City faces ‘largest protest’ over sale plans for main coach park

CAMPAIGNERS have warned councillors they face the biggest outcry in York in modern times as revised plans were unveiled for the controversial sell-off of the city’s main coach park.

York Council released details yesterday of five options for the sale of the Union Terrace car and coach park after initial proposals to dispose of the whole site were abandoned in the wake of a public outcry.

Senior councillors on the authority’s Cabinet are due to meet tomorrow evening to agree to push ahead with a consultation on the new plans.

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All five of the new options still involve at least part of the site being sold off to York St John University to pave the way for an expansion of its campus.

Council leader James Alexander has maintained that the sale is vital to raise funds for city centre improvements and an overhaul of York’s car parks.

But members of the Save Union Terrace Car and Coach Park Campaign urged the council to abandon the sale completely to avoid undermining the city’s multi-million-pound tourism and retail sectors.

The campaigners have claimed the protest is the largest against a single issue in York’s modern history after revealing that a petition set up against the sell-off had smashed the 20,000-signature barrier.

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Campaign spokesman Mark Braithwaite, who owns the Braithwaite Gallery in Low Petergate, accused the council’s Labour-run administration of failing to gauge the strength of public opinion.

He added: “It is extremely difficult to understand the council’s reluctance to listen to public opinion, especially when passions are running so very strongly about this issue.

“All the political spin from the Labour camp blaming Liberal Democrats has really got under York residents’ skin, as it is the Labour council pushing it through at speed.

“As a lifelong Labour voter, I am thoroughly ashamed of York Labour group right now. When it is time to vote people will remember this fiasco and the blame will rest squarely on the shoulders of James Alexander and his council.”

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The Yorkshire Post revealed on Monday that Coun Alexander had asked the authority’s officers to draw up a set of new proposals for the sale of the coach park.

He has admitted the decision to look at the new options was brought about by the mass of opposition to the new proposals, although he was adamant that his administration has listened to the public’s concerns.

He stressed the initial plans to sell-off the whole site to raise £3.2m were drawn up during the previous Liberal Democrat administration. However, senior Liberal Democrats are adamant that they never backed these proposals.

Coun Alexander said: “Labour has spoken to traders, listened to the public and have abandoned these plans.

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“We are going to publicly consult in full on new options which include the possibility of retaining the full coach park and some car parking.”

Union Terrace is the city’s main coach park, and can accommodate 33 coaches and three minibuses. York attracts 7.1 million visitors every year, with about a tenth arriving by coach. Tourism brings in a total of £442m to the local economy annually.

The new options for the sell-off include proposals which could see all of the coach parking retained, although some of the car parking spaces would be lost.

Another of the options could see up to nearly half of the coach parking lost in a sale, with just 20 spaces kept along with some car parking.

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Hundreds of protesters are due to stage a demonstration at York’s Guildhall tomorrow evening, when an extraordinary council meeting called by the Liberal Democrats will take place before the Cabinet meets.