Agenda item
Have your say
Minutes:
Tracy from the Groves Community Association stated that a lot of their projects would not be possible without help from organisations such as the GoodGym, or the Probation Service. Help with distribution of the local newsletter, or festival flyers helps to spread the word about projects and to attract new volunteers. Tracy invited anyone interested to join their monthly estate clean-up sessions held on the 1st Saturday of each month, 10am, meeting outside Helmsley House.
Q – Would it be possible to prevent cars from parking on housing land on Clarence Street?
A – We are aware that vehicle parking at that location damages the grass space and are working with CYC Housing to rectify the issue. It is a communal shared space and requires some type of demarcation from the road, perhaps some planters.
The Groves Repair Café, an initiative allowing York residents to visit and get their broken items fixed was mentioned and promoted by one resident.
Pastor Paul from the York Elim Pentacostal Church introduced himself and briefly spoke about their church building on Monkgate, next to the Theatre@41. The building is now open to the public and space is available for community groups to use. It was useful to learn about the range of projects already happening in the locality and Pastor Paul is keen to discuss and explore projects aiming to tackling poverty.
Q – Could you explore provision of stickers with a polite notice asking cyclists to dismount? Those could be attached to bollards at locations where cyclists and pedestrians share the route.
A – The issue of inconsiderate cycling gets raised very often. Thank you for the suggestion. The recent Police operation resulted in seizing several customized Ebikes which were in contravention of the Highway Code.
Q – There is an issue with cyclists riding on the pavement along Monkgate. I experienced it on the way to the meeting this evening.
A – Thank you for raising it with us. Please do keep reporting such issues to the Police.
A project to introduce community edible growing is taking place in Clarence Gardens. Four raised beds will be installed next to the existing herb garden. Volunteers are invited to join the inaugural session on Wednesday 6th of May, 6pm, meeting outside the park pavilion. Recent flyer drop attracted 12 responses from residents interested in being involved. For more details about the project please chat with the Community Officer, or come along to the session on the 6th of May.
Cllr Melly added that the potential to create a community café at the park pavilion is being explored and several meetings with various stakeholders have been held. Councillors were advised that no appropriate drainage exists under the pavilion. Appropriate drainage connection would be required for a commercial type of café operation. This obstacle prompted exploration of other alternatives.
Q – Has progress been made with installation of Electric Vehicle (EV) charging points at Monk Bar car park?
A – A contract with the previous provider came to an end and the Council is in the process of appointing a new contractor who will look at installation of new EV charging points. The new contract will be for 5 years. The issue has been evaluated by the Place Scrutiny Committee. Council officers are cautions about the option of EV charging point cables running under the pavement. This option creates health and safety issues and would require a bigger clearance space around vehicles. The Council is hoping to introduce communal EV charging points in the future and potential locations are being evaluated.
Q - 21 other local authorities have implemented the EV charging point solution where cables run under the pavement and have not had such health and safety concerns. Why can this solution not be implemented in York? There is no regulation requiring 2.5m of clearance around the vehicle.
A – We had a lengthy meetings with officers discussing technical complexities. The response form officers is that connecting EV charging points via cables under the pavement would not be a safe practice. A potential solution offered was to install communal EV charging points.
Q- Cost of communal charging can be expensive. If the Council appoints a new contractor on a 5-year contract to implement communal charging points, there is a risk they will charge an elevated rate for communal charging. I would like to challenge that point with the Council.
A – We have challenged on all those issues. There will be a decision session on the matter, and anyone can register to speak. Please provide us with your contact details after the meeting, so that we can keep you informed.
Q – Could charging points with sockets attached to lamp posts, like in London be explored in York?
A – This solution was also implemented in other cities, i.e. Liverpool. The difficulty in York is that some lamp posts are mounted to buildings or are at the back of pavement. This solution was not pursued by officers due to health and safety issues it would present.
Cllr Merrett offered to take contact details from anyone interested in pursuing the matter.
No further questions were raised, and Cllr Melly closed the meeting at 8:30pm