York Council plans to spend £250,000 on “Tour de Yorkshire” cycling event as

More cuts to local environment planned

It looks like Labour Councillors want to spend another £1/4 million on a 3 day cycling event next May. One of the stages of the new “Tour de Yorkshire” will finish in York with several local sprint races planned.

Taxpayers will be expected to pick up the bill, from the commercial rights owners, for a whopping £100,000 “hosting fee” for the event,.

A report which is being considered tomorrow, by the Councils Cabinet, shows no sponsorship or admittance fees aimed at offsetting the bills.

A decision will apparently be made before the Inquiry into the disastrous Grand Departy flop is completed.

Organisers were forced to admit a couple of months ago that the Huntington Stadium event – staged separately from the Tour de France start – had lost over £186,000.  An inquiry into the event was subsequently ordered by the Council’s scrutiny committee.

More Cuts

The same Council Cabinet agenda talks of major cuts to basic service standards.

Road surfaces in Queenswood Grove breaking up

Road surfaces in Queenswood Grove already breaking up

£1.3 million a year will be cut from social care budgets.

As well as the much publicised proposals to charge for green bin emptying and move to 4 weekly residual waste collections, Labour are now admitting that more cuts are planned to open space maintenance.

Volunteers will apparently be expected to maintain bowling greens, tennis courts, flower beds and undertake  rose planting. The report says that the “replacement of bedding plants with ornamental grass at 18 sites could potentially save 1,519 hours of labour”.

Ominously the report talks of York’s roads and footpaths being “better than average” suggesting that further cuts in maintenance standards are planned.

Many residents will view with incredulity any proposals which would allow a further deterioration in the standard of highways surfaces.

Charities to miss out as York Council set to turn down rate relief applications

Foxwood and Chapelfields community centres to get relief

There are some surprising omissions from the list of organisations in the City who will miss out on discretionary rate relief when the Council Cabinet meets tomorrow.

York and District Indoor Bowls club set to get Rates relief

York and District Indoor Bowls club set to get Rates relief

Most have been rejected because they do not have an “equalities” policy, haven’t completed a community impact assessment or have reserves of over £10,000

Amongst those affected are:

  • Acorn A R L Club
  • Dringhouses Sports & Social Club
  • York Cricket & Rugby Union Club
  • Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust (New Earswick swimming pool)
  • Huntington Community Centre
  • Naburn Village Hall
  • Hopgrove Playing Fields Association
  • Dunnington Reading Room (Village Hall)
  • Stockton On Forest Village Hall
  • Yorkshire Air Museum
  • Heworth Without Community Centre
  • Haxby & Wigginton Youth & Community Centre
  • York CVS (Clifton)

A full list can be viewed by clicking here

A list of organisations recommended to get rate relief can be viewed by clicking here. It includes the Foxwood Community Centre who will not have to pay £398 in rates, Chapelfields Community Association (£2,430), while the York and District Indoor Bowls club on Thanet Road gets relief of £3,405.

York swimming pools attendance figures shock

Yearsley still second most popular facility in City

Waterworld - closed by the York Council this month

Waterworld – closed by the York Council this month

Figures released today, by the York Council under Freedom of Information legislation, cast further doubts on the wisdom of jettisoning the Yearsley swimming pool.

The figures reveal that last year Yearsley had 118,611 users compared to 110,231 at Waterworld (which has now been closed by the Council) and fewer again at the new York Sports Village.

The latter, in its first full year of operation, had 110,218 customers making it the least popular swimming facility in the City.

Swimming pool attendances and subsidy costs Click to enlarge

Swimming pool attendances and subsidy costs Click to enlarge

The new pool does, however, seem to have attracted some additional customers as total swims in the City (excluding private and school based pools) rose from 508,125 in 2012/13 to 522,65 last year.

The figures also reveal that swimming receives a £1/2 million subsidy each year from taxpayers. That is relatively modest comparison to historical investment levels.

While Yearsley is the most expensive pool to operate, it doesn’t enjoy any cross subsidy from other activities – like fitness and studio work – which accounted for most of the income at the other pool sites.

Without the cooperation of Nestle, who own the surrounding land, it would be impossible to increase the range of sports catered for at the Yearsley site.

All in all, closing both Waterworld and Yearsley and replacing the facilities with a single – sports village style  clone pool – does increasingly seem to be a major misjudgement by the Council.

Residents are clearly looking for a wider range of water activities and locations in the City.

York Community Stadium local consultation dates announced.

Continuing concern over tight timetableCommunity Stadium Nov 2014

We understand that  consultation meetings, involving local residents, about the design of the Community Stadium complex has been scheduled.

A series of public exhibitions will be held to give the community the opportunity to view the plans and provide feedback.

The events will be held on:

  • Friday 28 November at Orchard Park Community Centre, Badger Paddock, York, YO31 9EH between 2.30pm and 7pm and on
  • Saturday 29 November at City of York Council Offices, Station Rise, York, YO1 6GA between 10am and 4pm.

The exhibitions will be run as drop-in events and people are free to attend when convenient to them.

More details are available on this Facebook site https://www.facebook.com/yorkcommunitystadium

Clearly the project is still some way from the point where a detailed planning application can be submitted.

There are also continuing concerns about the source of the £12 million commercial investment needed to make the project financially viable

The planned opening date for the Stadium (July 2016) still looks to be optimistic.

The project is currently running 2 years behind the schedule agreed in 2010.

York Councillors unite to save Yearsley Pool

Liberal Democrat and other opposition councillors have joined together to call for action to safeguard the future of Yearsley Pool.   

from left to right Cllr Ian Cuthbertson, Derek Wann, Martin Lewis Crosby, Cllr Carol Runciman, Chris Cullwick, Cllr Keith Orrell, Cllr Brain Watson (Independent Councillor) and Cllr Keith Aspden - at a recent event in Parliament Street collecting signatures for the petition to save Yearsley Pool.

from left to right Cllr Ian Cuthbertson, Derek Wann, Martin Lewis Crosby, Cllr Carol Runciman, Chris Cullwick, Cllr Keith Orrell, Cllr Brain Watson (Independent Councillor) and Cllr Keith Aspden – at a recent event in Parliament Street collecting signatures for the petition to save Yearsley Pool.

In September Labour run City of York Council said it would cut the £250,000 annual subsidy given to Yearsley from 2016.

Lib Dem calls for the future of the pool to be safeguarded over the course of the next council term were defeated at October’s Full Council meeting.

Since then a petition against closure, set-up by the Yearsley Pool Action Group, has been signed by over 4,000.

Now, opposition councillors are joining together to call for action. The councillors have called for a scrutiny review to be set-up to explore ways to reduce the subsidy given to Yearsley but secure its long-term future beyond 2016.

Lib Dem Group Leader Cllr Keith Aspden, who has submitted the scrutiny review request today, commented:
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Community Centre users fight cuts

Users of the Burton Stone Community Centre have joined their counterparts in Foxwood, Chapelfields and Bell Farm in criticising Labours plans for the future of their facilities.

Burton Stone community centre future unclear

Burton Stone community centre future unclear

A petition from the York Coronary Support Trust is being considered at a decision meeting on 27th November. The petition expresses concerns that the Council plan, to outsource the management of the centre, could lead to the organisation’s 4 fitness sessions each week being interrupted.

As at other community centres around the City, Labour are planning to eliminate all support subsidies by 1st April 2015.

In the case of Burton Stone, the centre will in future by predominately used to provide “a day activity programme for over 60 adults with a learning disability and/or autism between 9:00 – 5:00 Monday &  Friday”.

New LibDem Councillor Andrew Waller has been leading the campaign to have Council grants to the City’s community centres restored.

A grant of £15,000 a year to each would allow a part time caretaker to be employed, raising the possibility of increased opening hours and hence community use.

Most York Community Centre rely heavily on volunteers to manage and sustain them.

Crunch meeting to decide on ‘Grand Départy’ Inquiry as cost of stilt walkers revealed.

Liberal Democrat calls for an inquiry into the ‘Grand Departy’ music concert are to be heard at crunch scrutiny meeting tomorrow.

grand-departy

Cllr Ian Cuthbertson, Lib Dem Spokesperson for Leisure, Culture and Tourism, last week submitted a request for a review into the “planning, promotion and delivery” of City of York Council organised events for the Tour De France, including the £187,000 loss-making ‘Grand Departy’ concert.

A decision on whether to proceed with the review will be taken at tomorrow’s Learning & Culture Overview & Scrutiny Committee.

Since the review request was submitted new concerns have emerged over public safety at the Grand Departy. Minutes from the July meeting of the council’s Safety Advisory Group (which took place just days after the event) have highlighted problems.

These included locked fire exits, blocked emergency exits and no licence to allow people to use covered seating areas. The Group said it would not support a similar event proposed at such late notice.

“Until these budget and safety issues are properly addressed many people will have little faith in the council to successfully run any large-scale cultural event.”

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

The meeting comes as the York Council has been forced to reveal more detailed costs of the Grand Departy. Details can be downloaded by clicking here. The papers reveal that the costs of the stage, amplification and lighting alone cost more than total ticket sale income.

The Council have also released details of how over £60,000 was spent on other aspects of the “cultural festival”. Click here to download

. Details of the scrutinty meeting can be found here: .

The Committee is made-up of 3 Labour councillors, 1 Lib Dem, 1 Conservative, 1 Green (Chair) and 1 Independent.

Cllr Cuthbertson, who will make the case for an inquiry at tomorrow’s meeting, commented:
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York Christmas lights switch on this Thursday

A sparkling evening in York is promised for Thursday 20 November, when the Christmas lights will be switched on by the Lord Mayor and younger members of his family, as well as favourite characters from this year’s pantomime at York Theatre Royal. The event will be compered by Adam Tomlinson and Anna Wallace, presenters at BBC Radio York.

Merry Christmas 2013 smaller

The Lord Mayor will be joined in St Helen’s Square by his four grandchildren who will together perform the countdown to illuminating the St Leonard’s Hospice Light up a Life Christmas Tree and Christmas lights around the square. Panto favourites funny-man Martin Barrass and much-loved baddie David Leonard will also be on hand to add to the fun and bring a little of York Theatre Royal’s Mother Goose style to the evening.

Frank Woods, Chair of the York Retail Forum said: “Here we are again, on the verge of Christmas, and approaching the start of the festive period with an official switch on of the lights at St Helens Square. This is a fabulous time of year, hard work in the retail sector, but very rewarding as we all see our clients leaving the shops happy with the purchases, ready for placing under the tree. It is, of course, also a vital time for retailers, which can make a trading year really successful. The lights switch on, and St Nicholas Fair/festival is the perfect way to kick-star Christmas, especially as, this year, the St Nicholas Fair is to be extended over a month.”

Retailers throughout York will be open until 8pm on the evening of 20 November and on each Thursday evening up until Christmas.

Approximate timings for the switch on will be:

  • · From 5.30pm: The University of York Brass Band play Christmas carols and favourite Christmas music in St Helen’s Square
  • · 6.10pm: The Lord Mayor and pantomime characters will be briefly interviewed by BBC Radio York and will start the public countdown
  • · 6.15pm/6.20pm: The St Leonard’s Hospice Christmas tree lights will be officially switched on. The University of York Brass Band continues playing and local choirs, including Haxby Road Academy, Supersingers and York Music Centre Girls Chamber Choir will sing around the city throughout the evening, bringing musical magic to different retailers.

Residents and visitors can also see the new Christmas lights at the Coppergate Shopping Centre which promise to thrill and delight whilst also raising money for York based charity, Jessie’s Fund. A magical, musical Christmas tree comes alive each hour and, on receipt of a donation, will play music and change colours. On Sunday 30 November from 3pm shoppers and families who have benefitted from Jessie’s Fund together with local retailers will be celebrating Christmas with singing around the tree.

Meanwhile, Gillygate is organising more Christmas celebrations when the street is transformed into ‘Jollygate’ between 5pm and 8pm on Thursday 11 December. The Gillygate Traders association, in partnership with Access to Music, will be presenting an extravaganza of sound and shopping as shops come alive with the beautiful sounds and talent from Access to Music students past and present. Shops will host their own bespoke gigs and the musical mayhem culminates in a headline act at The Gillygate pub after-party from 8pm onwards. Everyone’s welcome!

Lib Dems call for ‘Grand Départy’ Inquiry as minutes of safety committee raise further concerns

Liberal Democrat councillors are calling for an inquiry into the ‘Grand Departy’ music concert as part of a cross-party scrutiny review.

Meanwhile the minutes of two meetings of the Councils Safety Advisory Group have confirmed that there was internal concern about the organisational arrangements for the concert.

Safety committee meeting July 2014 Click to read original minutes

Safety committee meeting July 2014 Click to read original minutes

The minutes suggest that, had the target audience numbers actually attended, then safety concerns could have been high.

The minutes of the meetings can be read by clicking the links below.

Safety Advisory Committee 30th June 2014 (pre concert)

Safety Advisory Group 23rd July 2014 (post concert)

 Cllr Ian Cuthbertson, Lib Dem Spokesperson for Leisure, Culture and Tourism, has submitted an official request for a scrutiny review into the “planning, promotion and delivery” of council organised events for the Tour De France.

Last week it was revealed that City of York Council overspent its budget for the Tour by £60,000 with the ‘Events and Festivals’ programme losing taxpayers £252,000.

 The poorly received ‘Grand Departy’ music concert at Huntington Stadium was the single biggest loss. The event cost £206,000 to stage but disappointing ticket sales meant only £19,000 in revenue was brought in, producing an overall loss of £187,000.

 Cllr Cuthbertsoncommented:

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