63% of Council tenants say lack of car parking provision is a problem in their area

Annual Council tenants satisfaction survey results have been published. Not surprisingly they show little change for the views record last year.

The results are based on the views of 595 tenants who returned the Councils survey form

83% of tenants area satisfied with the overall service provided by the (Council) landlord

Highest level of dissatisfaction relates to poor parking provision in estates. Despite funding having been made available, Council officials seem unable to deliver the additional parking pal-bys in locations that have been identified. It is a problem in parts of the Westfield Ward where 6 schemes, some dating back as far as 2016, have yet to be started. Only one, in Spurr Court, has been completed recently.

There are other areas where tenants say improvements are needed

59% say dog fouling is a problem
59% Are unhappy with the state of roads and footpaths
55% say rubbish and litter is a problem in their area
48% say drug use or dealing is a problem in their area.
44% say disruptive teenagers are a problem in their area
46% say drunk or rowdy behaviour is an issue

The Council was criticised by 1/3 tenants who said the landlord did not listen to their views. This was a marked increase in dissatisfaction since the previous survey was completed.

In 2018 the York Federation of Tenants Associations was wound up, with no independent voice now articulating residents concerns in many of the City’s estates.

Windsor Garth parking lay-by location options revealed

Local Councillor Andrew Waller is consulting local residents about the new proposals to install additional parking lay-bys on Windsor Garth.

Cllr Andrew Waller

The options are the latest in a series of plans which are aimed at reducing congestion on the narrow roads in the Kingsway/Hob Moor estate.

Several other options have been discounted either for practical reasons or because they did not represent value for money.

Residents had their say in response to a survey conducted a year ago. Subsequently a plan to provide a lay-by outside the flats on Newbury Avenue ran into delays caused by difficulties in relocating telecoms cabinets. That plan is now expected to be implemented in the spring.

The need for better parking has become even more urgent with the Council having decided to redevelop the Windsor House/Lincoln Court area on Ascot Way. The published plans for the new buildings do not include sufficient “on site” parking space according to many residents.

The Westfield Ward delegated budget includes funding to provide up to 11 additional spaces during the current financial year. Potential locations near Kempton Close and Beverley Court have now been identified. (see plan below)

Residents have a choice of implementing option 2 or 3 this year.

Option 6 will be done as well unless there are strong objections from local residents. .

It is likely that the spaces will use matrix surfacing. This allows grass to grow though the matrix providing a “natural” appearance while also allowing “soak away” drainage.

Any work must be completed before the end of March.

Parking lay-by options in Windsor Garth area January 2019

Survey confirms that most residents oppose current Lowfields plans

The results of a survey undertaken in the Lowfields part of he Westfield Ward have revealed the depth of opposition to the Councils current plans for the sports pitch

4 out of 5 respondents are asking the Council to scale down their plans.

Most also want restrictions on building activity hours on the site.

Acomb Front Street improvements – report published

More flower tubs are promised

The Council is set to consider the latest report on the future of Acomb Front Street on 3rd July.

The area has had a boost in recent months with fewer empty properties and plans announced that would see several empty upper floors brought into residential use.

Nevertheless, the long-term future of the shopping area remains unpredictable, so investment of up to £100,000 is to be welcomed. Some of the fund will be spent in Haxby.

Back alleys need better refuse storage and cleaning

Part of the money is to be spent on bolstering existing activities with the aim of increasing “footfall”. These include additional grants to the ADAM arts festival and an improved Acomb Alive Christmas lights display.

Additional planters are planned for Front Street as are better signposts (wayfinding)

The Friends of Acomb Green have been allocated £5000 for “recycling area improvements” in the car park although it is unclear precisely what this would involve. (The bins could do with repainting although overfull containers, and litter drift, have been the main sources of complaint).

The Council could make a start by cleaning its noticeboards on a regular basis

A further £23,000 of the budget will be allocated later in the year.

The project has moved forward only slowly over the last 3 years.

The results of our survey undertaken in 2017 revealed that residents had clear priorities for the improvement of the area.

Residents priorities for Front Street 2017

Top of the list was the need for a level pedestrian surface across the whole of the precinct.

Achieving this would have required negotiations with the forecourt owners.

Little progress seems to have been made although consultants are now to be appointed to produce an economic masterplan for the area. They are expected to report in December 2018.

Crime survey started

click to go to survey

The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) has started an “on line” survey which she says is aimed at getting residents views about neighbourhood policing.

In some ways this is well timed as the summer period invariably brings a peak in some forms of crime – notably anti-social behaviour.

We have already seen an escalation in complaints about the “mad moped” brigade while environmental crime (e.g. dumping, dog fouling) are still at high levels. However, they are yet to reach the heights seen last year when the police presence was very low.

Since then there has been a gradual and welcome improvement with more patrols by PCSOs evident.

The survey begins by asking about satisfaction with a range of public services. There will be a suspicion that this will be to allow the PCC to say that the quality of policing is more highly rated than, say, road maintenance. The real comparison is with historical performance.

The effectiveness of policing has never been the same in sub-urban parts of York since anti-social behaviour activities were centralised into a “hub” at West Offices. Almost overnight communication channels between residents and named police officers were broken, losing a valuable channel of information about the causes of crime and those responsible. The boundaries of the neighbourhood policing units seem to have been in a constant state of flux.

Lists of local officers need to be regularly updated and included on public noticeboards, social media pages etc.

The local activities web page for York South famously is only updated a couple of times a year, although there are many more things going on than are publicised.

The survey fails to probe whether residents have confidence in the criminal justice system in its entirety. Many reported crimes go undetected while courts seem to lack effective powers to deter repeat offences.

The police seem reluctant to publish performance stats at a neighbourhood level. Information is available at https://www.police.uk/ but accessing it is awkward. Residents Associations no longer routinely receive information. Many Neighbourhood Watch organisations have folded in recent years.

We hope that the results of the survey will be published at neighbourhood level.

Snow! How was it for you?

With the snow now finally – apparently – at an end, Liberal Democrats have launched an “on line” survey aimed at finding out how local public services coped this winter.

Residents are being asked to give their verdict on a number of issues including salt bins, school closure information, gritting schedules, bus services and the effectiveness of the “snow warden” volunteer programme.

The survey can be completed “on line” by clicking here

Last few days to have your say on city centre bike racks

Residents have just a few more days to give their views on potential sites for new cycle racks in the city centre.

City of York Council have worked ‘in tandem’ with York BID to identify 18 potential new sites for cycle racks.

Residents and other regular users of the city centre have until Wednesday 28 February to give their views at https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/CYCNewCycleParking
(more…)

Chesney Field meeting leaves many unanswered questions

Chesney’s Field development plan

Last nights “drop in” briefing, at which some residents were given the opportunity to see how Council officials want to see Chesney’s Field developed, produced more questions than answers.

The plan to fence off part of the popular piece of public open space had already got off to a poor start when it was found that neither local Ward Councillors not the Residents Association had been consulted.

It now appears that flyers advertising the exhibition were only delivered to a small number of properties. Attendance at the event was modest.

The Residents Association will be organising another meeting in August to review the proposals.

What is now clear is that the plans involve over 60% of the field being enclosed with 1 metre high railings. This is intended to accommodate the preferences of a football club (Woodthorpe Wanderers) which faces eviction from the Council owned pitches at Lowfields.

A shipping container storage type building may also be left on the field and some levelling work would be undertaken. The playground is unlikely to be affected.

Although officials say that access gates would remain unlocked, the fencing would effectively eliminate some types of sporting activity, such as cricket, and could inhibit other uses. Activities would tend to concentrate around the perimeter, nearer to peoples homes.

There is an option to include an “outdoor gym” or “trim track” (the Acorn field or Foxwood Park remain other location possibilities for these).

Survey – click to complete

The Council says that – to make up for the loss of the playing fields at Lowfields which the Council hopes to build on – additional open space will be provided near the college on Tadcaster Road (over a mile from the existing pitches). Perhaps not surprisingly, the existing users of the Lowfields pitches feel that this is too far away to meet their needs (and is unlikely to address the concerns of playing field conservation bodies both local and national).

The £40,000 expenditure will be mainly used at Tadcaster Road.

Local Councillors will be consulting directly through a door to door survey over the next 3 weeks. Around 1000 homes will be visited. Residents will then be able to give their verdict on whether they want to see any changes to the field.

Early responses to the survey suggest that most people would prefer the football club to stay at Lowfields.

One option would be for the Woodthorpe Wanderers football club to play on Chesneys Field – with the benefit of levelled pitches – but without any fencing.

As the concern seems to relate to the possible fouling of the pitches by dogs, additional poop scoop bins could be provided together with more warning signs. We think this will probably meet most peoples concerns. Any storage unit could be located more discretely behind the landscaping mound on the other side of Foxwood Lane

Residents are also being given the chance in the survey to say whether they want a fitness tract and/or outdoor gym.

The survey can also be completed “on line” click

The results are expected at the end of August

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