Whitby

In Living Memory

2007

2007 saw many changes happen in Whitby, from the closure of the Dairy to the arrival of a regular steam train service to Pickering. It was also in this year that the former Harrison's Garage workshops were demolished, on the site of the former Union Mill at Flowergate Cross. The garage had outgrown the building, which had been used by Harrison's since the 1930's, when it was built after the Union Mill building had been demolished, which was used as a drill hall in its later years, after its sails were removed in the late 1800's. Lengthy building work was started over the coming months, on a 5-storey structure, housing 15 two-bedroom & 7 three-bedroom flats. Two new businesses came to Church Street in this year, the Humble Pie & Mash shop and cafe at 163 Church Street and Hippy Hippy Shake at the 84 Church Street, on the corner of Bridge Street, selling smoothies & milkshakes. It was also around this time that another addition to the holiday village 'Captain Cook's Haven' took place. The latest addition was of Riverside View, the top left of the photo below. Other parts of the village are: Endeavour Court to the bottom right, built in 1983; Resolution Close, which was the 2nd phase of building work & included a swimming pool, built sometime around the early 90's; Planning permission for Riverside Walk to the bottom left was passed in 2004; Riverside View, to the top left of the photo was passed in 2006.

Left: Humble Pie 'N' Mash shop; Centre: Hippy Hippy Shake; Right: Captain Cook's Haven Holiday Village

In January, Marcus Richardson Waste Management organisation of Fairfield Way, founded 20 years previous, was taken over by Yorwaste for an undisclosed sum. The Water Lily moved premises again, having been at 4 different premises in 3 years, this time from Sneaton Castle to Whitby Library. The drop-in centre was previously housed at Marton Court for a couple of months before moving to the Seamen's Mission until 8th June 2006, when it moved to Sneaton Castle. In March, the Connexions Centre, providing a service to young people, also moved to Whitby Library, having formerly been based in premises at Bobbies Bank, where its lease had lapsed.

22nd January saw a plaque erected by Whitby Civic Society in memory of Frank Meadow Sutcliffe. The plaque was erected at his old workplace, in Waterloo Yard off Flowergate.

Scarborough Blind & Partially Sighted Society bought a new £30,000 Renault mini-bus in February. The bus was used to take users of the society to the charity's resource centre in Scarborough. The bus was made possible thanks to grants from Scarborough Borough Council's Northern Area Committee, as well as the other 3 area committees in the Scarborough area, £15,000 from the Normanby Trust, the North Yorkshire Moors & Coast Committee, the SERCO fundraising committee at RAF Fylingdales & the society's own fundraising.

Around this time, plans were passed for a house to be built at Mount Farm Close, on a plot of land transferred to Scarborough Borough Council from Barratt (Poppleton) Ltd in 1991.

Work began in March on the new 45-metre-high lattice transmission mast off Fairfield Way, to replace the former mast on the East Cliff, which was in danger of soon falling into the sea. Work also got underway around this time on £130,000 works at Blue Bank in Sleights, which would see a 40mph buffer zone added, from just South of Littlebeck Lane End to the existing 30mph at the foot of the hill. Also as part of the scheme, extensive road markings were added and a high-friction surface laid on the downward side of the hill.

In March also, the first phase of works totalling £2.8M got underway, which would transform the harbour. The first stage of the works was to install 2 additional pontoons at Endeavour Wharf, which would provide 40 berths. Around this time, a 20mph speed limit was introduced in Ruswarp, from halfway down Ruswarp Bank to the railway crossing & to the entrance of the old mill along The Carrs. Children from Ruswarp School designed posters about reducing speed, and the best ones were put onto the 3 signs. Work on Whitby's Skate Park on the West Cliff finally got underway in March, after planning permission for the £120,000 project was granted in April 2003, on land formerly occupied by the petrol go-karts, them having being moved some time earlier to the site of the former canoe lake, that having been drained.

20mph speed limit in Ruswarp from The Carrs

3rd April was a key date for the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, when it introduced regular steam trains between Whitby & Pickering for the first time since the line was closed in 1965, when it fell victim to Dr. Richard Beeching's plans.

Steam train in Whitby, also showing the former TV mast near at Abbey Plain

4th April saw Greens Restaurant in Bridge Street re-open after an extensive refurbishment involving a 6-week closure. The refurbishment involved converting the upstairs of the property to a dining area, allowing the restaurant to seat more patrons. Whitby's Abbey House at the top of the 199 steps was re-opened as a hostel in April, with the official opening ceremony taking place on 15th May, following a £3.3M re-development of the half-Victorian, half-medieval building.

In April, part of Sleights had its electricity interrupted for a few hours at a time while overhead cables were replaced. Poles were taken out of the ground and replaced by new ones also. Also in this year, a detached dwelling was built to the side of the current dwelling, in the garden of 33 Coach Road, Sleights. April was also the month that Harpandales of Sneaton Lane, Ruswarp went into liquidation.

Left & Centre: Replacing electricity poles in Birch Crescent, Sleights; Right - 33a Coach Road with 35 & 37 to the right of the photo

Whitby's Beach Centre was partially opened in time for Easter, after many delays owing to inclement weather conditions over the previous months and also the fact that the new cafe floor had stability issues. The refurbishment of the former cafe, saw the toilets & lifeguard lookout opened in time for Easter, with the rest of the centre opening in May, with works taking a total of 10 months. The project was completed by Hillside Projects. The original estimated cost of the project was £184,000, but after the scheme was complete, it was later thought that the project had cost much more than anticipated, with an estimated total amount of £300,000. However, further research found that actually the cost had met its original target, but had not been up to specification, so in early 2008, work was started to improve this situation, which also saw the centre get a permanent electricity supply. Also around April, charges for the two attended toilets in town, the ones at West Cliff & the ones at New Quay Road were to rise from 20p to 40p. Whilst still on the toilet front, the Market Place toilets received a major overhaul in this year, with new urinals, toilets & sinks fitted, with new lighting & ventilation installed, whilst the toilets were completely redecorated. Also in April of this year, the Tap & Spile pub in New Quay Road was re-named The Station Inn. Its name to pre-date the Tap & Spile was Cutty Sark.

Whitby's new Beach Management Centre, in the former cafe premises

It was announced that the Pitch & Putt on the West Cliff would be used as temporary long-stay car parking over the summer months of this year, whilst the car parks on the Marina were being re-developed as part of the controversial Marina development, which had been in the pipeline with various designs since around 2000.

Sleights Bowling Club was awarded £2,000 to help connect a sewerage & electricity main to the club, from the nearby housing development. The club also wanted to add a roadway with a 16-feet-wide entrance with 2 metal gates. The total cost of the project was £13,280, which also involved installing a pump for the new sewerage system, replacing a septic tank. The grant was given by the Yorkshire Coast & Moors County Area Committee.

Also around this time, the Railway Cottages development was started, adjacent to the old engine shed, with access from Windsor Terrace. The cottages were to be part of the long-running, yet to get off the ground, Cook's World project, which would see a total of 12 cottages built, each with 2 bedrooms, built in 3 phases, the second phase having been granted planning permission in October 2007.

A stone feature in the middle of Four Lane Ends roundabout was nearing completion at this time, with the feature taking the shape of the abbey, with extensive planting in front of it. The money for the project, for Whitby in Bloom 2007, came from sponsorship & fundraising. The feature was unveiled in May by Eddie Astin, with the cutting of a ribbon.

Four Lane Ends Roundabout stone feature of Whitby Abbey

Also in May an Oxfam store opened in the recently-opened Jutland House in New Quay Road. Oxfam had previously run a shop in Whitby in times gone by, but that was in Flowergate before being bought by Eddie Astin. Plans were passed for 4 semi-detached houses, a detached house & a 2-bedroom flat above garages to be built on land off Highfield Road & Stonecross Road. The developers had agreed to set aside £10,000 for a children's play area.

Also in May, Whitby gained a new D Class inshore lifeboat. The boat, costing £25,000, had been bought with money left in a will by Olive May Stone of Barnsley, who died in 2001, this being the third boat funded with the money from the late Olive Stone. Named the OEM Stone III, the vessel replaced the former boat, which was bought in 2001, and joined the Atlantic 75, the second boat funded by her money, which served in the relief fleet. The new boat was christened to coincide with the opening of new lifeboat station and had a top speed of 25 knots. Whitby's new TV mast, on land adjacent to Fairfield Way was erected in May in 3 stages. The 50-metre-high mast, weighing 100 tonnes was to replace the old mast, on the East Cliff. The new mast began operating on temporary frequencies until the old mast was turned off, when the new mast could be switched to match the frequencies emitted by the old mast.

New TV mast off Fairfield Way

On the charity scene in May, the charity group Mind moved its drop-in sessions from the Seamen's Mission to Whitby Evangelical Church in Skinner Street. Moving onto June a new rotary club was set up by some members of the original Whitby Rotary Club, as well as gaining new members. The new club, named 'Rotary Club of Whitby Endeavour' was set up and one man who made that possible was former president, Mike Murphy.

Over June & July, Whitby's Swing Bridge encountered more problems with the East leaf jamming in the closed to river traffic. The worst case caused it to be stuck for over a week. It turned out to be a problem with the bridge's electrical system.

7th June saw Whitby's LiDL supermarket open, on the site of the former Handyman Store in Stakesby Road. June also saw the unveiling of a plaque in Pannett Park, to mark the work carried out to the park by volunteers, which saw the restoration of the floral clock.

Various stages of construction of LiDL supermarket
From left: 16/03/2007 - Building work begun; 27/04/2007 - LiDL nearing completion; LiDL as it appeared after completion

For a video of the LiDL development, click here

June also saw the Green Lane Centre, built in 1995, knocked to the ground again, as part of a £1.5M project to re-develop the centre, which would provide Vocational Training Services, 8 managed units, a community hall & a multi-function hall.

The end of June saw a national smoking ban come into force, which meant people could not light up a public place, for example a bar or cafe. They would have to go outside to smoke, which put an end to the smoke-filled pubs and designated smoking areas in cafes. The ban came into force at 6am on 1st July. Another smoking related change, which came into force on 1st October saw the minimum age to buy tobacco products change from 16 to 18, meaning anyone that was 17 at the time could not buy cigarettes until their 18th birthday.

Sadly, July saw the closure of Whitby Dairy, the end of an era, not only for staff, but for the people of Whitby. The dairy opened in 1957, and was bought by Dairy Farmers of Britain in August 2004, as part of its Associated Co-operative Creameries acquisition from the Co-operative Group. This meant that 95 jobs had been lost after the company continued to lose money. The Co-operative Group did still own the land however, and they eventually won their fight for houses on the site, and decided to sell the land to a housing developer.

On a more positive note, Hawsker School opened a new classroom, which saw a visit by Bishop of Whitby, the Right Rev Robert Ladds. The extension also included new toilets and a new porch, which was all constructed of stone with a slate roof, to match the original building, dating back to 1872.

Around July the Functional English School, a former convent, on Chubb Hill Road was demolished and a planning application was submitted by Kebbel Homes for 2 apartment blocks with parking underneath one of them.

Functional English School in Chubb Hill during the final stages of demolition

For a video of the Caedmon's Prospect Development, click here

In August, a new plaque was installed on the Captain Cook Statue, replacing the former plaque which was stolen a year previous.

Onto September, Whitby's brand new, state-of-the-art lifeboat station was officially opened, in a ceremony which also saw the OEM Stone III inshore lifeboat officially named. The Duchess of Kent performed the opening of the £1M station, after arriving at the station onboard the Whitby lifeboat.

Top row - GK - From left: The old lifeboat station; Dismantling the old lifeboat station; The old lifeboat station gone
Bottom row - From left: The new lifeboat station going up; The new lifeboat station as it appeared upon completion

Also in September, the £700,000 'Sports Mulgrave Centre' was officially opened by special guest Peter Beardsley and Lady Normanby.

Sports Mulgrave Centre

Residents of Aukland way were up in arms after 2 large bins were installed blocking access to a ramp on a footway. Also in September, former Eskdale School head teacher Keith Prytherch was appointed permanent head teach for Whitby Community College, after being appointed as acting head at the beginning of term.

In October, a new recycling scheme was launched for residents across the Scarborough Borough, with new blue wheelie bins being issued to all households. The blue bins would be used for paper, plastics & aluminium, with any food cartons being washed out before being disposed of. The blue and green bins were collected fortnightly on an alternate basis, with the blue being emptied one week and green the next. It was discovered around a month later however, that Scarborough Borough Council weren't ready to deal with the recyclable rubbish, so it was having to be transported to York.

7th October saw the officially unveiling of Fylinghall School's all-weather sports pitch. Meanwhile, Ruswarp Village Hall was re-opened by life-long Ruswarp resident Lucy Stevenson, after a £47,000 re-vamp. It was made possible thanks to grants from DEFRA, the Normanby Charitable Trust & Harold Rispin, a Ruswarp man who had left a donation in his will. The refurbishment included a new kitchen, a portable multi-function stage & improved parking facilities.

At the end of October, Whitby Town FC's manager Lee Nogan, resigned after a string of defeats which also saw the club drop out of the FA Trophy. Phil Brumwell took over the reins as caretaker manager, with team mate Matty Appleby offering a helping hand, until December, when Graeme Clarke was appointed as joint manager with Phil, until Phil resigned in December 2008, when Graeme took the reins himself.

Also in October, Harrison's Garage showroom, on the site of the old Union Mill, was demolished to make way for Union Mill Apartments. The mill, built in 1800, suffered storm damage in 1880 & 1888, and in 1923 the mill part was demolished and only the 3 storey building below was left, which was also demolished sometime later.

Harrisons Garage showroom before demolition

For a video of the Union Mill development, click here

In November 2007, Musicport World Music Festival, which had been held in Whitby for the past 8 years previous, performed its last event in the town at the Pavilion. The problem was the Pavilion could only house 1,000 spectators and the group had outgrown the venue, so they would perform at Bridlington Spa in 2008, allowing 3 times the capacity.

Whitby's skyline would change forever in November, when Whitby's old TV mast disappeared for good. The mast, having stood on the East Cliff since 1969 was dismantled by an 80-metre crane, after the transmitter was turned off in October. The area was tidied up and re-grassed, before the land was handed to Scarborough Borough Council.

Also in November, a new fisheries patrol boat arrived. The North Eastern Guardian III arrived at Whitby, to patrol the coast from the river Tyne to a point in Lincolnshire, although it would be stored in Whitby Harbour. The boat, a 26-metre-long vessel, was designed & built in Finland, costing £1.5M and was capable of 26 knots.

Whitby Jets jazz band got itself a new mini-bus after receiving a £1,000 community fund grant. It was to be used to transport the band to its twice-weekly training sessions, but it was still necessary to hire a full-size coach to get to engagements.

In December, white, plastic bollards were installed along the eastern grass verge of Helredale Road, supposedly to stop people parking their cars on the grass. The bollards were so far spread out though that it was easily possible to park cars between them, so they did not serve a purpose at all. The unsightly bollards were around 3-feet-tall and were concreted in to the ground. Also in December, The Vitner Restaurant in Flowergate closed its doors for the last time. The restaurant had been open for 10 years and was run by Dave Bottomley.

Also in 2007, St. John's Apartments were completed on the site of the former St. Hilda's R.C. school on Albion Terrace, which was closed in the 70's, when the new St. Hilda's RC school opened at Airy Hill. The building was then used as a storage warehouse by Agars Furniture and then most recently as Little Oaks Nursery, which opened in 1990 and closed in August 2004.

St. John's Apartments, built in this year after the demolition of Little Oaks Nursery

Sleights also had at least 2 new houses built, one being at Birch Avenue, and the other at the top end of Coach Road, opposite the junction of Iburndale Lane.

Left: The house on Birch Avenue; Right: The house on Coach Road opposite the junction with Iburndale Lane