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Chapelfields residents have been invited to attend a public meeting on Wednesday at which they will be invited to give their reaction to plans, by the Labour controlled York Council, to establish a “Showmans Yard” on nearby land off Wetherby Road.
The meeting starts at 7:00pm and will take place at Sanderson Community House on Bramham Road
We understand that possible offences, under government regulations which force Councils to publish all relevant background papers containing information which influences a decision that a Council takes, are being investigated by North Yorkshire Police.
Breaches of the regulations are treated as a criminal offence and can lead to a fine of £200.
We understand that the complaints relate to the non publication of background documents for Labour’s (so called) “Get York Building” campaign and to the, more recent, decision to scrap 11 Librarian posts in the City.
Action is also likely to be taken to force the Council to reveal the contents of the “draft” ARUP consultants report which prompted the Cabinet decision, in April, to plan for a population increase in York of 25% over the next 15 years.
The Sunday Times is reporting today that a York Council credit card has been used to pay for a £180 pedicure.
Apparently the money was spent on the feet of “disadvantaged” youngsters to improve their “self esteem”
Meanwhile James Alexander has published more details of his travel expenses.
They include a £12 taxi ride to Terry’s to take part in a “photo shoot”.
Residents living in the Bishopthorpe Road area may feel that use of a bus would have been more appropriate.
Taxpayers living in the rest of the City might tell the Leader to follow the example of his predecessors and use some of his £30,000 a year salary to fund trips within the City.
A meeting on Thursday will be told that the York Council invested only £4.5 million of its £6.8 million transport budget during the last financial year.
This represents the worst percentage outturn performance for over a decade and will be a major embarrassment to a Council which is currently seeking additional transport funding to address congestion concerns on the A1237 and elsewhere in the City.
The credibility of the Labour Council’s “priority programme” Get York Moving has also been damaged by the performance.
Most of the shortfall came on projects to provide new park and ride sites and improve bus services in the City.
It means that the completion date for these schemes will slip by at least 12 months.
£395,000 was budgeted to be spent on schemes aimed at improving road safety. Only £202,000 of the budget was spent. Most of it went on a 20 mph speed limit scheme in the Bishopthorpe Road area.
On parking, the report says that “implementation of the ‘pay on exit’ car parking scheme at Marygate car park was delayed as the scheme that was initially proposed (using ANPR cameras) could not be progressed due to recent changes in legislation. It is now proposed to install barriers and new ticket machines at Marygate car park to replace the existing ‘pay and display’ system in 2013/14, which should be operational in late 2013”.
The scheme will cost £100,000 to implement amidst concerns that maintenance of the equipment could cost more than any additional revenue generated by the system
NB. The Council recently had to admit that its plans to provide new homes for the elderly were also running 3 years behind schedule.
Skate boarders, bmxers and musicians will be showcasing their skills at a special event
The event will be held on Monday 17 June at the council’s West Offices and will feature a mobile skate park for some of the children to show of the tricks that they have learnt during sessions at The Zoo skate park in York.
Representatives from The Duke of Edinburgh Award will also be on hand to demonstrate their expedition work and a local youth band will also be on hand to provide entertainment for the evening.
Residents in York will have the chance to have their say on public services in its annual residents’ survey from the 17 June to the 25 July 2013.
The survey is an opportunity for people to give feedback on services across the city. The survey focuses on a range of topics including York’s economy, communities, protecting vulnerable people, protecting the environment and travelling and transport in York.
The questionnaire is posted to a random sample of households across the city but all residents will have the opportunity to have their say online.
To complete the survey online visit www.york.gov.uk/bigyorksurvey between 17 June and 25 July.
Residents who participate in the Big York Survey will be automatically entered into a draw to win £100 worth of shopping vouchers (!!)
A new, free What’s On listing for people with special needs has been launched as an extra social resource to strengthen York’s communities.
Find more information here https://www.studying-in-uk.org/studying-in-uk-as-a-student-with-disabilities/
