Kebab van application rejected

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the City Council’s Licensing Committee have rejected an application for a street trading licence in a street adjoining the University.

Salmon Grove is not in our ward, but it is nearby, and the University are proposing to increase substantially the number of students actually resident on the campus. It thus follows that, given what we have learnt about the spread of litter from McDonalds on Cottingham Road, there might well have been a risk of takeaway packaging finding its way across Cottingham Road in quantities sufficient to bother local residents. I was therefore delighted to support a motion to reject the application which was passed; even if the kebabs the applicant was proposing to sell had been of the highest possible quality, his vehicle could not have been accommodated easily, or perhaps at all, down a street with heavy parking on one side and double yellow lines down the other.

More on Knapton Avenue markings

John Fareham and John Abbott are making progress with investigations into the markings that were removed from Knapton Avenue.

We asked the officers to investigate whether there had been any plan to put markings down at this point.  They told us that it was the responsibility of another department who in turn told us that the markings had been put down illegally and the corporate centre therefore sent someone to cover them with spray paint. This strikes us as puzzling – why would someone pay for fake markings and who would be able to paint accurate forgeries of real markings? At the time of writing we had still to receive a reply but as soon as we get one we will of course tell local residents what it says.

Commonwealth Homes grass cutting

John Fareham and John Abbott have resolved issues with grass cutting inside Commonwealth Homes.

We received complaints from local residents to the effect that this grass had not been attended to for some time and was getting far too long.  We therefore contacted the officers to see whether they could arrange for it to be cut and when; they now inform us that the work is to be undertaken next week as they are well aware of the propensity of this patch of grass to grow at a rate of knots. Needless to say, we are as sure as they are that it will need further attention later in the summer, but if local residents express further concerns in this connection we will of course report those too.

Knapton Avenue street lighting

John Fareham and John Abbott are working to resolve questions relating to road markings which may or may not have been proposed for Knapton Avenue.

We received representations from local residents that cones had been put down, ostensibly to mark the positions where lines were to be painted, and then removed, leaving the road markings in a condition that led to accidents involving damage to vehicles and the possibility of future injury to pedestrians.  We therefore referred the matter to the officers responsible for road marking who told us that they had had nothing to do with the placing of the cones, but that they would consult with the only other department of the Council likely to have placed them. At the time of writing we were still waiting to hear back about this but when we do receive an explanation of what has been going on we will of course let local residents know.

Fairfax Avenue LED light bulbs

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the fitting of LED light bulbs to Fairfax Avenue street lights.

This work, which was recently completed, is consistent both with our long term strategy to upgraded as much Bricknell Ward street lighting as we possibly can and with the Council’s aspiration to roil out LED lighting across the whole city.  As to why this makes sense, two simple facts should make the rational clear; firstly, LED lighting consumes 40% less electricity than standard street lights, and secondly, LED bulbs are expected to last around 25 years as against 6 years for the normal sort.  Both these facts mean the new LED lights are a good idea, saving both money and KWL’s time; we look forward to further installations of such bulbs here and we will certainly wish for them to be done elsewhere sooner rather than later.

Bricknell Avenue LED light bulbs

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the fitting of LED light bulbs to Bricknell Avenue street lights.

This work, which was recently completed, is consistent both with our long term strategy to upgraded as much Bricknell Ward street lighting as we possibly can and with the Council’s aspiration to roil out LED lighting across the whole city.  As to why this makes sense, two simple facts should make the rational clear; firstly, LED lighting consumes 40% less electricity than standard street lights, and secondly, LED bulbs are expected to last around 25 years as against 6 years for the normal sort.  Both these facts mean the new LED lights are a good idea, saving both money and KWL’s time; we look forward to further installations of such bulbs here and we will certainly wish for them to be done elsewhere sooner rather than later.

Chanterlands Avenue Niorth street light repairs

John Fareham and John Abbott have arranged for repairs to be undertaken to Chanterlands Avenue North street lights.

We received a complaint from local residents to the effect that no fewer than three local street lights were not working.  In my capacity as a director of KWL I therefore contacted them direct to ask for the repairs to be undertaken and thereby avoid any delay that might have arisen as a result of sending them a request for action via the corporate centre. We may reasonably assume therefore that the work will be undertaken in due course, given that KWL have undertaken to chase up the cabling issues that are causing the lights not to work with Northern Powergrid, but we would also thank the local residents concerned for supplying the numbers if the lights in question.  It is always helpful to inform those responsible for such repairs as these of that kind of information – it will certainly save time when they get there.

Council searching for short term traveller camp site

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the Council are still trying to find a site for a short term traveller camp which would allow travellers to stop over for few days while on the way to somewhere else.

At a recent scrutiny meeting we were given the impression that a site had been selected elsewhere in the city. Had this actually been the case it would have been excellent news for parts of the city that have had their fill of traveller behaviour. However, on checking with the officers, we found that this was not actually the case but that they were still trying to identify somewhere suitable. Taken together with the rate of progress on the building work on sites which were targeted by travellers in the past and might be again, this could, if it comes to fruition, mean that travellers have less chance to come here now and no need to do so in the future.

Bricknell Avenue dog fouling

Bricknell Avenue verge protection

John Fareham and John Abbott have approved the allocation of a considerable sum of money towards grass verge protection schemes on Bricknell Avenue.

With the end of the financial year close at hand, dark forces at the corporate centre are already looking to claw back funds not allocated to projects this year and use them for goodness knows what in 2017-18.  We therefore agreed with officers at the local Area Team that around £7200 of unallocated funds would be set aside for schemes to protect Bricknell Avenue. What this means is that these funds are now (a) safe from grasping hands and (b) well-nigh certain to be of benefit to residential amenity on Bricknell Avenue. As soon as a scheme of schemes have been worked up to go with these monies we will of course let local residents have full details.

Cropton Park drink and drugs

John Fareham and John Abbott are making progress with issues relating to substance abuse and excessive drinking on Cropton Park.

We have been receiving reports from concerned local residents to the effect that needles and other evidence of drug abuse have been found on site and that a certain motor vehicle has been the focus of activity where this and excessive drinking on site are concerned.  We have therefore referred the matter to the Council’s anti-social behaviour team who have in turn drawn the matter to the attention of the Police. It goes without saying that any further information we receive on such matters will also be passed on – needles are sharp and therefore potentially dangerous to small children playing there, regardless of what they have previously been used for.

More on Newland Park planning application

John Fareham and John Abbott have fuller details of the reasons why the planning application to expand the house in multiple occupation at 30 Newland Park was rejected by planning officers.

The letter sent to the applicants saying why the application was rejected has been placed on the Council website, and those who wish to get a copy and read it may now do so.  However the main points are simple enough.  The application was rejected because firstly, it was felt that the increased number of occupants would impact negatively on the neighbours’ residential amenity because the additional comings and goings would increase noise and general nuisance, and secondly, because the changes to the property’s front garden and the addition of more parking would be contrary to planning policy because those changes meant less greenery.  As we have said before, the applicant does have the right to appeal, and  this particular applicant has been prone in the past to do exactly that – but if the applicant does appeal we will tell local residents how and when to take part in the appeals process.

Newland Park planning application rejected

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the planning application to increase the number of occupants at 30 Newland Park has been rejected by the planning officers.

This decision is not conclusive – the applicants do, after all, have the right to appeal – but by following due process the officers have decided that the application should be rejected and it will therefore not be called to committee; we would have been ready otherwise to take it to Committee but we decided not to do so.  We thank local residents and the Newland Park Residents’ Association for the part they have taken in this process; as we said to the many residents who came to see us about this on our pioneering and trail-blazing mobile forum, we have made representations to the officers about this which we believe also had a considerable bearing on the outcome.

Murrayfield Road anti-social behaviour problems

John Fareham and John Abbott are concerned at reports of anti-social behaviour on Murrayfield Road.

We receive reports of such antics as verbal abuse of local residents by gangs of youths and objects being thrown at local residents’ houses. Given the reliable provenance of our information on these matters, we would urge those on the receiving end of such openly unacceptable behaviour to get in touch not only with the Police but with ourselves. We can, after all,  liaise with the Council’s anti-social behaviour team and arrange for local residents to receive the kind of record-keeping materials necessary to secure ASBOs and other sanctions against those responsible for anti-social behaviour.

Cropton Park vehicular damage

John Fareham and John Abbott are taking steps to protect the playing fields on Cropton Park from damage by vehicles.

We have been holding discussions with the officers and with senior officials of KWL about how to stop irresponsible vehicular usage trashing the playing surfaces. They inform us that funding has been allocated to pay for the setting up of a strategically placed bollard to stop vehicles travelling around the park in a certain direction. We also hear that the local police and the Council’s anti-social behaviour team have been successful in taking action against the perpetrators of acts of hooliganism and vandalism. All of this is welcome progress, but we feel more can be done, and we will press for further action to be taken; for example, a gating scheme would help considerably in controlling the behaviour of drivers entering the park, and a coat of paint on some of the equipment would also send a useful message about the priority we accord to the Park.

Goddard Avenue playing fields meeting

John Fareham and John Abbott have arranged for a public meeting to be held to discuss the allotments proposed for the Goddard Avenue playing fields.

The event will take place on Thursday 20^th April from 3.30 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. at the Avenues Centre on Park Avenue. The officers will be circulating official notices of the event nearer the time but – given how often we two can get double booked – we thought it might be worthwhile to give you plenty of advance notice so that, if you fell strongly about the matter, you could be sure of being free to attend.  This is a matter we still very much wish to progress from our end but – as is often the case – we want to know what local residents feel about the matter before nailing our and their colours to the mast.

County Road North traffic

John Fareham and John Abbott are investigating proposals for a Traffic Regulation Order for County Road North.

If progressed, the scheme would introduce double yellow lines between nos. 25 and 35 to remove traffic-flow blockages caused by cars parking there. The scheme would, as ever, be costly because of the statutory procedures involved in making sure everybody directly affected by the proposal is aware of it and on side - newspaper advertisements being the most expensive element.  We are therefore pressing for the corporate centre to find the funds to progress the scheme and we are also pressing for the appropriate long term solution – taking Fairfax Avenue OUT of the ring road.  This is of course an idea that both the old Guildhall parties have professed to support while in opposition but have backtracked from while in office.

Barrington Avenue street light replacement

John Fareham and John Abbott report that an order has been placed for replacement Barrington Avenue street lighting with KWL.

The officers have, at our request, now placed an order for the installation of new Barrington Avenue street lights to the value of £42,000.  This money has of course been waiting to be used for this purpose while we took the necessary steps to ensure that new lights were procured that would satisfy local residents’ clearly expressed preference for old-fashioned-looking lamp standards. Clearly lamp standards that have been here since 1930 are long overdue for replacement, but we might reasonably expect new lamps to offer better standards of lighting, and also to use less electricity while doing it. The work is expected to be completed by June of this year; when we have an accurate date for the commencement of the works we will of course let local residents know.

Ancaster Avenue grass verge protection

John Fareham and John Abbott have arranged for the installation of boulders to protect Ancaster Avenue grass verges.

We received a number of complaints from local residents to do with white vans parked inaccurately, let us say, on grass verges with a deleterious effect on the grass itself.  We have therefore arranged for a couple of  boulders to be installed by local company PBS, who keep a supply of boulders in storage for precisely such uses as this.  Whilst not in any way hostile to those who choose a means of earning a living that involves the use of a white van, we nevertheless expect all road users to respect the residential and visual amenity of the neighbourhood and keep the wheels of their vehicles, as with everybody else’s, firmly off the grass verge.

Marske Walk street lights

John Fareham and John Abbott have arranged for the replacement of Marske Walk street lights.

This is a part of our long term strategy to ensure that as many streets as possible in the ward enjoy the benefits of good modern street lighting.  We have been pressing for this work to be undertaken for some time and can now confirm that an order has been placed with KWL for the new street lights to go up. The papers for an imminent meeting of Wyke Area Committee say that the work will be done between April this year and April next year; when we know exact dates for the work we will of course pass them on.

Cottingham Road cycling on pavement

John Fareham and John Abbott are working to resolve issues with cycling on the pavement on Cottingham Road.

We have received a number of reports from local residents to the effect that this is causing considerable difficulty to pedestrians, including those who are visually handicapped.  We are therefore working closely with the police to ensure that, as far as possible, this irresponsible and potentially dangerous practice is brought, as far as possible, under the control of the law.  Steps have already been taken in this connection elsewhere in the ward and we are hopeful of an appropriate resolution of the problem here as well.

Cropton Park vandalism

John Fareham and John Abbott are working to resolve problems with vandalism, security and opening hours on Cropton Park.

We have seen online reports of vandalism and notified the officers that we were no longer prepared to commit funds to enhancements and repairs on the park until the park itself is adequately resourced and it is locked and unlocked at the proper times. They said that part of the problem was that staffing levels were down but that an additional member of staff would be starting work shortly. They have accepted our suggestion that other means of attending to park security such as involving the Police be looked into; it goes without saying that, if there are any significant developments having a bearing on local residents’ access to, or use of, the park we will pass them on as soon as we can.