York Council to sell Bootham Row car parking spaces

New threat to sell off Council housing land

Land at Bootham Row to be sold

The York Council’s Executive is being recommended to sell off 5 car parking spaces at Bootham Row car park. The land (see map) also accommodates motorcycle parking.

The Council is hoping to raise £155,000 from a local developer who hopes to remodel 27 Bootham.

The car parking spaces generate over £7000 a year for taxpayers

Coming at a time when pressure on City centre car parks is being blamed for the accelerating decline in the City centre retail economy, the plan is bound to raise eyebrows. It is reminiscent of the plan, hatched in 2011 by the then Labour led Council administration, which proposed to sell off the nearby Union Terrace car park. That idea collapsed after being heavily criticised by both residents and traders.

Housing land sale

More alarming is the publication of a lofty document which seeks to justify a new “Asset Management Strategy”. It is due to be discussed by the Council’s Executive on 28th September.

The report claims that the last strategy, launched in 2011, has been a success.

Amongst the credulous statements that Councillors are being asked to believe, are claims that that the York Central and Castle Gateway sites “have been made more economically active” (In fact very little progress has been made on either project over the last 6 years).

The report goes on to claim that older people’s accommodation has been improved. Again, the reality is that the project is running 4 years behind schedule.

Sanderson House community centre

Most bizarre is a claim that leasing community centres to local organisations  “have allowed voluntary groups to flourish, increase activity, improve outcomes and attract external funding”. The reality, at least at the two community centres in the Westfield area, is that volunteers have been given a crushing burden to handle with minimal Council support.  Most ad hoc leisure events at the centres have stopped with most bookings now being from third parties (which the management committees have to accept simply to pay for running costs)

The Council has similarly jettisoned its commitment to many local sports facilities.

The report talks vaguely of joint use arrangement with other public-sector providers such as GPs.

It seems likely that the Council intends to target staff who work in neighbourhood buildings potentially repeating the disastrous policy – from a customer service perspective – of closing facilities like the Acomb Housing office and the Beckfield Lane recycling centre.

Derelict site behind Acomb Explore Library

The report says that 5 (unidentified) Housing department owned sites will either be sold or freed up for redevelopment.

The report pointedly fails to identify the location of these sites.

There are of course pieces of Council owned land which are crying out for development.

These include the land to the rear of the Acomb Library, which was schedule as an extension providing “one stop shop” facilities – with residential accommodation above – over 8 years ago.

We are still waiting to see some progress.

Citizens Advice to get £12,000 boost for York residents financial advice and support services

 City of York Council is to consider funding an extra £12,000 for Citizens’ Advice York (CAY) so it can run additional drop-in help and advice sessions relating to universal credit.

The offer of the money – which is expected to be ratified at a decision session for the executive member for health and adult social care next week (14 September) – will enable the charity to reinstate two, half-day, advice ‘surgeries’ each week for six months.

The sessions had been threatened because of a shortfall in Citizens’ Advice income.

Demand for help is likely to increase with the further roll-out of universal credit across York.

Universal credit is a monthly payment for people who are on low incomes or out of work and is being introduced in stages nationwide.

An accelerated roll-out started in York in July and will affect most new claimants from this month onwards.

City of York Council has long-supported the work of Citizens’ Advice York and provides an annual grant of £122,500 so it can offer financial advice and support to residents.

The council’s cash contribution has been maintained at the same level for several years, despite budget pressures.

It has also pledged an extra £100,000 over two years from its ‘improving finances, improving lives’ fund to pay for additional services including a Citizens’ Advice debt support worker and GP surgery-based advice sessions.

Councillor Carol Runciman, who has responsibility for financial inclusion, said:

“The introduction of universal credit is a significant issue for many people in York.

“I’m very keen to make sure our residents have access to the information and advice they require when major changes are being made to benefits.

“I am delighted we are able to support the charity’s work with a potential funding boost to secure the future of the additional drop-in advice sessions.”

 

Contractor appointed for £9m Guildhall transformation

City of York Council has appointed Interserve to carry out the £9m transformation of the iconic Guildhall into a world-class civic and business venue.

Under the current plan Council officials will attempt to directly manage the taxpayer funded facility with £12.4 million at risk.  Much of the work is being funded by borrowing. At best, the business plan would see a minimal forecast surplus of  £1000 a year on the investment.  This would be after covering interest charges on the planned £8.7 million of extra  borrowing needed to fund the project.

Earlier in the year the Council announced that it had failed to find either public or private sector partners willing to share the financial risks on the project.

Today the Council says, “Interserve demonstrated that it has the expertise to deliver a high quality and best value remodelling of the listed building complex during a highly competitive tendering process. The construction company has worked on other significant listed buildings including Kirkgate Market in Leeds, Durham Castle and the former Co-op store in Newcastle”.

The council’s Executive approved plans to redevelop the Guildhall complex in March 2017. The redevelopment will “make the most” of the listed buildings, allowing riverside access to the complex which will host public and civic events, a restaurant and state-of-the-art business centre.

Interserve’s bid showed strong proposals for creating  the river access, and that the company understood how to overcome the significant challenges of carrying out construction on the site.

The appointment means that work should begin in January 2018, after contracts are signed and exploratory works are completed.

City of York Council’s Full Council meetings will be hosted at The Citadel, the former home of York’s Salvation Army now owned by York City Church, during the construction period.

Now York Council becomes a property speculator

The City of York Council is to invest nearly £15 million in purchasing a City centre retail and office development.

Swinegate Court

Although the business case remains confidential, the Council claims that the £813,000 in annual rent, that it expects to get from properties in “Swinegate Court”, will pay off the principal and interest charges on its extra borrowing.

The Council outbid several private investors to secure the deal.

It is likely that the Council, will seek a 50-year loan to buy the properties.

While it is true that, over the last few centuries, the City has always in the long term benefited from the increasing value of land that it has purchased, there is always a short-term risk in such ventures.

The properties in question are in a secondary shopping area and, with many City centre retailers under pressure partly because of the Councils projection of the area as a “playground” destination, rental growth is far from guaranteed.

This may well prove to be a prudent long term investment, but eyebrows may be raised when a Council, apparently struggling to fulfil its promise to improve basic public service standards, finds the resources to dabble in the property market.

Tories announce latest plan to develop Lowfields playing fields.

Tory Councillor Sam Lisle has praised controversial plans to build on the playing fields at Lowfields.

The revised plans see still more of the green field being built on with the nominal “village green” reduced in size to the equivalent of the grassed area on Dijon Avenue.

Lowfields plans 2016

Layout July 2017

He did so on the day that the Council confirmed its plans for an exhibition of the proposals which could see nearly 200 homes (including the rooms in the care home) crammed into the small site. It also revealed that any additional homes built on brownfield former Ministry of Defence land will not be used to offset the pressure to build on green fields like Lowfields.

The Lowfields plans also include relatively uncontroversial proposals for an elderly persons care home and bungalows on the east of the site (on the built footprint of the former school).

The school finally moved its activities from the Lowfield sports field in 2010 although usage by sports teams continues to this day.

The Council says the site, to be known as Lowfield Green, is at the pre-planning stage.

“Suggestions are now invited and comments can be submitted on plans for older people’s accommodation, housing, a health hub and public open space. The latest plans follow on from previous public engagement in October 2016.

The drop-in event this month will be held at the Gateway Centre, Front Street, Acomb YO24 3BZ on Tuesday 18 July from 4:30 – 7pm and is open to all. Invitations have been sent to the immediate neighbours of the site.

At the drop-in event people can see and discuss the plans with officers and learn more about changes to the plans since the last event. Once comments are reviewed and final plans drawn up, the council will submit a planning application this summer.

The proposals for the site include:

  • Over 55’s accommodation including flats and bungalows
  • Family housing
  • York’s first self-build housing plots to be offered by the council
  • Land for community-led housing group, YorSpace
  • A health hub
  • Public open space”.

The Council are coy about a plan to provide a police station on the site. This would have meant the closure of the police depot on York Road and is controversial (although currently located outside the playing field part of the site). Similar unanswered questions remain about the Council ‘s paln to estbalsih a “health centre” on the site with no funding having been allocated for such a function by the NHS.

The Council says that “anyone unable to go to that event can see the plans at a display at Explore Acomb Learning Library Centre, Front Street, Acomb YO24 3BZ from 18 to 28 July 2017, or they can be viewed and commented on at www.york.gov.uk/consultations. (NB. There are no plans on the Councils web site at present)
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York Council investment programme slips

A Council report shows an out-turn of £35.751m on the Council capital investment budget compared to an approved budget of £52.428, an overall variation of £16.677m.

Community stadium start slips

The biggest slippage (£3.5 million) was on the York Central project although there were also delays in other areas including school maintenance, housing construction, the Glen Lodge extension, waste disposal, IT development and upgrades to buses.

The report shows that expenditure on the Community Stadium has also slipped again with the bulk of the work now expected in 2018/19. In total, the Council will spend £36 million on this project although this figure does not include the substantial sums spent to date or the (privately funded) commercial elements of the project.

The report goes on to say;

Mansion House cost up by £150,000

  • that the Mansion House restoration scheme has an outturn position of £1.031m in 2016/17, requiring re-profiling of £515k of funds from 2017/18 into 2016/17. The work is now expected to be completed in August 2017.  The report goes on to say that “as the works contract has progressed a number of areas of additional work have been identified as necessary to safeguard the future of the Mansion House, these essential restoration works will cost an additional £150”.
  • the Tenants Choice programme saw 120 properties have their kitchens, bathrooms and wiring updated through the year. This is significantly lower than the 220 properties that were planned. This is due to problems with tenants refusing works, delays due to damp problems and delays with kitchen deliveries. The scheme under spent by £416k in 2016/17
  • the proposed developments at Newbury Avenue and Chaloners Road have also been delayed. The development now proposed is for 5-6 bungalows and “will be submitted for planning approval in July”. The development of homes at Chaloners Road was postponed when the developer withdrew from the contract. A revised scheme will be submitted for planning approval in late summer 2017
A summary of the Councils £1/4 billion investment plans can be found below

York Council easing out of budget crisis?

Good progress in improving some services

The York Council showed a small budget surplus during the last financial year. As a result, its reserves will increase from £6.8m to £7.3m. In addition, prudent use of its contingency fund will see its 2017/18 provision increase to £1,049k.

This represents a marked improvement on the performance of the Council when it was under Labour control between 2011 and 2015.

The Council has also published selective performance stats.

These claim to show good progress with only delayed discharges from hospital sounding a negative note.

But is everything as rosy as may seem?

The Council’s Executive does not receive exception reports. Such reports would highlight failing performance at street level (which the Council claims is its primary focus)

Selective performance stats published by Council

A survey being undertaken in the Westfield ward by local Councillors presents a slightly different picture.

Westfield Councillors survey results at June 2017

Although respondents say that they are satisfied with most local public services there are exceptions.

The biggest failings (in sub-urban areas) are;

  • Poor road and footpath maintenance
  • Parking provision and
  • Litter/poop scoop bin provision

The Council provides more detailed information on line (see www.yorkopendata.org under the “performance scorecards” section)

But several of the scorecards have still  not been updated for the 2016/17 year.

Other elements of performance are not publicly monitored.

These include the progress made with locally budgeted Ward Committee schemes some of which – although funded – have been in a lengthening waiting list for over 2 years.

Better progress on genuine local concerns would enhance the Councils claim that its priority is indeed the provision of good quality basic services.

On Line performance stats need updating

“Red Alert” as York Council confirms customer management system in trouble

Just a few days after we revealed that the Councils IT systems were at best “flaky”, there has been official confirmation of the scale of the problems

A report to the Council’s Audit Committee includes a “Red Warning” about the new digital system (CRM) on its risk register.

The project ran into serious trouble earlier in the year when a “contractual issue” ruled out “going live” on many customer management features.

Now the position has worsened with no progress on resolving the issue being reported. The Council is pinning its hopes on an “independent review” of the outstanding issues but no timescales have been agreed,

The IT change is hugely expensive for taxpayers. It is a project first mooted in 2011 but since then progress has been agonisingly slow. As a result the Council has been criticised for not buying proven “off the shelf” solutions; instead they preferred to “go it alone”.

The Executive member with responsibility for the project (Chris Steward) quit in January, leaving Council Leader David Carr to pick up the pieces.

It seems that he has had little more success in moving the project forward.

York Council takes action to ease debt risk for poorer families

The York Council has agreed to pay some of the fees involved in setting up and running a budget bank account at the Credit Union shop at 8 Acomb Court off York Road (tel.03030 300010) .

Details of budget and other accounts available at the branch can be found on the SYCC web site

The Council is taking the action to encourage those reliant on the Universal Credits benefit package to budget to avoid debts. Univeral Credit is paid in arrears and can be difficult to manage.

A report to a recent meeting says,

“A recent article on the Association of Retained Council Housing site indicated that:

  • 86% of universal credit (UC) claimants living in council owned homes are in rent arrears (compared to 79% at March 2016).
  • 59% of universal credit claimants living in council owned homes have arrears that equate to more than one month’s rent.
  • Although 63% of UC tenants in arrears had pre-existing arrears before their UC claim only 44% of them are on APAs (alternative payment arrangements with direct payment from DWP)
  • The average value of arrears tenants owed across UC households has almost doubled to £615 since 31 March 2016 when average amount was £321.

A research article expressed concern about rent arrears.

“Not only are numbers of households increasing as UC is rolled out, but the percentage of households falling into rent arrears and experiencing financial difficulty is critically high.

If this trend is not reversed it will have significant impact on local authorities’ rental income streams and the long term ability for housing departments to provide essential services to their communities.

Use of the SYCU budget account and related services by customers could be one way of helping them manage their money effectively, prevent debt and help manage debt where this is accrued”.

Council officials will now help to promote the budget account to qualifying residents.

 

York parking account reveals £4.8 million surplus

Draft accounts published by the City of York Council for 2016/17 reveal that the Authority made a substantial surplus on its car parking activities.

Out of a total income of £7.3 million, nearly £5.5 million came from charges levied at off street car parks.

Residents parking schemes brought in £806,000 and penalty charges £600,000 while on-street machines took £466,000. The balance came from coach parks.

The Council spent over £1.3 million on its off street car parks with £1.2 million apportioned to enforcement and administration.

This meant that a surplus of over £4.7 million accrued.

Legally the Council must reinvest any parking profits in transport.

Most of the surplus was spent on highway maintenance (£4 million) and subsidised bus services (£670,000)  The rest went on community transport and shopmobility.

Some drivers may wonder why more has not been invested in resurfacing Council car parks, several of which are now in very poor condition.

The inaccurate “on line” parking space availability map has also been a source of criticism.