VOLUNTEERS behind York’s Arts Barge project are waiting to hear if their restored vessel will get a new home in the city centre.

The group brought their boat - the Selby Tony - into York earlier this year, after delays caused by the Boxing Day floods.

It is currently moored in the Foss Basin and undergoing renovations, but in late July the planning application went in to get the boat a permanent mooring near Skeldergate Bridge, where it could have pedestrian access and become the arts centre the group want it to be.

With a determination deadline at the end of September the group has appealed via its Facebook page for supporters to show their backing for the scheme. Opponents have also encouraged objectors to speak up and scores of comments for and against the proposals have now been submitted to the council.

Dozens of supporting comments have been made by people who say York needs an arts centre, and who say the Arts Barge community could make a valuable contribution to the city.

However, residents and businesses near the site have voiced concerns, and people living in the Postern Court and Emperors Wharf buildings have written to planners with concerns over noise, river safety, and the impact of the barge on the conservation area.

Pam Douglas, who lives in Postern Close on the other side of Skeldergate Bridge, said they feared the noise from the music venue would be unacceptable, and said the barge would be an eyesore near the historic and listed bridge tollhouse.

York Press:

Jan Dyl, the owner of Dyl’s cafe, which occupies the tollhouse, has also raised concerns about the impact of the adjacent barge on his business, which had fought back from last winter’s floods. He said the barge would completely block the view of the river from his terrace, seriously threatening his business.

He said that when the river rose, the barge would rise and loom over his cafe, and he also spoke of concerns about noise and rowdiness which he felt would damage his cafe’s atmosphere and ambience.

The Arts Barge architect David Spencer said: “As architects we always consider objectors’ concerns quite seriously.

“We have had a lot of experience with planning applications and objectors can offer a new line of thinking, and we can amend a design to suit."