Community seeks right to buy bowls club

The Council will be asked on 24th July to list the New Earswick and District Indoor Bowls Club, Huntington Road, Huntington, York as an asset of community value.

The same meeting is already scheduled to consider a similar request relating to the Murton Arms Public House.

The Executive Member will be asked to make a decision on whether the above listed property should be added to the list of assets of community value.

If they are added to the list then the community will have 6 months in which to put together a bid to buy the properties should they come onto the market.

Swimming pool and Library purchase bid by residents

New Earswick swimming pool

Residents are aiming to trigger a “community right to buy” designation for the New Earswick Swimming Pool and the Strensall Library

If agreed at a York Council meeting scheduled for 9th April, residents would have 6 months to raise enough funds to purchase the buildings, should they be placed on the market for sale.

The New Earswick pool has been under threat for over a year. The owners, JoRo Housing Trust, told users that it would be closing. Talks had continued over its future with the expectation that a negotiated way forward would be achieved. A large petition was collected last year seeking to retain the popular amenity.

The application for the Strensall library is a separate issue and appears to have been prompted by a proposed rationalisation of the number and spread of library facilities across the City. The management of libraries in the City is currently carried out by a community benefit society under contract to the City of York Council. This contract is due to be re tendered later this year.

Recent negotiations between the coalition partners (Tory/LibDem) who run the York Council concluded with an assurance that there would be no Library closures in the City in the foreseeable future.

Community right to bid at Holgate gardens and Blacksmiths Arms

Holgate gardens

Officials are recommending, to a meeting taking place on 12th September, that two more amenities are added to the York Councils list of assets of community value.

As reported last month, applications were made to have Holgate Gardens (Cleveland Street) and the Blacksmiths Arms pub at Naburn listed.

Officials say both applications meet the governments criteria for listing.

In effect – if the assets were put up for sale during the next 3 years – this means that local groups would have 6 months to raise money to bid for the properties.

Community seek ownership of Holgate play area & Naburn pub

The Council has received two more applications which could allow “community bids” to be made to purchase local amenities.

Holgate gardens

The first concerns the Holgate community garden and play area which is located off Cleveland Street.

Local residents have recently been stepping up their objections to the access bridge into the York Central development which could adversely impact on the park.

Blacksmiths Arms

The second application concerns the Blacksmiths Arms pub in Naburn.

A meeting taking place on 12th September will decide whether to add the properties to a list which – in the event of their coming on the market – would allow a local community group to make an offer to buy.

The moves follow similar initiatives last month involving Grove House EPH and White Rose House in Wheldrake. While the application for Grove House was rejected but the Council has still to determine its approach to the Wheldrake building.

Details of community right to bid applicants published

Grove House, Penleys Grove Street

Details of the organisations seeking to have two local buildings listed as being of community value have been revealed by the York Council.

The Grove House elderly persons home is interesting a group known as The Groves Association. Their application echos a similar bid made for Oliver House over 12 months ago which sought to use the building for “communal living”. Under current legislation residential buildings cannot be listed as being of community value. Details of a private sale are likely to be published in September

White Rose House in Wheldrake is used by the Guiding movement at present. The local Parish Council is seeking to have it listed.

Officials have ruled out listing either building

Bid to stop sell off of Grove House

Wheldrake Guide centre move

Grove House, Penleys Grove Street

We reported in April that the former elderly person’s home at Grove House was being sold by the Council. The building has been empty for some time.

No sale has gone through and now a bid is being made to list the buildings under the Community Right to Bid legislation. The move follows a similar initiative last month involving a number of pubs and other properties (which were subsequently added to the list).

The request will be considered at a meeting taking place on 15^th August. Any listing would mean that residents would have 6 months in which to raise the asking price for the site.

White Rose House, Wheldrake

In this case – as it is in a prime residential area – the price may match the £3 million recently paid for another Council home at Oliver House

A community group has also expressed an interest in bidding for White Rose House in Wheldrake which is currently used as a Girl Guiding centre.