorists, it also has a bearing on the long term viability of the Stagecoach service 110 bus route which can get right royally stuck on the corners.

Tribute band festival given go-ahead

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the licensing application for a tribute-band festival on the YPI site has been approved by a sub-committee of the Council’s Licensing Committee.

John and John do of course remain very aware of the many concerns raised by local residents with regard to such issues as YPI floodlighting and the parking issues that might arise should the flats on the YPI frontage be approved at appeal.  When the sub-committee met John Abbott therefore asked the event organiser about the noise levels as they might impact on local residents and was assured that the Council’s Environmental Health officers had no concerns in that respect and that, to put it in non-technical terms, the event would be held in the same marquee as usual and the organiser had regularly been able to use his mobile phone just outside the marquee without the music from within getting in the way.  There being no other licensing concerns, the sub-committee therefore approved the application subject to confirmation, which the officers have since received, that the YPI had indeed given permission for the event to go ahead.

Strathcona Avenue street sign

John Fareham and John Abbott have arranged for the replacement of the street sign at the Bricknell Avenue end of Strathcona Avenue.

Following the state of the signage here being drawn to our attention, we referred the matter to the officers, requesting that they attend to it as part of our continuing attention to the state of local signage and street furniture in general.  The signs at the other end are of course in the East Riding but we will continue to take seriously our responsibility for such routine maintenance as this.

Bricknell Avenue cabling works

John Fareham and John Abbott have been investigating the sudden reappearance of cabling roadworks on Bricknell Avenue of which local residents received only 24 hours’ notice.

Local residents contacted us on the day that the excavation works began and have since furnished us with the letter they received from the contractors dated 14^th May stating that the work was due to start on the 15^th.  We have been liaising with residents who live right near the works and who have complained about the appearance of cracks in their interior house walls; if you see any such cracks in your walls – and of course we hope you don’t - we suggest you contact the Council’s Insurance Section in the Corporate Finance Department of the Guildhall on 613520 or 613517. If you can take photos of such cracks they will be able to advise you on where to send them and will take the necessary enquiries from there.  We have also contacted the officers and Balfour Beatty to request an explanation of the lack of notice to local residents and ourselves.