Hope of cash to help kick-start troubled projects (From York Press)
Get in touch: send your photos, videos, news & views by texting YORK to 80360 or send an email»
Hope of cash to help kick-start troubled projects
9:22am Saturday 12th January 2013 in News
By Mike Laycock, Chief reporter
Germany Beck in Fulford
YORK could be in line for a multi-million pound windfall that would kick-start some of the city’s biggest stalled developments.
City officials have bid for a share of a Government pot which could fast-track work on the A19 at Germany Beck in Fulford, York Central and the Nestlé Cocoa Works site.
All three schemes have been plagued by delays, caused partly by high infrastructure costs, but also by the national economic crisis.
City of York Council has submitted an application to the Government’s Critical Infrastructure Investment fund, hoping to obtain money to pay for infrastructure works at the sites.
Darren Richardson, the council’s director of city and environmental services, said the council hoped to hear back from the Government by the end of March. He said: “The funding, if awarded, would be prioritised against whichever current site would benefit most from it.”
The bid was discussed earlier this week when council leader James Alexander and officials travelled to Whitehall to meet Local Government Minister Nick Boles.
A council spokesperson said the funding could help to reduce flooding risks on a low-lying stretch of the A19 at Fulford, which has been closed three times in the past four months by flooding from the River Ouse and Germany Beck, causing diversions, delays and disruption.
The A19 is set to be raised above flooding levels as part of Persimmon’s plans to build an access road into the Germany Beck site, where it wants to build 720 homes.
However, Verna Campbell, of Fulford Parish Council, has claimed previously that the benefits of an end to flooding on the A19 would be outweighed by weeks of chaos while the road is raised, followed by the daily extra congestion caused by cars from 700 extra houses using the route.
Fulford Councillor Keith Aspden said residents feared the development would make flooding even worse, and he has called for an urgent meeting between local residents, the council’s flood risk team, community planners and the Environment Agency, which he says is likely to be held in February.
A Nestlé spokesman said that the Cocoa Works – the former factory site at the southern end of its York complex which has outline planning permission for a mix of residential and commercial development – has not yet been sold and continues to be marketed.
Andrew Bowes, managing director at Persimmon Homes Yorkshire said: “Persimmon Homes remain fully committed to the development of the Germany Beck site and have not sought any additional funding to assist in bringing the development forward.”
A council spokeswoman said the authority was working with Network Rail on masterplanning the stalled redevelopment of the York Central site on a teardrop of land behind York Railway Station, and exploring avenues of investment, including the latest bid.
Comments(20)
bob the builder
says...
11:51am Sat 12 Jan 13
sharpish
says...
12:28pm Sat 12 Jan 13
Why should public money be spent on propping up Persimmon?
They promised the earth in order to secure the outline planning permission (including the assertion that future flooding at the A19 would no longer occur) but have miserably failed to deliver.
Any reasonable person who cares to examine the Germany Beck proposals will see that the development is wholly unsustainable in today's world.
I would suggest that any funding could be used to prevent regular flooding of the A19 without the need to blight the area with Persimmon's massive new junction or the hideous raised access road or the additional traffic lights?
ReginaldBiscuit
says...
12:56pm Sat 12 Jan 13
sharpish wrote:Yep, spot on guys. Couldn't agree more.
Agree with bob the builder.
Why should public money be spent on propping up Persimmon?
They promised the earth in order to secure the outline planning permission (including the assertion that future flooding at the A19 would no longer occur) but have miserably failed to deliver.
Any reasonable person who cares to examine the Germany Beck proposals will see that the development is wholly unsustainable in today's world.
I would suggest that any funding could be used to prevent regular flooding of the A19 without the need to blight the area with Persimmon's massive new junction or the hideous raised access road or the additional traffic lights?
Torkie
says...
2:55pm Sat 12 Jan 13
bob the builder wrote:There were police flying round chapelfields with sirens on at 11 this morning. Something big must have been going on.
Speaking of burning up taxpayers money, a police helicopter has been circling Quaker Wood for just under an hour - Didn't know NYP had one and how many air miles to the gallon do they get out of it? Presumably a crackhead from Foxwood has tried to rob the cash van at Tesco with a banana in his pocket again?
Torkie
says...
2:57pm Sat 12 Jan 13
spottycow
says...
3:39pm Sat 12 Jan 13
roadwars
says...
4:30pm Sat 12 Jan 13
bob the builder wrote:I think it's the Tories giving the money...Demonstrates that a Tory government are worse than any other where donating taxpayers money to private wealthy companies is involved...
Nothing new in this story, except you should all pick up that private developers are trying to increase their profits by using taxpayers money to build their projects, and demonstrates that a Labour Council worse than any other where spending taxpayers money is involved.
pedalling paul
says...
4:44pm Sat 12 Jan 13
red777
says...
5:28pm Sat 12 Jan 13
sharpish wrote:Ive worked for Persimmons its slave labour, they brag in National papers about their profits get you to do work and dont pay .They are even trying to cut down with paint when decorating their houses ,its all about profit to them and impressing those higher up in the company .
Agree with bob the builder.
Why should public money be spent on propping up Persimmon?
They promised the earth in order to secure the outline planning permission (including the assertion that future flooding at the A19 would no longer occur) but have miserably failed to deliver.
Any reasonable person who cares to examine the Germany Beck proposals will see that the development is wholly unsustainable in today's world.
I would suggest that any funding could be used to prevent regular flooding of the A19 without the need to blight the area with Persimmon's massive new junction or the hideous raised access road or the additional traffic lights?
gmc_1963
says...
7:01pm Sat 12 Jan 13
"Hope of cash to help start troubled projects"
would be sufficient
who2believe
says...
8:57pm Sat 12 Jan 13
That's a better use for the cash. Leave the newts alone and build the new stadium on the teardrop site as preferred by everyone.
Magicman!
says...
2:10am Sun 13 Jan 13
The two sites that need to be focused on are the old Nestle site and the Central site, as both could in part do something to help people get around: nestle could have an access road to a new roundabout (I'd prefer this as the current traffic lights are beyond hopeless) at the Wigginton Road/Crichton Avenue junction that connects with Hayleys Terrace, whilst the Central site could also involve a proper bus station. Germany Beck could just be seperated off and have the A19 raising as a transport/roads project without the house building.
Mulgrave
says...
9:50am Sun 13 Jan 13
Scarlet Pimpernel
says...
1:14pm Sun 13 Jan 13
red777 wrote:Those 'higher up in the company' are leaving in droves. Chairman John White, aged 60, left last year after 32 years with the company, and Chief Executive Mike Farley is leaving in April, aged 58, after 30 years with them. The next chief executive is 45 years old.
sharpish wrote: Agree with bob the builder. Why should public money be spent on propping up Persimmon? They promised the earth in order to secure the outline planning permission (including the assertion that future flooding at the A19 would no longer occur) but have miserably failed to deliver. Any reasonable person who cares to examine the Germany Beck proposals will see that the development is wholly unsustainable in today's world. I would suggest that any funding could be used to prevent regular flooding of the A19 without the need to blight the area with Persimmon's massive new junction or the hideous raised access road or the additional traffic lights?Ive worked for Persimmons its slave labour, they brag in National papers about their profits get you to do work and dont pay .They are even trying to cut down with paint when decorating their houses ,its all about profit to them and impressing those higher up in the company .
The bragging as you put it, is merely media reporting increased profits from the year before. When you make next to nowt one year, it is easy to double it, and then say your profits are up 100%. For a proper perspective look at long term returns on capital, and you will see that nearly all housebuilders are performing poorly. The industry is weighed down by over-regulation, and the experienced, talented executives are packing it in. The industry is hoping for the government to loosen the geenbelt, which will provide strategic land gains, but this will not save the industry from near terminal decline. It will also not bring about the massive increases in housing output that are required to reduce the housing crisis. Things will get worse, not better, and stories like this are trying to put a gloss on a t*rd !
the butler
says...
7:47pm Sun 13 Jan 13
pedalling paul
says...
7:39am Mon 14 Jan 13
Magicman! wrote:All done of course to make it easier for you to get around York by car. .Fine until several thousand other car owners also decide to take advantage of additional capacity.We end up with bigger peak time jams,Self defeating!
maybe, and build more shops on the ryedale stadium site... If one of those was a primark I don't think there'd be any complaints!
The two sites that need to be focused on are the old Nestle site and the Central site, as both could in part do something to help people get around: nestle could have an access road to a new roundabout (I'd prefer this as the current traffic lights are beyond hopeless) at the Wigginton Road/Crichton Avenue junction that connects with Hayleys Terrace, whilst the Central site could also involve a proper bus station. Germany Beck could just be seperated off and have the A19 raising as a transport/roads project without the house building.
Magicman!
says...
4:48am Wed 16 Jan 13
Let's also remember a lot of the current queues are caused by the A1237 being single carriageway and so everybody tries to avoid it thus clogging up the roads that feed to/from it or run parallel to it, and this includes the city centre. All this traffic has an impact on bus services, adding sometimes as much as 45 minutes on to peak time journeys. Journeys on the 20 between Poppleton and Clifton Moor are often delayed by congestion on the A1237, and this made the service so unreliable that in order to make up the lost time the Fulford end of the route has been cut off - so some people have lost their bus service as the direct result of a road not being upgraded to reflect its useage. You can't just sit back on your laurels and use the "jam tomorrow" line to save money on developing anything road related.
I'm a cyclist saying this, not an avid petrolhead!
Magicman!
says...
4:48am Wed 16 Jan 13
Let's also remember a lot of the current queues are caused by the A1237 being single carriageway and so everybody tries to avoid it thus clogging up the roads that feed to/from it or run parallel to it, and this includes the city centre. All this traffic has an impact on bus services, adding sometimes as much as 45 minutes on to peak time journeys. Journeys on the 20 between Poppleton and Clifton Moor are often delayed by congestion on the A1237, and this made the service so unreliable that in order to make up the lost time the Fulford end of the route has been cut off - so some people have lost their bus service as the direct result of a road not being upgraded to reflect its useage. You can't just sit back on your laurels and use the "jam tomorrow" line to save money on developing anything road related.
I'm a cyclist saying this, not an avid petrolhead!
Magicman!
says...
2:10am Thu 17 Jan 13
bob the builder says...
11:46am Sat 12 Jan 13