Car park charges set to be frozen in York

 Castle Car Park ()Car park charges look set to be frozen across York to “help local businesses bounce back after the Boxing Day floods”.

Leaders of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat Executive have announced plans to freeze charges in council-run car parks as part of next month’s 2016/17 Budget.

This means prices will be unchanged for the next 12 months at car parks including Castle, Foss Bank, Marygate, Monk Bar, Piccadilly, and St George’s Field.

Recent trends under Labour - click to enlarge

Recent trends under Labour – click to enlarge

The freeze will be  the first since the Council was led by the LibDems in the period up to 2011.

Car parking charges were held in check by that administration for a record seven years.

When Labour came to power, they introduced large increases. Over their four years in office, some charges nearly doubled.

In the end, the law of diminishing returns meant that the Councils parking income actually fell.

Although the freeze is likely to be generally welcomed, it fails to address immediate concerns.

We suggested a few days ago that the Council should reduce the charges at its Foss Bank “shoppers” car park at least until the end of March. 

Unfortunately this idea has not been followed up.

Instead the City of York Council has confirmed that it will contribute £50,000 to a new UK-wide campaign to promote York. Tourism bosses in the city say this will be their biggest ever marketing campaign as work continues to promote York following the floods.
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Man arrested after thefts from vehicles in York Business Park

Theft from carA man from Merseyside has been arrested after a report of thefts from vehicles at a garage in York.

Police were called at 12.45pm on Thursday 21 January 2016 with a report that a number of satnav memory cards had just been stolen from several vehicles at a garage on the York Business Park.

Officers immediately began a search of the area, and at 2pm a suspicious vehicle was stopped near Appleton Roebuck.

Items of suspected stolen property were recovered from the car, and the driver, a 27-year-old man from St Helens, Merseyside, was arrested on suspicion of theft from a motor vehicle.

He has been released on bail, with conditions not to enter North Yorkshire, as police enquiries continue.

Shake up in York open space contributions

It seems likely that there will be more openness in future about how money contributed by developers for public space improvements is used.

A report to a meeting taking place next week proposes that a list of monies available will be updated on the Councils web site each month.

This is a welcome proposal.

The Town and Country Planning Acts created the ability for Local Authorities to seek a payment from developers in lieu of providing children’s play space, amenity space and sports pitches within new housing developments. This is commonly known as a s.106 payment.

How the payments are used has been shrouded in secrecy for years. In the past some were even syphoned off to help private member’s sports clubs.

One area of concern is the threat that local public spaces will have lower maintenance standards in future.  This concern is likely to be heightened by a reference in the new policy that the S106 funds will be concentrated on “the development of more ward based green space maintenance and care”. 

Land near Acomb Library which could be improved. Click to enlarge

Land near Acomb Library which could be improved. Click to enlarge

If the Council hopes that local residents will clean and maintain large public opens spaces, then they are kidding themselves.

The proposed policy also fails to identify the opportunity to acquire additional pieces of land for informal recreation. There are opportunities near the Westfield area which could see land – currently used for grazing – acquired for informal leisure use.

One idea is the establishment of a “country park”

The only likely significant redevelopment in the area – the former Lowfields school site – would also provide an opportunity to improve the adjacent playing fields. Similarly, the landlocked waste land to the side of the library on Front Street could be grassed over and used as a garden area.

But both require the York Council to start to actively manage its assets

NB. Section 106 payments are generally made where there is an existing or identified shortfall arising from a proposed development and it is not practical or desirable to have open space within a development (for example where developments are for individual or a small number of dwellings or where there is existing open space nearby which could be improved to accommodate the additional use from new residents). Payment is based on an approved formula related to the number of new bedrooms within the development.

What’s on in York: Holocaust Memorial Day 2016

Holocaust Memorial Day 23 Jan – 31 Jan

HMD-Leaflet -2016Holocaust Memorial Day’s vision is to learn from the past to create a safer future.

Residents and visitors are welcome to join in the talks, walks, films, theatre, exhibitions and commemoration events taking place at various venues in York, which embrace this year’s theme ‘Don’t stand by’.

Every year, 27 January marks Holocaust Memorial Day. On and around this date people from all over the world come together to remember the destruction and devastation caused by the Holocaust, genocides and persecutions on a worldwide scale.  

York’s Holocaust Memorial Day programme engages with partners both inside and outside of the city to create a programme of events throughout January.

Events include:

  • Holocaust Memorial Day Civic Event: Sunday 31 Jan from 5.45pm at York Explore, Library Square. Everyone is welcome at this event of short talks, exhibitions, discussion and film.  

Films:

  • ‘Paragraph 175’ on Saturday 23 Jan at South Bank Community Centre, Clements Hall. 
  • ‘My Nazi Legacy’ on Wednesday 27 January at City Screen. 
    ‘Woman in Gold’ on Friday 29 January at Clements Hall.
  • ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ on Friday 29 January at the Community Cinema, New Earswick Folk Hall.

Theatre: 

  • ‘They Kill Us for their Sport’ at the Guildhall on Sunday 24 January

Story telling:

  • Shonaleigh. The Diamond Girl and the Goat-Horn Bee on Wednesday 27 January in Theatre Studio 1, York St John University
  • Reflections at University of York on Wednesday 27 January including reading, music and lecture-demonstrations.

600 Candles:

  • Candlelit commemoration in the Chapter House at York Minster on Wednesday 27 January.

Walks:

  • York Jewish History Walk on Wednesday 27 January and Jewish History Walk on Sunday 31 January.

For more information download a copy of the Holocaust Memorial Day brochure or pick up a copy from libraries. You can also find out more at www.hmd.org.uk.