Traffic congestion caused by sewer repairs on The Mount

Increased congestion on The Mount today as Yorkshire Water repair a sewer pipe near the Holgate Road junction. Work is continuing.
Real time traffic congestion information can be found by clicking this link

Bishopthorpe Road/Scarcroft Road junction improvements

Ageing and outdated traffic signals at the junction of Bishopthorpe Road and Scarcroft Road are set to be replaced next month by City of York Council, as part of a scheme to help improve pedestrian access and ease congestion in the area.

The works will include replacing all the ageing traffic signal equipment, creating a new pedestrian crossing on Bishopthorpe Road, removing the small central triangular island on Bishopthorpe Road and widening/resurfacing the footway.

Works will start on Monday 9 September and are estimated to take around four weeks to complete. The hours of working will be 9.30am – 4.30pm, Monday to Friday and 8am to 4pm Saturdays and Sundays.

In order to safely construct part of the work some evening works may be required. Notification of these will be provided in advance. 

Works will be suspended between Friday 27 and Sunday 29 September due to the York Balloon Fiesta.

The new technology being installed will help to manage traffic in the area and enable the new systems to link direct to the council’s Traffic and Control Centre, so that Network Monitoring Officers can manage the flow of traffic better in busy periods.

The right turn from Scarcroft Road to Bishopthorpe Road will be closed during the works and diversion routes will be in place.

During the works it is anticipated that all bus services will operate as normal, however there will be delays when travelling through the junction. 

The junction will be operating under temporary signals during the works and motorists are expected to experience delays while the works are underway.

Troubled York Council land sale – more details

More details of the York Council’s controversial decision to sell land to the Yorspace community housing group are emerging. In response to a Freedom of Information request the Council has provided a copy of the independent valuation that it obtained for the land at Lowfields.

Yorspace Lowfield development

The valuation states that the site may be sold to a community housing group for £300,000 which “represents a 20% discount on market value”. However, the valuation report is based on the construction of 10 semi-detached homes on the land.

The Yorspace proposal envisages a 19 unit, high density, development.

So the scale of the taxpayer subsidy remains obscure. The only way to test the financial assumptions would be to market the site, comparing offers for social housing with a commercial alternative.

While Section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972 does allow Local Authorities to sell, in certain circumstances, land at below market value and without seeking competitive bids, that discretion is not unfettered.

The Council constitution requires a reason for such a sale to be minuted. There is no such reason given in the record of the officer decision taken on 18th January 2019

Construction of roads at Lowfields is almost complete.

The record of the meeting says, The Mutual Home Ownership Society housing model they use is designed as such that they will be economically accessible to lower income families and the affordability of the homes is maintained in perpetuity”.

The council has not, so far, chosen to include, in the terms of the proposed sale, a requirement that occupiers MUST be lower income families and/or that they should currently be registered on the home choice/housing waiting list..

As the development has NOT been classified as “affordable housing” in the Local Plan, the Council must legally provide a specific reason for giving preferential treatment to a particular group.

Valuation report published

The reason might be, for example, to create local jobs, to provide accessible leisure facilities, to provide homes for those on the waiting list or whatever.

However, an auditable rationale is a legal requirement.

The sale to Yorspace has not been completed yet but is expected next month. A further report to a council committee on the scheme is expected on 26th September.

Meanwhile it has emerged that no progress has been made in selling any “self-build“ plots at Lowfield

The Council says that marketing material for the plots is being prepared by the Community and Self-Build Officer, in conjunction with Custom Build Homes, who are the sale agent for the plots.

Self build homes are likely to be worth more than the construction cost.

 “A promotional event was held last year, and it is planned that another event will be held at the start of the marketing launch”.

 Plots will be promoted through the council, the Custom Build Homes website and Rightmove. Plots will go on sale this Autumn.

The buyers must have started construction work within 12 months of purchase and have completed all works within 2 years”.

Fly tipping

York Council “doesn’t know” clean up costs

A York Councillor has been told, in a response to a Freedom of Information request, that it doesn’t know what the cost of clearing fly tipping in the City is.

284 cases of fly tipping have been reported in the last month. Guildhall, Micklegate, Westfield and Holgate wards worst affected.

The Councillor claims that new charges and access restrictions to the City’s recycling centres are resulting in more fly tipping.

There are certainly issues to be addressed in both east and west York.

West York
East York