The Council has published its final plans for a cycle network in the City. Only 50 responses were received to a consultation on a draft plan which was published last year.

Many of the proposals are worthwhile and might reverse the hostility to cyclists shown by the new Labour Council when took out key cycle links when it first took office in 2011. Removal of the cycle lane at Clifton Green was done in the face of majority opposition from consultees.

The party has a poor recent record on provision for cyclists having virulently opposed the provision of off street facilities in Beckfield Lane area when in opposition. That important link to Manor School still hasn’t been completed.

Nor is the Cross Street/Front Street anomaly addressed in the proposals.

In fact none of the Councils top 25 cycle priority schemes address outstanding issues in the Westfield area.

Cycling and other transport issues are likely to remain under-funded as long as the Council devotes a large proportion of its budget to the unnecessary City wide 20 mph speed limit.

The proposed cycle network can be viewed by clicking here

The proposed priority list of improvements can be viewed by clicking here.

Representations on the proposals can be made by email to laura.bootland@york.gov.uk before 5.00pm on Monday 11th March 2013.

• 21st Mar 2013
• Come along and meet Stephen May and Fiona Shaw
• Location: Explore York Library Learning Centre
• Time: 18:30
• Cost: FREE

Stephen will be reading from his second novel Life! Death! Prizes! The novel has been shortlisted for the Costa Book of the Year. Fiona will be reading from her acclaimed fourth novel, A Stone’s Throw, which was published by Serpent’s Tail earlier this year.

Free tickets available from Explore York Library

Thursday 21 March at 6.30pm

Julia Mulligan

Julia Mulligan the newly elected Police and Crime Commissioner for York and North Yorkshire, will be attending the Annual General Meeting of Foxwood Residents Association on Wednesday 10 April from 5pm to 6pm.  The meeting will take place at the Foxwood Community Centre on Bellhouse Way.

The meeting with Julia will be an informal question and answer session followed by the AGM at 6.10pm.  Light refreshments will be available and Foxwood area residents are encouraged to pop in at any time.

On the 8th March the residents of York will have the chance to put their views on local crime directly to their MPs, Hugh Bayley and Julian Sturdy, as well as North Yorkshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Julia Mulligan.

Julia published her draft Police and Crime Plan on Monday 4 February, which started a six week consultation period with the public (until 18 March).

This public meeting, to be at the Guildhall in York, will start at 2.00pm. There will be a short presentation from Julia on the Plan, followed by an hour of questions from the public.

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Thursday 7th Mar 2013

Friendly writing workshop led by Pauline Kirk for both beginners and experienced writers.

Location: Dringhouses Library

Time: 14:30 – 16:00

Cost: Free

Friendly writing workshop led by Pauline Kirk for both beginners and experienced writers.
Interested in getting into writing? An experienced writer but stuck for ideas? This friendly workshop led by published poet and novelist, Pauline Kirk (PJ Quinn) will help you develop your ‘story’, whether your own or family history. Poets and prose writers, both newcomers and established, will be welcome. Men too!

Contact Dringhouses Library to book and for further information on (01904) 552674 or dringhouses.library@york.gov.uk.

York police have issued a warning following the theft of drugs used for treating animals in the city.

The drugs were in a car which was stolen from a veterinary surgery in Upper Poppleton between 4pm on Sunday 3 March and 7.30am on Monday 4 March 2013.

The thieves stole the vehicle’s keys and a small amount of money from the premises before taking the car.

The red Ford Focus bears the registration number YY56OXL.

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The Friends of Acomb Wood AGM will take place on Monday 18th March at Woodthorpe school starting at 7:30pm. Everyone is welcome to attend

Labour Councillors have said that if future neighbours will NOT receive a notification from the Council about any planning applications that they receive. Instead they will depend of residents seeing the notices which should be displayed on a nearby lamppost. We think that such a system is highly fragile! We will there routinely report on this web site that applications received for the Westfield Ward each week. Most are likely to be routine domestic extensions many of which are unlikely to be controversial. Full details can be found by by clicking the reference below or by quoting the application reference on the “planning portal” web site.

• Ref No: 13/00214/FUL Location: 19 Huntsmans Walk York YO24 3LD Proposal: Conservatory to rear Applicant: Mr And Mrs Snowball Contact Mr Howard Berry Consultation Expiry Date 26 March 2013 Case Officer: Carolyn Howarth Expected Decision Level DEL

• Ref No: 13/00290/FUL Location: 45 Askham Lane York YO24 3HB Proposal: Single storey rear extension and replacement roof to side Applicant: Mr Alistair Hogben Contact Mark Tabert Consultation Expiry Date 26 March 2013 Case Officer: Carolyn Howarth Expected Decision Level DEL

• Ref No: 13/00303/FUL Location: Instyle Kitchens & Windows Ltd 45 Front Street York YO24 3BR Proposal: Conversion of part ground and first floor from retail to self contained flat (Use C3) (retrospective) (resubmission) Applicant: Mr Gary Langley Contact Mr Howard Berry Consultation Expiry Date 26 March 2013 Case Officer: Victoria Bell Expected Decision Level DEL

• Ref No: 13/00381/FUL Location: 10 The Green Acomb York YO26 5LR Proposal: Single storey building to rear Applicant: Mr Hugh Morris Consultation Expiry Date 26 March 2013 Case Officer: Heather Fairy (Mon – Wed) Expected Decision DEL

With the Councils deeply flawed public consultation process on the proposed City wide 20 mph speed limit drawing to an end, a Chief Police officer’s statement has raised concerns that cameras may be deployed to enforce the new limits.

Hitherto the Police in York have said that they would expect any such limit to be “self enforcing” while the Council’s own web site talks of winning the “hearts and minds” of drivers..

The national statement reads;

“Reports from the All-Party Parliamentary Cycling Group have stated that police are not enforcing 20mph speed limits. The police policy is clarified below”

An ACPO spokeswoman said:

“In most cases, 20 mph limits will follow Department of Transport guidance and include features such as speed bumps or traffic islands designed to slow traffic. ACPO guidelines include thresholds for enforcement across all speed limits to underpin a consistent policing approach. However it is for local police forces to apply a proportionate approach to enforcement of 20mph limits based on risk to individuals, property and the seriousness of any breach. Where drivers are exceeding the speed limit through willful offending, we would expect that officers will enforce the limit and prosecute offenders.”

Locally the chief supporters of the new limit (Cllr Semlyen in Dringhouses and Cllr Williams in Westfield) have so far failed to make clear whether they support deploying speed cameras to enforce 20 mph limits (the Police have recently trebled the number of mobile cameras that they operate in the county)

At a meeting held on 29th January the “Cabinet” member with responsibility for transport (Cllr Merrett) told Councillors, in response to a question about the enforcement of 20 mph limits, “Regarding the enforcement of the 20mph speed limits in residential areas of York by the Police, the Cabinet Member responded that enforcement would be carried out selectively, where needed”.

The suspicion is growing that the enforcement of the unnecessary 20 mph limit will turn out to be another “cash cow” aimed at penalising hundreds of otherwise law abiding drivers in the City.

No doubt the Police and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan and the Acting Chief Constable will make the local police policy clear before the consultation period closes.

ECO stars hit the streets

City of York Council is launching a new scheme to provide support for commercial operators of vans, trucks, buses and coaches in the city aiming to be more environmentally friendly, as part of National Climate Week. (more…)

The Council have cancelled tonights meeting about highway improvements near the University of York