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Building site on Ascot Way being wound down
It seems that completion of work at both the new disabled centre and a remodelled Lincoln Court will shortly be competed. The builders equipment is being removed and the compound on the school land and the MUGA are almost clear.
The has been no recent update from the York Council on when they expect the communal housing, self build, health centre, older persons accommodation, public buildings and community facilities on their Lowfield development to be completed (or even in most cases started!)
Slow progress on replacement games area for Westfield
A Freedom of Information response has revealed that little progress has been made on providing a replacement multi user games area in Westfield despite a Council executive decision taken in February 2019.
The expectation had been that the replacement, for the now closed facility on Kingsway West, would be in use by now. Discussions were to have been held with the Acorn Rugby Club who currently lease the alternative site which is in the Thanet Road sports area.
However, it seems that meaningful correspondence only started in July 2020 some 18 months after the Council’s Executive had made their promise. Some meetings then took place in August, but no progress report has been prepared for consideration by the Councils executive
Quite why the initiative had not been followed up sooner is unclear.
It had been thought that the most likely site would be under the existing floodlights to the side of the clubhouse. This would have minimised costs and might have been useful addition to the rugby clubs training options.
It seems that that officials, however, favour a location next the car park, while a local Councillor is keen to incorporate a n outdoor gym in the plans.
No consultation has taken place with the Foxwood Residents Association on the plans. There was a lukewarm response to plans for an outdoor gym a few years ago although objections then centred on proposals to locate the facility on Chesney’s Field.
Residents are quite clear that some informal free access must be available to the new games area. The price of access to pitches at the Energise centre are prohibitive for many local young people so a system needs to be worked out which meets the needs of both local users and the rugby club. The rugby club has a good reputation for encouraging young sports people so there should be no conflict of interests.
It is understood that serval potential users have expressed a wish to rent the facility so this should provide a basic income to cover maintenance and replacement costs.
The new facility could cost around £200,000.
The Westfield ward is statistically the poorest area in the City and has the largest proportion of obese children. The project would go some way to addressing the inequalities which have been worsened in the area in recent years as a result of the development of open spaces and sports pitches.
Community Stadium costs
The York Council says that taxpayers may be liable for additional costs at the Community Stadium. Work to complete roads outside the stadium has yet to be finished.
A report to a Council meeting next week says,
“The construction of the York Stadium Leisure Complex is practically complete but with some fairly significant works remaining to the estate highway. The core building fabric works are now complete, with only a small number of trades still working on site to progress the final stages of minor works, known in the industry as ‘snagging’”.
“For the York Stadium Leisure Complex to open to both the public, and all tenants, the Stadium must, amongst other things, gain all required safety and licence certification.
The systems test has now been held and work is now ongoing from that in order to finalise the safety certificate and safety documentation.
There are likely to be a number of financial issues and settlement of claims to resolve after the stadium is completed, that will take a number of months to resolve and these may result in some financial impact to the Council.
There are also a number of other COVID related matters to finalise however opening is still expected across the stadium and leisure site in autumn 2020”.
These comments help to explain the media comment last week which said that a York City match scheduled for next week (v Chorley on 6th October) could not take place at the stadium.
Leaving COVID restrictions aside, there is some speculation about whether Bootham Crescent can be brought back into use as it also needs to have a up to date safety certificate.
After a successful final friendly match yesterday (a 0-3 success at Notts County), City face a trip to Warrington on 3rd October. Spectators are not allowed at matches in Warrington at present (click)
Such restrictions are also likely to apply in York at the scheduled beginning of the National League North (NLN) season, with some clubs planning to “stream” matches to supporters. Such a facility requires the agreement of the broadcast license holder and of the football authorities.
We understand that Clubs have not as yet received confirmation from the government that the lost income, from playing behind closed doors matches, would be refunded. In the NLN, clubs with part time players are only liable for wages after the first game of the season has been played. So clarification is now urgently required (York City have a full time playing squad).
As for the potential additional liability on the Council, it remains unclear whether this relates solely to the floorspace which the Council agreed to underwrite, and which currently remains unlet.
If it is anything more than that, then taxpayers should be told how much the scale of the additional risk is now.
The Council has budgeted to invest £14.4 million in the project. A Section 106 (developer) contribution of £15.3 million has also been allocated.
York City FC will pay £2 million towards the £42 million total cost of the development when they sell Bootham Crescent.
New games area – Council delay response
We asked 4 weeks ago what had happened to the promised replacement for the children’s games area on Kingsway West.
The area is currently being used as a building compound. The contractor was beginning tt remove storage containers from the area today although work on Lincoln Court and the new centre for the disabled won’t be completed for a few weeks at least (it is running behind schedule with COVID partly to blame according to the Council).
A response to a Freedom of Information request was due today but the Council now says that they can’t reply before 3rd Ocotober.
The enquiry resulted from a promise made on 18th March 2019 when the Council’s Executive agreed to provide a replacement for the Kingsway West Multi User Games Area (MUGA) which has been taken out of use as part of the project to extend Lincoln Court.
The minute read;
“a ii) To note that in approving Option 1 a commitment is made for alternative recreational facilities following community consultation including Sport England within Westfield Ward in mitigation for the loss of the Multi Use Games Area. The alternative facilities provided are to be agreed by Executive and will be subject to a further report and budget approval.”
18 months later and there has been no further word from the Council on how the replacement plan is going.
Community Stadium completed
It seems that work on the LNER Community Stadium has finally been completed. With York City’s 20/21 fixture list due to be published on Tuesday, fans will be wondering how many will be able to get into the stadium from 3rd October start date?
No details of the required “test events” have been published and it is also unclear when the sports centre will open.
It is 16 years since the football club were given notice to quit Bootham Crescent by the then owner.
What’s on in York: Tree and bulb planting
Acomb Moor update
The local residents association have added their weight to calls for access to Acomb Moor to be made safer.
They have written to local Councillors making the following points.
- The tree trunk blocking the access needs to be moved by about 1 foot to allow pedestrian access. We understand that Andrew has this in hand. If the field tenants won’t do it then 2 or 3 fit people should be able to roll the log. The stile then needs to be reinstated
- The route across the field could then be re-established. Pragmatically a line down the side of the field – parallel to Foxwood Lane – could be established to link with the desire line path which is now clearly marked at the bottom of the field. (It will be for the owners to apply for a formal PROW diversion order if they wish to discourage people for walking through, what will presumably by the spring be, a cropped field). Obviously the current practice of people climbing over a 1.5 metre high metal gate is potentially hazardous and precludes some less ambient residents (who ironically are perhaps those most needing access to informal walking options) from using the paths.
- The stile at the bottom corner needs to be repaired and hardcore put on the approaches.
- Neither of the access points to the Council owned section of the path near Osprey Close have had the promised hardcore put down. Both these paths are narrow and on a gradient, They will become increasingly slippery in poor winter weather. So some action needs to be taken now.
- Further along the path near and in Acomb Wood there are sections which are subject to flooding and which would also benefit from having hardcore put down.
Playground tidy up call
Local residents have asked the Council to deal with maintenance issues at the Grange Lane park.
Complaints have been raised about littering but some of the equipment is unusable as a result of vandalism, graffiti, muddy entrances and missing safety surfaces under the swings.
The Council also promised to put hardcore down on parts of the footpath link from Grange Lane to Westfield Place where it is subject to flooding. This work hasn’t been done yet. It needs to be completed before the wetter winter months arrive.
The path is now being used occasionally by cyclists as a short cut. Some arrangements for them could be made at relatively little cost.
Use by walkers has also increased since lock-down started.
Ascot Way building work closer to completion
It looks like work on the new Children’s Disabled centre and the renovation and extension of Lincoln Court sheltered housing could be completed by the October target date. The internal road system has been surfaced over the last few days. This is usually a sign that work is well advanced.
At a minimum it should mean that there will be less mud on local roads
Neighbours will be looking forward to getting the new bus lay-by into operation following 12 months of disruption.
However there is still a lot to do. The public noticeboard was damaged by contractors needs to be replaced. What is left of the noticeboard is currently attached to a perimeter fence.
…and the long saga of providing a replacement games area for local children still seems to be stalled.
On the 18th March 2019 the Council’s Executive agreed to provide a replacement for the Kingsway West “Multi User Games Area” (MUGA) which has been closed as part of the project to extend Lincoln Court.
The minute of the meeting read;
“a ii) To note that in approving Option 1 a commitment is made for alternative recreational facilities following community consultation including Sport England within Westfield Ward in mitigation for the loss of the Multi Use Games Area. The alternative facilities provided are to be agreed by Executive and will be subject to a further report and budget approval.”
Nothing more has been heard about the plan. Residents hoped that an all weather area might be provided on Thanet Road but nothing seems to have come of this as yet.
Now a Freedom of Information request has been submitted in an attempt to find out what progress has been made.
Footnote
The Council has today announced the name of the new centre
Innonvative new facility for children with disabilities buzzes with a new name
An innovative facility for children with disabilities in York has got a new name, thanks to the young people who will use it.
‘The Beehive’, as the Centre of Excellence for disabled children will now be known, will provide short overnight breaks for children with complex disabilities in the city. Young people and their families will be able to receive specialist support from a wide range of professionals, including clinical psychologists, all in one building for the first time.
The ‘bee theme’ will flow throughout the new facility, including bee-friendly names for the bedroom areas and honeycomb-like hexagons incorporated into the decorative features. Children and young people using the facility will also be given a fluffy bee toy to take home with them as a visual reminder of their ‘home away from home’.
It’s hoped that this attention to detail will help the children settle into the new building more easily, something which is particularly important for young people with learning disabilities or autism.
Thought to be one of the first facilities of its kind in the country, the innovative building is a partnership between City of York Council and NHS England.
The new centre is due to open this year and includes:
- spacious bedrooms with state of the art hoist and bathing facilities for children who have complex health needs and wheelchair users
- a larger, open-spaced area and bedrooms for children with learning disabilities or autism
- quieter self-contained areas that can be used for children who may struggle in a more open, busier environment and where their parents can accompany them so that their needs can be fully assessed
- an activity area, sensory room and quiet rooms
- a large outdoor play space with a variety of equipment suitable for children of all abilities