Who does what at the York Council?

The first round of scrutiny committee meetings are taking place at West Offices this month.

Hopes that the agenda for the meetings would clarify roles and responsibilities appear to have been misplaced.

We are told that the, quaintly named, “Economy and Place” scrutiny committee will hear reports from three Executive members

  • Executive Member for Economy and Strategic Planning (July)
  • Executive Member for Transport (July)
  • Executive Member for Environment and Climate Change (Sept)

The latter may be a surprise as the Council meeting held on the 22nd May agreed to set up a new “Climate Change Scrutiny Committee”. It didn’t define the terms of reference of that committee but engagement with the Executive member with climate change responsibilities would have been a banker for most observers.

Any list of responsibilities will be subject to a change in the Councils constitution anyway.

Meanwhile the agenda for the  “Customer and Corporate Services Scrutiny Management Committee” to be held on 10th June will receive reports from  the

  • Executive Member for Policy Strategy and Partnerships (Leader) &
  • Executive Member for Finance and Partnerships

No new job descriptions have yet been published for the Councils 9 Executive members. Most of the job titles are opaque, so it remains unclear where responsibilities now lie.

The new Council has got off to a poor start after becoming embroiled in a controversy about increasing the amount spent on Councillors pay. They could easily have avoided that false start by containing expenditure within the existing agreed budget envelope.

New Councillors might have been expected to be more eager to demonstrate their effectiveness by highlighting, via public and social media, the successes they are having in addressing issues raised by residents. Most will have had a full “postbag” during the recent election campaigns.

Little has been heard from the Councils PR department (apart from the occasional anodyne media release) and even the party political propaganda channels have been muted.

During the last 12 months there has been a wide divergence in the number of decision meetings attended by Executive members in York

NB. Executive Councillors receive a payment of £15,600 a year in addition to their basic salary of £9,198.39

Call for clarity on public service standards from York Council

Perhaps not surprisingly, the change in political control of the York Councils affairs has produced an hiatus in decision making. The published forward programme of decisions which need to be made is very thin (click to link)

They new Council Leadership is perhaps wise to be cautious and to avoid the impulsive decision making, in the wake of election euphoria, which has been the undoing of some previous administrations

However, over a month after the polls, residents are little wiser on who now has responsibility for overseeing the different aspects of Council policy and performance. All we have are vague – and seemingly controversial in some quarters – job titles.

The result is a lack of clarity with crucial street level public service standards under pressure. Surprisingly few of the new intake of Councillors have so far communicated direct with the people who elected them. A “thank you for your support” leaflet was de rigueur until recently.

As we reported yesterday, some haven’t even included a contact telephone number on their Council web page yet (click link) NB. Councillors are recompensed for telephone costs through the “basic allowance” that they receive.

Meanwhile there are issues across the whole City which should be resolved quickly. The Councils PR team should be tasked with informing residents what will happen, when and to what quality.

Paths obstructed by overgrown hedges
Grass not cut (Bishopgate Street)
Weeds blighting streets
Verges need cutting

Weeds making Front Street shopping area look neglected

Weed growth is becoming a significant problem in many streets in York. None more than in the Front Street shopping area. This is a shame as it would take little effort to tackle the issue. It would be within the capabilities of volunteers.

The neglect brings into question the sincerity of the Council who claim to want to reinvigorate retail areas.

Weeds on Front Street
More neglect

We’ve also reported fly posting on the nearby noticeboard.

Windsor House demolition plan falls at first hurdle

Residents warned the York Council that local roads in the Ascot Way/Kingsway West area were too narrow to accommodate heavy construction traffic.
Windsor House construction site

Despite these warnings, the planning committee approved plans for the demolition of Windsor House but failed to specify any highway improvements.

The foolishness of that decision was highlighted on Friday when two very large trucks made their way from the site onto Kingsway West.

They failed to observe the agreed one-way system forcing other vehicles to mount the footpath and verge.

The traffic plan – regarded by many residents as inadequate – was published on 8th May. (Click here to read).

It was clear yesterday that it will be impossible for construction traffic and other larger vehicles, like buses, to pass each other on the twisting roads.

Several other conditions were imposed on activities on the site (click here). Most have still to be implemented.

Car parking is now at an even greater premium with whole of the Windsor House/Lincoln Court site cordoned off.

The problems have arisen only a few days before residents will be given an opportunity to quiz contractors on their plans.

The “drop in” meeting will take place at the Hob Moor School Children’s Centre (Green Lane) at 3:30pm on Wednesday 5th June.

There is still no news on the Council’s plans to provide an alternative play facility to replace the Multi User Games Area which will be lost when construction work starts. It had been hoped that by now, permission would have been granted for a new pitch to be provided on the nearby Thanet Road Sports Area.

There is also a major question mark about the costs of the “Centre of Excellence for Disabled Children” which will be constructed on the Windsor House site. A Council meeting on 18th June (click) will hear that additional funds are required to sustain the project.

One way system odged on 28th May 2019
Meeting on Wednesday

Action taken on verges

Good to see the Council out today cutting verges in the Foxwood area. Obviously there are a lot of very long cuttings now on paths and in gutters.

Grass on Foxwood Lane has now been cut
Parts of Manor Drive are overgrown. If the Council are planning to leave areas “wild” for nature conservation reasons, then they should consult with residents about their plans.
Elsewhere, problems with hedges obstructing paths are once again an issue. The hedges should have been trimmed during the winter. Above shows the shared use cycle/footpath along the A1237 near Poppleton. It is barely wide enough to allow two riders to pass by. The hedge makes it virtually impossible.
Its not just cycle paths that are vulnerable to overgrown hedges. This one in Hollyrood Drive obstructs the public footpath.

With the rain, come the weeds

Wetter weather will accelerate plant growth in the City. That means bigger weeds.

Usually by now the York Council has revealed its weed killing programme. Seems we have to go on waiting this year.

Name signs are already obscured
Sign posts need cleaning
Hazardous broken chain link fencing on Chapelfields snicket still not repaired
Verges still not cut

Tackle root causes!

Residents rightly become irritated when they report public service problems and either they take a long time to clear up or the issue occurs again very soon afterwards.

This is particularly frustrating when potholes reopen and gullies become blocked immediately there is a shower of rain

We think that the York Council needs to get to the root causes of some issues.

They currently spend a lot of money clearing up fly tipping but have been very tardy in advertising the bulky waste collection service the cost of which was reduced substantially in April.

Recurrent litter problems occur on some snickets. It should be possible to identify, and fine, offenders. In some cases the littering is happening everyday.

Full litter bins like this one in Cornlands Road add to problems

Snickets off Tennent Road are regularly littered

The Tithe Close snicket is littered on most days
Its not just urban roads that suffer from littering. This Is Bland Lane near Knapton
Local Councillors should arrange for gated alleys – like this in Jute Road – to be cleaned from time to time
Bedding has been dumped on the playground on Cornlands Road

More improvements for cyclists needed

We mentioned last week that we hoped the new York Council would tackle some long outstanding problems with cycle routes

The biggest problem remains the state of road surfaces.

Potholes, like this on Bland Lane, pose a hazard for cyclists, particularly at night
Uneven carriageways are uncomfortable for cyclists. This is in Low Poppleton Lane
On the Beckfield Lane to Jute Road path a (very) old notice prohibits cycling. The Council has however fitted cycle friendly barriers.

The same Jute Road snicket is obstructed by weeds.
Detritus is a particular problem on the gated section
The cycle path link from North Moor Lane to Rufforth is taking a long time to complete

BIFFA bin taking root in Acomb?

A full BIFFA bin has been abandoned in the little Green Lane garage area in Acomb. It has been there for over 4 weeks. The bins is stuffed high with black bags.

The garage area is owned by the York Council but is rarely inspected and even more rarely cleaned up.

Hopefully whoever rented this bin will get it removed quickly.

  • Biffa bin abandoned in Green Lane garage area
We’ve reported black bags left next to the litter big on Hamilton Drive West

Some verges haven’t been cut this year and are looking untidy. We have reported those on Foxwood Lane and Bellhouse Way
Weeds are growing on the path and road at the end of Sherringham Drive. The Council has not yet published when it hopes to schedule weed treatments this summer.
Work has started on the demolition of Windsor House. There is still a lot of confusion about this project with additional costs scheduled to be discussed at a Council meeting taking place on 16th June. There has still been no update on the plans to relocate the children’s all weather play area.