PROPERTY ENTREPRENEUR EARMARKS CLEETHORPES FARMLAND FOR PRESTIGIOUS 63-HOME DEVELOPMENT

Artist's impression of how the development could look if arable land makes way for   63  new homes

PROPERTY entrepreneur Ming Yeung has targeted Cleethorpes for his next construction project.

Mr Yeung is head of Liverpool-based YPG Developments which is seeking to build 63 homes on the farmland which lies almost opposite to the entry to the Tesco superstore on Hewitts Avenue.

Ming Yeung of YPG Developments

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The scheme is controversial both because it will lead to the loss of fertile crop-growing land and also because it will increase congestion on the roads at this important approach to the resort.
 
However, outline planning permission already exists and it is only details regarding layout of the site and the design of the houses  that need to be approved when North East Lincolnshire Council's planning committee makes its decision at a meeting on January 9.

Most of the properties have been designated as four- and five-bedroomed "luxury" family homes, but there could also be up to 20 apartments for over-50s.

Mr Yeung is keen that the £25-million project should be of high quality and provide a prestigious addition to the Cleethorpes area's  existing housing stock.
 
Council case officer Martin Dixon is recommending councillors to approve the application."This will support the council's aims of delivering more housing in the borough,"he says. 

"The design and layout of the site is acceptable and has evolved through negotiations with the
applicant.
 
"The result will be a relatively distinctive and spacious development set within
landscaping."

According to an ecological survey carried out by Guiseley-based Brooks Ecological, there is unlikely to be any detrimental impact on wildlife, though the consultancy suggests that the planting of additional boundary hedging would create welcome feeding, roosting and nesting habitat for songbirds.
 
Mr Yeung is the son of   acclaimed Chinese artist Hai Shuet Yeung who was awarded the MBE in 2008 and some of whose work is understood to be displayed at the British Museum.

The proposed name of the Cleethorpes development is Strawberry Fields.

                                 
                       Above and below - the type of family homes proposed for the site

  

* Pictures: YPG Developments

WADING BIRDS SET TO BENEFIT FROM NEW NATURE RESERVE ON OUTSKIRTS OF GRIMSBY

BUT CAUTION SOUNDED BY HUMBERSIDE AIRPORT ON BIRD STRIKE RISK

                                                         

The lagoons are likely to be a magnet for black-tailed godwit

A PROPOSED new nature reserve for the South Bank of the Humber Estuary has today been given the planning green light.

 

North East Lincolnshire.has earmarked up £6.84-million for the project which will involve creation of lagoons, ponds and other habitat on land off South Marsh Road in Stallingborough, near Grimsby.

 

There will also be a purpose-built hide.

 

The approximate breakdown is:

*   Up to £4.56-million for land acquisition - either purchased outright or leased for 25 years

*    £1.39-million to create appropriate habitat

*     £894,000 for ongoing management

It is understood that the reserve, to be known as Cress Marsh, will consist of four different sites so as to provide diversity for waders - including curlew, redshank, lapwing and golden plover - ducks and geese.

 

The council is required to create the reserve to provide mitigation for habitat which will be lost during development of industrial land and provision of infrastructure as part of its South Humber Gateway employment initiative.

 

This part of the Humber Estuary is annually thought to provide feeding habitat for at least 175,000 birds - chiefly waders and wildfowl.

 

Despite the pressure on local authority budgets, NELC is confident that - aided by grants -  it has the resources to ensure the reserve is appropriately and effectively managed once it has been created. Contractors will be engaged to carry out this work.

 

Ensuring the authority meets its responsibilities will be Natural England who have signed off the project as have partner-organisations such as sisters-councils, the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, the RSPB and the Greater Lincolnshire Nature Partnership.

 

The RSPB has insisted that there must be guarantees that mitigation measures will be in perpetuity and not allowed to lapse at the expiry of 25-year leases which landowners might not wish to renew.

 

What access, if any, the public, including birders, will have to the site has yet to be determined.

The application was originally submitted in late-January, but, because of hitches, was not determined until this month.

 

The scheme did not go before councillors for debate, but was determined by case officers under delegated decision-making powers.

 

Officials at Humberside Airport have asked to be kept updated as the site is located just within its 13km runway "bird zone".

 

It is keen to discuss “wildlife monitoring processes” in order to reduce the risk of bird strikes.

Rarities such as this pectoral sandpiper could also drop in

JAPANESE COMPANIES TAKE STAKE IN GIANT OFFSHORE WINDFARM PROJECT

TWO Japanese energy companies have taken a stake - jointly worth almost £1-billion - in the Triton Knoll windfarm project off the Lincolnshire Coast.

German renewables company  Innogy this week announced plans to sell 41 per cent to Electric Power Development, better known as J-Power, (25 per cent) and Kansai Electric Power (16 per cent).

Both Japanese companies are keen to expand beyond their domestic markets.

Innogy will retain the majority stake (59 per cent).

Construction on the windfarm is set to start at the end of next year.

THE PROBLEM WITH WINDFARMS

                                           

WHAT moral duty, if any, do we have to safeguard the birds and other wildlife of our oceans?

This is one of the questions posed in a study by journalist Jim Wright.

In A Fault To Nature, his particular focus is on the threat posed to hundreds of thousands of birds by the proliferation of offshore wind farms in UK waters, such as the southern North Sea and beyond.

He acknowledges that wind energy is helping to revitalise the economy of coastal towns such as Grimsby but claims this is likely to be coming at the expense of marine species.

These include puffins, shearwaters, terns and divers  which are increasingly being displaced from longstanding maritime habitat because of their aversion to the ‘invasion’ of turbines which, to them, are alien structures.

Meanwhile night-migrating songbirds such as nightingales, warblers and members of the thrush family are at risk of fatal collisions, especially when conditions are misty or rainy.

For reasons that are not clear, raptors are particularly vulnerable, and there are numerous fatality records involving such species as sea eagle, osprey and red kite.

The unenviable record for the largest recorded number of multiple bird kills on a single night is thought to be held by an onshore turbine in Nasudden, Sweden, where 49 birds (of species unknown)  were reported to have been found early one morning  in 1983.

The turbine was not operational at the time, but the weather was poor and the birds are thought to have been drawn to the structure by a single lamp about 35ft above the ground.

However, no one has yet come up with a way of measuring avian collisions with offshore turbines so the extent of destruction at these turbines is likely to be higher – but it is impossible to tell.

Unlike fish, birds have no commercial value - no one measures their ‘stocks’ - so regard for their welfare is minimal.

The giant of UK offshore wind is the rapidly-growing Danish company, Ørsted, whose projected developments off the UK could result in an area approaching the size of the county of Yorkshire becoming a no-go area for almost all birds. Not so much habitat ‘loss’ as habitat ‘theft’.

The author applauds the American Bird Conservancy which is vigorous in warning on the windfarm threat to birds, especially on migration flyways.

But he is critical of the RSPB which he accuses of lying low on the issue - in part, be believes, because it has been a willing recipient of the generous donations and ‘partnership’ payments from windfarm developers including SSE, Scottish Power and Ecotricity.

The Crown Estate, which owns most of the seabed in British waters,  claims to be seeking to create “healthy places where natural habitats can thrive”.

But it wholeheartedly supports the Government’s push for offshore windfarm development - not surprising given

that its portfolio of sites, which  was valued at £855-million as of March last year, generates upwards of £28-million rental income per annum.

It is time, surely, for some of this money to be allocated for projects designed to protect and enhance the welfare of birds and other wildlife.

Because of the advance of solar, the author believes windpower may only be an intermediate technology (just as fax was a stepping stone to email). As such, its economic benefits may not be long-lasting.

He believes future generations would not thank us if  populations of birds were decimated, or even destroyed, for the sake of a technology lasting   only a few decades.     

A Fault To Nature - Birds, Migration and The Problem with Windfarms is available, price £3, as an e-book on Kindle.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=a+fault+to+nature

THREE NEW APARTMENT BLOCKS IN PROSPECT FOR CLEETHORPES SEAFRONT

AN ambitious new residential scheme is set to change the face of Cleethorpes seafront.

Property development Cielo Realty Ltd is seeking planning permission to build three apartment blocks on a derelict site - formerly occupied by Clifton Bingo Club - at Grant Street which is  near the railway station.

The submitted plans reveal one to be 13 storeys high, one at 11 storeys and one at nine storeys.

In all, they would accommodate 99 apartments, underground parking and possibly some shops at ground-floor level.

The agent for the scheme is Mike Cole, of Hampshire-based Bell Cornwell LLP whose  application is now being considered by planners at North East Lincolnshire Council.

LABOUR HOLD ON TO SEAT IN FRESHNEY WARD BY-ELECTION

LABOUR candidate held on to  their Freshney ward seat in yesterday's by-election caused by the resignation of Ray Sutton who has left the area.

The result in full:

Sheldon James Mill (Labour): 692

Steve Holland (Conservative): 650

Mick Kiff (independent): 231

Barry Charles Fisher (UKIP): 78

Loyd Layton Emerson (Green Party): 24

Total votes, 1678, a 23.22% turnout.

CLEETHORPE WOMAN'S BUS-CAFE PLAN FOR RESORT BOATING LAKE

                                                          

A TWO-year permission has been granted for a bus-café - also known as  Emma's Kitchen - to be sited on the car park at the south end of Cleethorpes Boating Lake.

The bus is  a double-decker adapted for catering purposes.

The catering entrepreneur behind the scheme is Emma Cozens, of Sandringham Road, Cleethorpes.

Her application did not go before the planning committee was approved until June 22, 2020, by NELC planning case officer Lauren Birkwood under delegated powers.

****

THE planning green light has been given for the Abbey Vet Centre at the junction of Bargate and Augusta Street to be extended.

The project involves extensions, alterations and conversion of garage to provide new veterinary

facilities.

There will be night duty staff accommodation and additional work space on the first floor

first floor

A  boundary wall and pillars at the  Augusta Street entrance will be replaced.

The successful applicant is Dr Dr Jacqueline Buck

***

Addaction has been given the planning go-ahead to change the use of the second floor of Viking House, at 51 Church Street, Grimsby, from offices to a clinic. The application approved by planners was submitted by Miss Annabel Blackett

FORMER COUNCIL LEADER IN SAND PROTEST

                                                          

FORMER NELC leader Cllr Keith Brookes is set to  protest about the accumulation of windblown sand in his Haverstoe ward when he attends this week’s full council meeting.

The sand pile-up has made an important path at the rear of Cleethorpes Leisure Centre almost impassable for cyclists, wheelchair-users, others with disabilities and parents wheeling pushchairs.

At Thursday’s meeting, Cllr Brookes  will demand that the matter is dealt with “as a matter of urgency”.

DEMAND FOR UPDATE ON TOLLBAR ROUNDABOUT

THE leader of   NELC's Conservative Group will this week demand  an update on the administration's controversial plan to replace the Tollbar roundabout (pictured) with traffic lights.

This is what Cllr Philip Jackson will say at Thursday's meeting of NELC:

"At full council on 22 March is was resolved that the future of Tollbar roundabout would be referred back to cabinet for further consideration.  

"Four months later, we have heard nothing and the uncertainty remains. 

"What is the current situation?”

ECOLOGY OFFICER'S UPDATE ON CLEETHORPES SALTMARSH

AN update has been provided on the saltmarsh (pictured) that, in recent years, has been edging closer to the sandy central beach in Cleethorpes.

A brief report by North East Lincolnshire Council’s ecology officer, Mike Sleight, is due to be considered at a tourism scrutiny panel meeting on Thursday of this week.

In it, he says of the position as of June 27 this year: “The saltmarsh over the last year has receded somewhat and no saltmarsh was dug up last year.

“However, this growing season has seen some tufts of grass sprout up, and these have

been removed by Beach Safety.”

Mr Sleight goes on to sound an upbeat note on the orchids on the dunes south of the leisure centre.

“They have had an excellent season, recovering well after the tidal surge of 2013.

“We always claim some of the best wildflower areas in northern Lincolnshire, and this has proved the case this year.”

***

HOPES FADE ON CLEETHORPES SUNDAY MARKET PROPOSAL

                                                                    

PLANS to establish a Cleethorpes market on the second Sunday of every month look likely to be shelved.

The council had thought vibrancy might have been created by setting up on the car park at The Knoll (pictured).

However, a working group has concluded that it would not be commercially viable and should not, therefore, be recommended for cabinet consideration.

PLANNING GO-AHEAD LIKELY FOR PROPOSED SEAFRONT CAFE REVAMP

A PROPOSED rebuild of the Kingsway Kiosks café-restaurant on  Cleethorpes seafront is set to be approved at tomorrow’s meeting of North East Lincolnshire Council planning committee.

Adjacent to the leisure centre, this is a popular attraction for residents and visitors, but proprietors Andrew and Jenny McCluskey are keen to enhance and enlarge it based on a design commissioned from Adam Fulton of local firm Hodson Architects.

Some esidents at Chandos, the apartment block (pictured) on the other side of the road, have expressed concerns over potential noise nuisance, but senior planning officer Cheryl Jarvis does not believe these are sufficient to warrant refusing the plan, especially since it is a revision of one that has already been approved.

She is recommending that councillors approve the application.

***

A NEW gym could soon be opening on the Wilton Road Industrial Estate in Humberston.

Cleethorpes man Luke Tarbatt wants to convert  Premier Business Unit 1 for the benefit of keep-fit enthusiasts.

His application is being recommended for approval by case officer Lauren Birkwood when it goes before North East Lincolnshire Council's planning committee tomorrow (Wednesday).

***

RECALLING A NIGHT OF DEVASTATION IN GRIMSBY AND CLEETHORPES

WERE the rumblings of Saturday night's mini-earthquake in North East Lincolnshire, a reminder from Nature of an important 75th anniversary that falls on Thursday  of this week?

The town had mostly been unscathed by World War Two enemy aircraft raids until between 1am and 1.30am on June 14,1943, when numerous bombs of various types were dropped across Grimsby and  Cleethorpes.

According to the records, worst affected areas included the business area of the Fish Docks and residential areas of Freeman Street, Victoria Street, and Cleethorpe Road. 

Some  99 people died and 184 were seriously injured during this attack.

However, news of the raid was censored to prevent the 

Luftwaffe knowing the extent  of death and destruction that had been caused by their high explosive, incendiary and butterfly bombs.

It is not known if this night of tragedy will be commemorated at any church or civic event in the borough.

See also:
http://grimsbynews.blogspot.com/2018/01/a-terrible-night-for-grimsby-and.html

TOLLBAR ROUNDABOUT RUMPUS RUMBLES ON

THE row  over North East Lincolnshire Council's plan to replace the roundabout at Waltham Tollbar with traffic lights continues to blaze.

For part of today. residents were at the scene, displaying placards expressing opposition to the proposal.

Many passing motorists sounded their horns to show their support.

Rewind to November 2016 when the report below appeared in the Cleethorpes Chronicle newspaper. 

CONTROVERSIAL  plans to replace existing roundabouts with traffic lights at three pinch points in North East Lincolnshire  now look unlikely to go ahead.

 After securing  funding  of  £4.2-million from the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership, the council's private sector partner, Engie, had intended to carry  out such works  at:

·        Tollbar

·        Nuns Corner, Grimsby

·        Littlecoates Road/Cambridge Road, Grimsby

But at a meeting of NELC's regeneration, environment, housing and scrutiny panel, members had little faith that  traffic lights would improve existing snarl-ups.

 Chairman Cllr Philip Jackson (Con, Waltham) said: "The perception is that lights will worsen congestion rather than easing it." 

Cllr Andrew De Freitas (Lib-Dem, Park) additionally noted that Nuns Corner was within a conservation area, the appeal of which would be undermined by the installation of lights. 

He continued: "Not one resident I have spoken to favours the replacement of the roundabout with lights." 

Cllr Stan Shreeve (Con, Humberston & New Waltham) said he had ecountered similar antipathy to the Tollbar scheme from residents and parish councillors alike. 

Cllr Kathryn Wheatley (Lab, Croft Baker) was scornful of all three proposals - not least because they focused solely on zones 50 yards from where the lights were earmarked for installation. 

"It is just as important to consider the impact such works would have on junctions further away." she commented. 

The panel's opposition  was a blow to Engie representatives at Tuesday's meeting, especially transport officer Mark Gibbons who is familiar with the traffic problems because, as he pointed out, lives in Park ward and is a former pupil of Tollbar School. 

In his detailed and thorough presentation, for which he was praised by panel members, he stressed  that it was necessary to consider the interests not just of motorists but also of cyclists and of pedestrians seeking to cross the roads. 

He noted that it was also important to bear in mind that traffic would only increase in the wake of forthcoming housebuilding projects at Scartho Top and in New Waltham and Holton-le-Clay - hence the need for action. 

The officer expressed particular concern about the peak-hour situation at Tollbar where there is highway conflict between school pupils and other road-users on a daily basis in term time. 

Agreement came from Cllr James Cairns (Ukip, Yarborough) who called for more rigorous enforcement in no-stopping areas in this location, saying: "Some parents are very very selfish." 

The meeting heard that the installation of a footbridge or pedestrian underpass had been considered for Tollbar, but had been deemed too expensive to warrant further exploration. 

Subject to further consultations between Engie and  ward councillors, some modifications are likely to take place at all three locations, with the mini-roundabout at the junction of Littlecoates Road and  Cambridge Road likely to be enlarged if adjacent land can be acquired. 

It is possible that, in conjunction with retaining the roundabout, lights may still be installed at Tollbar but for operation during peak times only. 

The subject is due to be revisited in the New Year by the council's cabinet who will also be invited to consider at least one residents' petition opposing the installation of traffic lights. Any works carried out are unlikely to cost anywhere near £4.2-million, and any unspent monies may have to be returned to Greater Lincolnshire LEP and thus lost to North East Lincolnshire.

 

Traffic lights not wanted here!

Rallying to the opposition cause!

LABOUR REMAIN PARTY WITH MOST COUNCIL SEATS - BUT CONSERVATIVES MAY YET TAKE CONTROL IF LIBERAL-DEMOCRATS PLAY BALL

NORTH East Lincolnshire Council remains under No Overall Control following Polling Day on Thursday.

As the largest party (19 seats), Labour will remain in charge unless the Liberal-Democrats (four seats) decide to throw in their lot with the Conservatives (18 seats).

The latter could happen, but the Lib-Dems would demand concessions, probably including a minimum of  one seat in the cabinet.

The closest result was at Immingham where there were three recounts. David Bolton (Lab)  pipped Karen Swinburn (Con) by just three votes, otherwise the Conservatives would have been the largest party.
 

A high-profile casualty of the night was last year's borough mayor, Cllr Christina McGilligan-Fell, who was unable to retain her Park ward seat for the Liberal-Democrats - unsurprising considering that the two larger parties threw huge resources into winning the seat.

Indeed, the Leader of the Opposition, Jeremy Corbyn, even campaigned in the seat prior to Polling Day.

There was delight for schoolboy Oliver Freeston (18) who forfeited time which might have been spent revising for his A-level exams to concentrate - successfully as it turned out - on winning the vacancy in Croft Baker ward for the Conservatives at the expense of Labour.

However, there was dismay for Matty Brown, formerly Labour councillor  in his home patch, Croft Baker. Against his will, he was told by his party that he would have to fight the Yarborough ward instead.

Then, in the run-up to Polling Day, he was suspended by Labour - reportedly after having held discussions with the Conservatives about switching political allegiance.

He thus fought - and lost - the campaign as an Independent.

As a result of the local election, the political composition of North East Lincolnshire Council is as follows:

Party	Number of Seats
Labour	19
Conservative	18
Liberal Democrats	4
Independent	1

Election turnout: 29.73%

Croft Baker (turnout:  32.97%)

Candidate	Party	No. of Votes Polled
James William Barker	Green	143
Clive Colam	UKIP	163
Carole Anne Doherty	Labour	1184
Oliver Daniel William Freeston	Conservative	1340

East Marsh (turnout:  24.33%)

Candidate	Party	No. of Votes Polled
Stephen Beasant	Liberal Democrat	1117
Ronal Raymond Bull	Independent	50
James Adam Chaudry	Conservative	67
Mark Patrick Gee	Labour	331
Catherine Susan Harper	Green	15
Phillip Andrew Moulson	UKIP	59

Freshney (turnout:  27.15%)

Candidate	Party	No. of Votes Polled
Stefan Leon Allan	Labour	793
Barry Charles Fisher	UKIP	180
Andrew Lingwood	Green	83
Val Pow	Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition	17
Callum Terence Procter	Conservative	878

Haverstoe (turnout:  38.16%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
Margaret Cracknell	Conservative	2211
Jack Stuart Mariner Rodwell	Labour	694
Steven Michael Anthony Roper	Green	203

Heneage (turnout:  25.97%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
Chris Nichols	Labour	996
Val O’Flynn	Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition	46
Mark Smith	Conservative	681
John Matthew Stockton	UKIP	322

Humberston and New Waltham (turnout:  35.72%)

Candidate	Party	No. of Votes Polled
Stephen William Harness	Conservative	2557
Sean Lawrence Willis	Labour	595

Immingham (turnout:  30.32%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
David Bolton	Labour	1005 (Elected for one year)
Charlotte Louise Emmerson	Green	227
Marian Jervis	Labour	737
Karen Doris Swinburn	Conservative	1002
Stewart Swinburn	Conservative	1227 (Elected for four years)
Willie Weir	Independent	654

Park (turnout:  33.26%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
Julian Darren Best	Trade Union and Socialist Coalition	33
Tony Blake	UKIP	146
Christina Ann McGilligan-Fell	Liberal Democrat	788
Sheldon James Mill	Labour	814
Paul Silvester	Conservative	1012
Jacqueline Vessey	Green	108

Scartho (turnout:  34.79%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
Peter Kenneth Bailey	Labour	839
Beckey Jane Brumpton	UKIP	175
David Michael De Freitas	Liberal Democrat	362
Lia Nici	Conservative	1674

South Ward (turnout:  21.94%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
Paul David Batson	Conservative	409
Jane Elizabeth Bramley	UKIP	318
Loyd Layton Emmerson	Green	107
Deborah Elsie Florence May Hill	Independent	239
Tim Mickleburgh	Labour	706

Sidney Sussex (turnout:  24.75%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
Tanya Brasted	UKIP	205
Andy Dickson	Green	87
Steve Holland	Conservative	666
Debbie Rodwell	Labour	1062

Waltham (turnout:  37.84%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
Nick Pettigrew	Conservative	1766
Karl Andrew Quibell	Labour	354

West Marsh (turnout:  20.99%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
Anna-Karina Gregersen	UKIP	122
Dave Mitchell	Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition	21
Gemma Louise Sheridan	Labour	510
David George Townend	Conservative	165
Keith Watkin	Independent	210

Wolds (turnout:  31.56%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
David Anthony Hasthorpe	Conservative	1401
Ian Stuart Rodwell	Labour	465

Yarborough (turnout:  23.35%)

Candidate	Party	No. of votes polled
Kieran Ian Barlow	Trade Union and Socialist Coalition	168
Liudmila Berezina	UKIP	207
Matthew Jason Brown	Labour	690
James David Cairns	Conservative	956