The Council have now issued the following statement

“Due to exceptional operational problems there have been some delays with catching up with the re-scheduled collections, as detailed on this page (Council web site).

We apologise for any problems this has caused and can assure you that we are working hard to catch up with this work”.

Whether this means that the recycling will be collected as (re) scheduled on Tuesday remains to be seen. With the volume growing each hour this must be in doubt.

Meanwhile some terraced streets are now overwhelmed with full plastic bags leaving little room for cars to park.

Lockwood Street

The situation at some blocks of flats is even worse.

Our advice now is to put complaints in writing to the Council (Email: ycc@york.gov.uk)

If the situation deteriorates further then complaints can be made to the Local Government Ombudsman who can instruct the Council to pay compensation.

The Ombudsman can be telephoned on 0300 061 0614 or 0845 602 1983

The Council has published a list of business rate creditors. Essentially these are commercial properties where the business rates account is in credit.

You can see the list here

As well as some companies which have gone into administration, the list includes the Council itself which is recorded as having overpaid £8500 in rates!

The York Council has now published details of the lighting equipment that it borrowed from the Blackpool Council to the support the “Illuminating York” festival.

The list can be found here:

It includes the somewhat unreliable “interactive” pedal bikes.

The contribution was relatively modest and hardly justified the “hype” given to the partnership in the run up to the event. It is commonplace for local authorities to share the use of equipment and services these days. The value of the equipment has not been revealed nor has the cost of setting up the deal.

Joan Dales (fourth from left) celerates a Liberal election victory in 1983

We were sorry to learn that former Foxwood Ward Liberal Councillor Joan Dales died over the Christmas period. Joan was 90 years of age.

A former farmers wife from the Askham Bryan area, Joan lived in The Gallops for many years. She represented the ward on the York City Council between 1979 and 1987. She will be remembered as a particularly active Councillor with a whole hearted commitment to the local community.

Her funeral is taking place at Askham Bryan Church on Monday 14th Jan 2013 at 1pm followed by burial in the Churchyard.

Family flowers only please, donations can be made to The Alzheimer’s Society and the church funds

The Council have failed to issue any update during the last 24 hours on the progress that they are making with the “catch up” bin collections.

Centurian Court 5th jan 13

Litter drift is widespread

This appears to be the position

Most grey bins in sub-urban areas – which were due to be emptied on 1st January – were completed on Saturday.

There was no sign though of the recycling crews, who we were told were working over the weekend. Most households, who are able to, have now taken their recycling back in pending collection on Tuesday.

There are considerable amounts of litter drift across affected estates.

Those that are unable to store their recycling inside, face particular problems. Blocks of flats like Centurion Court depend on regular recycling collections. Any failure can lead to health and safety issues.

Paper bank at Acomb Car park is full Sun 6th Jan 13

Cans dumped at Acomb Car park Sun 6th Jan 13

Meanwhile the paper banks at sites like the Acomb Car park (near Morrisons) are full to overflowing. There is space in the bottle banks now but some cans are being dumped.

Many of the few remaining litter bins (over 300 were scrapped in the summer) are also stuffed solid.

Litter bins full

The profile of Labour Councillors, who represent many of the blighted areas, would make an Archean era fossil look animated. At a time when they should be out and about identifying and dealing with issues, they are nowhere to be seen.

Fossil

click to enlarge

In response to a Freedom of Information request the York Council has revealed that it has made 685 staff redundant over the last decade.

The highest number recorded came last year when 222 left the authority. Most were “voluntary” redundancies.

The total cost to taxpayers was £13.05 million. The costs included additional pension contributions, redundancy payments and “pay in lieu of notice”.

The staff concerned all worked for the York Council or in local schools.

The figures cover the period to the end of March 2012.

There are fears that the current year will see a record number of redundancies declared by the now Labour run authority which has embarked on a policy of privatisation and external contracting to meet its financial obligations.

A crack down on burglary has seen 13 suspects arrested in 24 hours.

The arrests were made between the early hours of 3 to 4 January 2013. They were made in connection with separate burglaries across North Yorkshire and include suspects arrested in Cleveland and Bradford.

• A 38-year-old man from York was arrested on 3 January following a burglary in the early hours of 3 January in Green Dykes Lane, York.

• A 48-year-old York man was arrested on 3 January in connection with a burglary in Heslington Road over Christmas. He has been released on bail while enquiries continue. A 51-year-old woman was also arrested on suspicion of theft and arranging to handle stolen goods. She has been released on bail while enquiries continue.

• Two men from York aged 24 and 26 were arrested at around 9pm on 3 January in connection with a commercial burglary on Moor Lane, York on 30 December. They remain in custody for questioning.
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Binmen have arrived in the Westfield and Woodthorpe areas this morning (Saturday) to empty grey bins. Some of the bins haven’t been emptied for 18 days.

According to the Council web site, recycling collections won’t generally take place until Tuesday for those that were missed on 1st January. However a separate “twitter” statement issued by the Council promises that recycling collections teams will be “working over the weekend”.

http://www.york.gov.uk/content/45090/64365/Household_waste_-_collection/Revised_collection_list.pdf

Meanwhile some sub-urban recycling banks are now full to overflowing adding to the litter drift which is threatening to engulf some parts of the City.

The local neighbourhood policing team are reporting that an arrest has been made following the discovery of cannabis growing at a property in Foxwood.

The once endangered Great Crested Newt is threatening to overwhelm the City. The media are reporting that, what was thought to be a small colony of 30 newts living on the site of the new Community Football and Rugby Stadium at Monks Cross, had grown to over 300 in a matter of weeks.

The building project there has been put on hold while the newts are rehoused.

They have been placed on the housing waiting list with a “gold” banding.

Early indications, that the newts could be offered some of the vacant single bedroomed accommodation available in the City,have been jettisoned after experts revealed that colonies liked to “live together”.

New “Houses in Multiple Occupation” rules mean that a new communal home may have to be built. Housing Chief Tra Cee Lang said, “Well at least we’ll be able to build it on the flood plain”.

Cllr D’Green blamed climate change for the population explosion. “Basically we believe that the colony, discovered at another development site at German Beck, have been carried on flood water to Monks Cross. With the gene pool there reinvigorated, heaven knows where the population growth will end. I’m going to agree to rent my spare bedroom to two of them but I’m not sure how I am going to get them out of the bath each morning”.

Environment Chief Leftie Levene said, “Oh no, not bl**dy newts as well”.