Esh Construction to take over “Hobstone” development

Yorkshire Housing has appointed new contractors to complete homes at three developments which had been on hold due to contractor Southdale Homes going into administration.

Esh Construction will take over work at Hob Stone which is located off Windsor Garth in York.

Work on the site is expected to recommenced later in July. Some of the properties are expected to be occupied before the end of the year.

18 months ago, the development met a lot of opposition when it was revealed that the Labour Council would almost double the number of houses to be built on the former school site.

Since then, progress has been very slow with growing concerns about the development’s impact on the neighbouring Hob Moor nature area as well as pressures on local transport systems

House prices rose by 6.5% in York last year

click to download and enlarge

Figures released by the Office of National Statistics today revealed that average house prices in York were £194,000 in 2014

This compares to £179,995 in 2008 and £182,050 in 2013. In the intervening period house prices had dropped significantly (because of the recession).

During 2014 the average prices, by type of property, were:

Detached £277,000
Semi £194,000
Terraced £175,600
Flats £145,000

A full list of comparable prices can be downloaded by clicking here

A tale of two communities

If anyone needed more proof that an effective partnership between the Council and residents can make a difference to a community, then they need look no further than the Kingsway and Cornlands neighbourhoods in the Westfield ward.

Kingsway abandoned noticeboard

For many years the Kingsway residents, acting through the KARA organisation, liaised with local Councillors and officials.

Some three years ago the Council chose to totally ignore the representation that KARA made about a couple of planning applications which not only threatened public service standards in the area but also put the adjacent Hob Moor at risk.

The Council chose to ignore its own draft Local Plan and almost doubled the number of houses being built on the former Our Lady’s school site (now called “Hob Stones – which itself in recent weeks has slowed as one of the contractors went into administration).

Nearby the Council, despite a tangible lack of parking space in the estate, chose to build on a garage site in Newbury Avenue.

Again local representations were largely ignored.

Dumped mattress in Kingsway area

The Residents Association were disgusted and threw in the towel.

Without an active Residents Association the Council then chose to end the regular skip visits to the area.

Fly tipping and dumping increased and a downward spiral began.

The most poignant symptom of the decline is probably the KARA noticeboard which has not been updated for nearly two years.

Fortunately the area now has new Councillors who will no doubt begin to re-establish a working relationship with the local community.

They could make a start by getting the noticeboards updated and the skip service restored.

Cornlands Road noticeboard up to date

Ironically a small – but active – residents association, in the adjacent Cornlands area, manages to keep its two noticeboards bang up to date.

Time for York estates to get regeneration money

With over £12 million sat in the bank the York Councils housing revenue account has never been healthier.

Freed by the last government from the requirement for any “surplus” Council house rent income to be put in a national pot, the York Council is free to make its own decisions on priorities.

It is unlikely that tenants will wait much longer for a statement of intent from the new coalition rulers at the York Council. The 4 month forward programme of topics, likely to be debated by the Council’s new Executive, was published yesterday. It noticeably fails to include any reference to estate regeneration plans.

Most estates are affected by neglect.

Foxwood tenants have been asking for better parking for several years and this is a demand repeated elsewhere in the City.

Lack of storage space for flat dwellers is another issue particularly for those who have families.

In Chapelfields the need for more parking space is now critical while the state of two of the three garage areas is shocking (see below).

Poorly maintained garages on Chapelfields Road

Detritus on access footpaths

Neglected garage site on Marston Avenue 1

Neglected garage area on Marston Avenue 2

Houses selling well in west York

House sales in west York are fairly buoyant at present.

Sales have ranged from a 1 bedroomed house in Bellhouse Way which sold for £113,000, a two bedrooms flat in St James Croft at £130,000, a two bed semi in Willoughby Way at £148,000, a 3 bed terrace in Westfield Place for £157,000 while a 4 bedroomed house in Alness Drive at £305,000.

Properties currently on the market include

The Gallops £215,000 3 bed Detached
Burgess Walk £160,000 4 bed Terrace
Willoughby Way £179,950 2 bed Semi-D
Huntsmans Walk £215,000 3 bed Semi-D
Wetherby Road, £279,950 3 bed Semi-D

There are still some price reductions being made. These include:

Sherwood Grove £275,000 -15% 3 bed Semi-D
Hambleton Terrace £210,000 -5% 2 bed Terrace
St Peters Grove £200,000 -11% 1 bed Flat
Huntington Road £190,000 -5% 3 bed Terrace

Properties available to rent include

Manor Drive North

1 Bed Flat Acomb Road, York £535 pcm
2 bed Flat in Albert Close for £600 pm
2 bed Terrace in Gladstone Street for £675
2 Bed End of Terrace Birch Copse for £625 pcm
2 bed Flat Manor Drive North £650

Info from mouseprice http://www.mouseprice.com

Mystery surrounds future of York “Hobstones” development as builder Southdale goes bust.

The new development at the former Our Lady’s school site has been hit by the failure of its building contractor.

All the “for sale” units have been reserved and work is well advanced.

Media reports say that Southdale have gone into administration but the effect – if any – on the controversial Hob Moor development is unclear.

The developers – Yorkshire Housing – have not issued a statement nor has the York Council which claimed to have facilitated the development

There is no information on the Hobstones web site

Last November Southdale described the development as;

“Fourteen of the 55 homes at Hobstone will be for sale and the rest of the homes will available to rent at below market rates to families on average or low incomes.

Located on the site of the former Our Lady’s Primary school the houses look out onto Hob Moor. Built by Southdale and designed by award-winning architects Brewster Bye, the homes offer high quality energy, efficient accommodation with decent sized rooms and tasteful fittings”.

The for sale units proved to be popular with prices around £170,,000.

The development became controversial when the Labour Council almost doubled the number of units to be built on the former school site with local residents voicing concerns about “over-development” and fearing an adverse impact on Hob Moor and local traffic volumes.

Plea for disabled parking space in Foxwood

A disabled resident is still waiting for a disabled parking space to be marked out, on a parking area in Spurr Court in the Foxwood estate, 6 months after requesting assistance

Parking area in Spurr Court

Council sign has been criticised as “meaningless”

There is space for about 8 vehicles in the parking area but they quickly fill up at weekends.

This leaves a local disabled person having, on occasions, to walk over 1/2 mile from the nearest available parking spot

Liberal Democrat candidates in the Council elections on May 7th have agreed to ask for a “disabled only” bay to be marked out as a matter of priority.

The affected resident lives in one of 3 bungalows in the area which does not have a carriageway either to the front or rear of the property.

Whatever happened to – the new homes planned for Front Street?

In 2011 the Council had plans for a modest expansion of the Acomb Library on Front Street. Two new rooms would accommodate staff displaced for the Acomb Office.

A “one stop shop” for residents would have been established.

Affordable homes could have been provided on land lying between the bowling green and Chancery Court.

Labour dubbed this as a “second Council HQ”, abandoned the project in June 2011 and subsequently closed the Acomb Office without making alternative arrangements.

They said they would sell any land owned by the Council near the Library.

4 years later and the land is still unused, overgrown and derelict.

York housing estates – more evidence of neglect

Not surprisingly many tenants are bemused as rents continue to rise while maintenance standards on estates fall.

Fly tipping on Green Lane (Acomb) garage forecourt today

Council tenants have faced a 28% increase in rent levels over the last 5 years.

The York Council is expected to have a £15 million surplus balance on its housing account at the end of this year.

Yet little has been invested in improvements and communal areas are too often targets for graffiti and dumping.

Weeks elapse before clean ups are arranged

York Council Housing rents and balances. Click to enlarge

Strangely the York Council housing department is the only part of the local authority which has seen no cuts at all in funding during the last 4 years yet service standards are declining.

There is little evidence that the Labour Councillors who are responsible for Council housing ever routinely visit estates to ensure that service standards are acceptable.

Time for a change of approach we think!

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