Who are the vandals?

10:24am Thursday 7th March 2013 in Letters By Reader's letter

The hedge running along the perimeter of Hull Road Park, top, which was removed by the council to give a better view into the park, bottom The hedge running along the perimeter of Hull Road Park, top, which was removed by the council to give a better view into the park, bottom

EMPLOYEES of City of York Council started ripping up the hedgerow along the perimeter of Hull Road Park on Tuesday. Before the work could be stopped, they had already torn up 43 metres of hedgerow.

After contacting councillors and staff at the council, I was informed the reason for removing the hedgerow was to give a better view into the park from the roadway, ready for when the park is to be left open all night.

Last Sunday, I took more than 500 photographs of Hull Road Park, so there would be images for future reference when the park falls into disrepair or is vandalised. I never thought for a moment that within two days the council would be the vandals.

I would therefore appreciate answers to the following questions:

• Why was the local community not consulted or informed that the council intended leaving the parks open at night?

• Why have they chosen to do this work in March, at the start of the bird-nesting season?

• Why rip up hedgerows in a public park, given that the hedgerow was only waist-height and its removal would make no difference to visibility?

• With no lighting in the park, how do they expect anyone to see into the park at night?

• Why waste money destroying hedgerows?

Irena Zientek, Alcuin Avenue, York.

Comments(5)

sparkseffect says...
11:19am Thu 7 Mar 13

It's March. The local authority mindset has it that any money in the budget MUST be spent before the end of the month, or it will be lost. In contrast, any sensible organisation (i.e. a private business) will only spend money if that is really necessary. The Government was going to put a stop to this "spend at any cost" stupidity but obviously hasn't. Just look at this week's unnecessary replacement of timetable cases at bus stops - they aren't broken so why do they need fixing? As for the parks - the woods around the Tang Hall Hotel were fenced off when I was growing up but that didn't stop us getting in - the council finally removed the fences a few years ago. I doubt if the fences around Tang Hall Park stop people getting in at night either but, yes, you're right, this does seem to be a strange time of year to rip out the hedges. No doubt there will be lots of confused blackbirds around Tang Hall, but at least the cats will be happy.

Report this post »

keepitshut says...
1:30pm Thu 7 Mar 13

According to the other days report in The Press, the council had checked the hedge for nesting birds.
Plus, if the Council own the park and want to take a hedge out, then surely it can.
I would imagine that come summertime, the council will have made redundant the lads who do the hedge-cutting at the parks etc.
No hedges to cut-no need for a hedgecutting crew.

Report this post »

Magicman! says...
3:10am Fri 8 Mar 13

Plus let's remember this particular council has a mindset of "we want to do it so we WILL do it"... examples: city-wide 20mph zone, removal of Water End cycle lane despite Police advising against that, denying budget proposals from LibDems or Tories, denying extension to budget meeting so proposals from other groups could be read and discussed....

Report this post »

TheTruthHurts says...
12:30pm Fri 8 Mar 13

Magicman! wrote:
Plus let's remember this particular council has a mindset of "we want to do it so we WILL do it"... examples: city-wide 20mph zone, removal of Water End cycle lane despite Police advising against that, denying budget proposals from LibDems or Tories, denying extension to budget meeting so proposals from other groups could be read and discussed....
Im not sure you are allowed to mention that on here. :-)

Report this post »

greenmonkey says...
2:45pm Sat 9 Mar 13

Asst Director when challenged for details of the programme of hedge removal claims there is no such programme it is merely 'routine maintenance'! Leaving parks unlocked at night is going to be counterproductive anyway, given the extra cost of removing grafitti, sharps, and damage to play equipment. Removing a hedge is not going to result in locals staring out of their window all evening on the off chance of spotting someone damaging equipment - and even if they do then ring the police by the time they arrive the miscreants will have long since disappeared into the darkness.

Report this post »

click2find

About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree