Whitby

In Living Memory

2016

The turn of the year brought with it some quite wild weather, which resulted in the town becoming virtually cut off from the outside world for a few hours on the evening of 4th January after flash flooding hit the area. The first belt of heavy rain arrived around 4pm which was followed by a larger band of rain lasting most of the evening. It took only a couple of hours of this to leave numerous roads impassable, including the A171 near Fairfield Way, The Carrs & the A174 Sandsend Road. The A171 was also flooded near Cross Butts. Fire services were working flat out with one of their main jobs being clearing standing water in Station Square which was pouring into the premises of Mings Chinese. The road through Ruswarp at Sneaton Lane was also badly flooded and was only passable with high vehicles. The next day, it was brought to light there was a collapsed sewer under Downdinner Hill on the upward side of the road. This resulted in the road being closed for a couple of days. Following this the cones were left in place before the upward side of the road was resurfaced with tarmac and during this work lasting 2 days, 3-way traffic lights were in operation at the junction with Chubb Hill with traffic from Southend Gardens having to give-way. In similar news, a burst water main forced the closure of Brunswick Street for around a week as a fair-sized hole had to be dug between the junctions of Walker Street & Newton Street. The water supply to parts of the town including some properties in the Fishburn Park area were affected for a good few hours as teams worked through the night to rectify the problem. The hole was filled in during the coming week and the road could be re-opened. The East Cliff also suffered due to the weather when the land behind Henrietta Street beneath St Mary's Church was sliding, with water pouring down the bank. This was after works to install better drainage was completed in early 2013 after the landslides in late 2012 due to heavy rain. On this occasion though it was said that water was pouring down the old drains and not the new ones, the new ones having been installed in the wrong location it would seem.

Work to repair collapsed water main on Downdinner Hill complete; Workers repairing Brunswick Street's burst water main

Sometime around the turn of the year a deal was done which saw Abbey Taxis take over Harrisons Taxis, including all school & NHS contracts.

Also at this time, Henrietta Street was to be closed to traffic to re-lay the cobbles which had been removed and the holes temporarily filled with tarmac after gas works. Electricity works on the southerly grass verge of the top of Abbots Road saw the road closed for around a week, with access only possible from the junction at the Spital Bridge end of the road. Around this time, two disabled parking bays were marked in the parking area at Helredale Gardens, near the junction with Helredale Road.

Left: Church Street/Henrietta Street showing a couple of the sections of cobbles which need to be replaced; Centre: Electricity work at the top of Abotts Road: Right: Two disabled parkings bays for Helredale Gardens

Also around the turn of the year a cafe which only opened less than 2 years previous was closed. Cafe Aroma, based in Hildegarde House at 27 Skinner Street opened around September 2014 & was now granted planning permission for the ground floor to be converted into a 2 bedroom holiday let. The only alterations needed was the demolition of a stud wall & erection of 2 stud walls to form an extension to the toilet to provide space for a shower.

A long established business closed its door for the final time on Tuesday 26th January after a very successful 15 years. Run by Rob & Emma Green, Green's fish restaurant of Bridge Street in the town closed at very short notice with notices only appearing on the day of closure. The premises was soon to become home of another sinimlar business though, with the opening of The Edge Bistro & Restaurant on 6th May. The closure of Greens followed the closure of another town centre restaurant which saw RomeroJo's of Golden Lion Bank close its doors, in the premises formerly occupied by the Staircase Cafe. In similar news, Jumpin Jacks Diner on Flowergate received a facelift and closed for a couple of weeks to allow the work to take place.

Above from left: RomeroJo's, Golden Lion bank closed; Willow Branch tea rooms opens; Green's, Bridge Street, closed; The Edge, Bridge Street, opened on 6th May

Works were taking place from the 5th January on Glenn Esk road between Larpool & Ruswarp due to works associated with the new housing development at Larpool & introducing an access road to the housing estate from Glenn Esk Road which meant an electricity pylon had to be relocated over the road towards Bluebell Grove.

Above left: Previous location of the pylon which had to be moved to create access road to housing development off Larpool Lane/Glenn Esk Road; Left centre: New location of the pylon towards Bluebell Grove;
Right centre: Plots 36-41 under construction with the corner of plot 42 to the extreme right; Right: Looking North at the rear of plot 29 showing what will be a landscaped area beyond the fencing to the left

Work was on-going in early February on lining the sewers on the western side of the Harbour with plastic to stop the salt water washing in from the sea corroding them. The work was undertaken by Mott Macdonald Bentley & affected Pier Road, Marine Parade & St. Anne's Staith but did not require any road closures as all the work was carried out from existing manholes.

A grant of £50,000 was awarded to Scarborough Borough Council to pay for much-needed repairs to Whitby's West Pier Lighthouse, which had been closed since 2012 due to safety concerns. The grant came from the Department for Communities & Local Government's (DCLG) coastal revival fund whilst the other £36,000 came from harbour funds. Work included repairs to areas of external stonework, internal work to the staircase with rendering round the central column, thus making the staircase narrower and requiring a new handrail be fitted, restoration work to windows & also steel reinforcement was put in place. The work was carried out by specialist team Lanstone Conservation Ltd. The scaffolding was removed by early April & the lighthouse was open to the public once more by May.

Left: No time is wasted as Whitby's western lighthouse is cordoned off for repair work to begin; Centre: Scaffold up; Right: West Pier lighthouse in full scaffold

 It was around this time that the cliff lift at the West Cliff was cordoned off to allow for repairs to the roof of the top lift housing to take place. The cordon was removed in time for the Easter period, however scaffolding was in place just after Easter to allow more work to be carried out. This involved bricking up the windows at the top of the cliff lift housing, returning the building to how it looked in its younger days before the windows were added.

Left: The cliff lift with its windows in each end wall; Centre left: Taking window out; Centre right: Right: Work almost complete; Right: Cordoned round the cliff lift

26th February marked the end of an era for Church Street Post Office, as it moved premises into Toy Master in Bridge Street from 100 Church Street. After the removal of the Post Office, the premises remained largely the same, selling postcards & prints, only removing "Post Office" from the shop's fascia.

Left: The former Post Office premises at 100 Church Street; Centre: The Post Office's new home - Toy Master; Right: Former Post Office premises, Church Street converted to print-selling shop

Sometime in March, Pinkney Grumwells Lawyers L.L.P. relocated from 2 Golden Lion Bank to 42 Baxtergate in to the former home of Finishing Touch, which sold home furnishings.

Left: Pinkney Grumwells Lawyers L.L.P. former premises at 2 Golden Lion Bank; Right: Pinkney Grumwells new premises at 42 Baxtergate

February also saw work get underway at Clara's Cafe, the former Spa Pavilion booking office. The cafe was to have a walled seating area added to the rear of the premises, to make patrons feel more enclosed. The work was complete in time for a rather early Easter at the end of March.

Left & Centre: Clara's Cafe with work on-going to the rear; Right: 6 weeks later - glass added around the seating area for protection from the North Sea

Re-surafcing was taking place at Four Lane Ends roundabout, causing lengthy delays to motorists & resulting in High Stakesby Road being closed from Runswick Avenue to the Roundabout for most of the week-long works. The Ruswarp Lane side of the roundabout was closed at the end of the week as that side of the roundabout was worked on. Three-way traffic lights were in operation for the duration of the week. The workmen were back again however a week later, which this time saw four-way traffic lights in use for a day or two.

Heroes Tattoo Studios of 25 Skinner Street closed after over 3 years in the premises, relocating on 3rd March when the business moved into a room above Bobbins further down the same street.

Left: The former home of Heroes Tattoo Studio moves down the road - fascia signage removed within a week of moving premises; Right: Business moves in - Future Health Store

Sometime around March 2016, Parade Fisheries was to close its doors for good without much warning to locals, the first signs appearing in the windows stating "Catering items for sale". The premises remained empty for some time before finally G Force RC moved in during the summer of 2017.

Above: Parade Fisheries replaced by G Force RC

Around this time work was on-going at St. John's Church at the bottom of Brunswick Street, which saw its paving bordering Baxtergate ripped up and replaced. After this initial work was complete, a section of stone wall bordering Brunswick Street was replaced with new stone with the repair work undertaken by Whitby Stone. A section of upright railings were added atop of the section of wall to make the wall look as it was before the repair work took place. The work was complete by July.

Also around this time, lots of street lights were being replaced with LED ones, which gave off a much whiter light. White Leys Road & High Stakesby Road amongst others were included in the works following the national trend at the time.

Left: Exterior work at St. John's Church, Baxtergate, replacing paving slabs; Left centre: Repair work carried out the external wall at the rear of St. John's a little later; Right centre: Railings added to the new section of wall;
Right: Work at High Stakesby Road replacing old street lighting with LEDs

A new business opened in Robin Hood's Bay on 11th March when the Fusco family opened another shop to add to their large portfolio in Whitby. Fish Box to coincide with the name of their last acquisition in Whitby, was to be the name of the new fish & chip shop in the former Candy's Cafe in the village. £500,000 was spent purchasing the premises & bringing up to standard. The family also launched The Whitby Fish & Chip catering trailer to attend various events around the area.

Also around this time, the town's 2-hour disc zones were increased to 3-hour stay after cries from local businesses to increase the time. The 1-hour zones remained the same.

Overnight re-surfacing works lasting 2 nights were undertaken on the nights of 21st & 22nd March at the roundabout at the bottom of Chubb Hill, leaving no access Chubb Hill or Southend Gardens from Downdinner Hill & Bagdale with temporary traffic lights in operation. Elsewhere on the town's roads, a small section of re-surfacing work at the junction of Runswick Avenue & High Stakesby Road meant the junction was closed for sometime on the 21st March. Manor Close was also re-surfaced at this time.

Thursday 24th March marked the opening of The Blitz Cafe at 97-98 Church Street, the former home of Hatless Heron cafe & restaurant, which closed a short time earlier.

The Blitz cafe & restaurant in the former Hatless Heron premises

It was sometime around March 2016 also that the former Highways Depot at the bottom end of The Garth off White Ley's Road was demolished. The depot had stood empty since the new depot was opened off Cholmley Way in 2010 and building work for a new housing development began in early 2017 which would see an 'L' shaped road through the middle of the site with houses on both sides, backing onto the West Cliff Station housing development. Progress was pretty rapid with this development with the main structures up by September 2017. The development, consisting of 20 dwellings, 14 for sale and 6 made available to rent through Yorkshire Coast Homes, was finally complete by March 2018

Left: Former Highways Depot as it looked at the time of moving in 2010; Centre: The former Highways Depot with the pile of rubble; Right: Looking into the depot towards the Old Creamery housing development

Above left: Building work began recently; Centre & Right: Around 3 weeks later looking North & East

Work progressing on the site with the first houses almost complete - Above from left: Looking towards Landsdowne Road; Looking towards the bottom of the site

Above from left: Nearest the end of The Garth; The far end of the site nearest the former railway line

Above from left: The site from the bottom of The Garth; The far end of the site from the bottom of The Garth

Above from left: All houses have now been fitted out with windows & doors; Rendering work done by end of November

Above from left: The development almost complete with all houses built; New pavements & drainage at the bottom of The Garth next to the development

Above from left: The development from the bottom of the existing The Garth; Looking round the left hand bend towards the end of the development; The end of the development from the left hand bend   

Utility works on a grass verge at Stainsacre meant the need for traffic lights to be in operation under the old railway bridge. The lights extended to beyond the junction with Rigg View, however any traffic exiting Rigg View were emerging into a stretch of 2-way traffic lights & could not see either of the traffic lights! A third light was definitely needed in this case but thankfully the works only lasted a few days! Also around this time, a couple of new signs appeared on the Fishburn Park estate showing drivers the 'through route' in the direction towards Waterstead Lane. The signs showing 'Through Route' were added from North Road directing traffic along Cleveland Terrace & at the junction of Cleveland Terrace & Fishburn Road. The signs would hopefully save HGV's from getting stuck in the tight streets, frequently with cars parked to the corners.

Left: Roadworks at Stainsacre from opposite the Windmill Inn; Left centre: From the other direction the other side of the bridge;
Right centre & Right: The new 'through route' signs at the North Road/Cleveland Terrace & Cleveland Terrace/Fishburn Road junctions respectively

Around March time new lines were painted in the railway station car park marking a designated area with bays for motorcycles. Elsewhere in town, work was complete by around this time at the Pier Inn, which had a first floor balcony added to the front of the building atop of the extension dating back to 1990. Metal steps were also added down from the balcony to serve as a fire escape. This would serve the rooms above the pub. It was also around this time that Cowens Glass company decided to move most of their work over to their other premises Twinseal in York, whilst only keeping a small factory near to their old one on Cholmley Way. The large factory unit at the end of Cholmley Way stood empty for a few weeks before contractors moved in and the building was surrounded with scaffolding provided by Sky Scaffolding in July to allow for roof repairs. Ironically, Whitby company Tiger Scaffolding took over the building after this and they put small wooden gates across the entrance to the factory unit. A little bit pointless in my opinion when there's a massive grassy area that anyone or anything could gain access across!

Above left: New markings in the railway station car park; Left centre: Pier Inn with its new balcony & fire escape; Right centre: Former Cowens Glass factory with scaffolding up; Right: The West-facing side of the building

Above from left: Work finished at the former Cowens Glass premises; Pointless gates erected

 Work was started towards the middle of March on land at the rear of Broomfield Terrace, on what was to become six apartments, spread over 4-storeys, which would house parking for 2 cars beneath them with an internal staircase from this floor to the apartments above. Outline planning permission for a residential development was granted back in 2004 & then granted in detail for 6 apartments in 2007 to a different applicant. Work was deemed by the planning authority to have been started in January 2011, when hardcore was laid at the site, which meant that the permission wouldn't lapse. In 2013, the plot of land was for sale with a price tag of £19,000. In conjunction with this work, demolition of a garage at the site was in progress, belonging to Philip Burley Solicitors of 28 Bagdale. The front forecourt of the solicitors was dug up & ramp access to the building was re-located due to the new development. The development was completed by G I Hopley Ltd of Settle.

Above left: Photo from 2013 showing the area of land to be developed; Centre: The work at Philip Burley's looking up Bagdale;
Right: Looking into Broomfield Terrace with the site of the new apartments in the centre distance

Above left: The remains of the garage, recently demolished; Centre: The corner of Philip Burley's & the old location of the ramp; Right: Philip Burley's forecourt alterations

Above: Similar photos from the previous ones but showing the new location of the ramp access to Philip Burley's in the centre photo

Above left: The site of the development being dug out; Right: Philip Burley's forecourt work almost complete

Above left: Not much progress on the site of the development; Right: Philip Burley's forecourt almost complete

Left: The view from Bagdale looking into Broomfield Terrace; Centre: Excavation work underway; Right: The forecourt of Philip Burley now complete

During the first week of June, work started on a large breeze block retaining wall to the rear & side bordering Phil Burley's premises after extensive excavation work was carried out. Block work was started in late July with actual brick work commencing by mid-September.   

Left & Left centre: Huge excavation works & retaining wall built - Photos 1 week apart (5th & 12th June 2106); Right centre: The area of ground flattened ready for building work to commence; Right: Block-work started

Above left: Block work was started on the site late July; Left centre & Right centre: Building work started by mid-August; Right: Some more walls built to the front of the site

Above left: Block-work coming along; Centre: Building work coming along nicely by the end of September; Right: From the entrance steps to Philip Burley's looking into the site

Left: Progress can be seen looking into Broomfield Terrace; Right: Looking towards the rear of the new development from Philip Burley's new steps

The penthouse & roof was in place by early March 2017 & windows were also fitted by this time.

Above from left: Steady progress being made into November; Into 2017 building work almost at rood level; The roof in place & glass fitted;
Almost 3 weeks on, building very nearly complete; Showing the side of the building nearest Phil Burley's

Work through the Spring & Summer of 2017 appeared slow to the untrained eye, but more than likely work was on-going internally at this time. Balconies to the front were fitted in late September 2017 and again work appeared to halt. The project was completed in September 2018 with the laying down of gravel for the parking area of Philip Burley's.

Above left: Slow progress towards the end of the work; Above Left centre: Building complete;
Right centre: The steps to Philip Burley's which were altered at the start of the work; Right: The parking area at Philip Burley's gravelled

Sometime in April, work was started at Newcastle House, 8 John Street which involved the removal of a boundary wall and creation of steps. A window in the basement of the building was removed & eventually replaced with a door with steps added down to the basement from pavement level. The windows in the roof were replaced during the Spring of 2016 with the supporting plinth between windows in the basement not removed until January 2017 before the door was fitted a little later. A rear extension was also built.

Above left: Number 8 John Street - wall removed, steps added & entrance formed into basement; Centre: The attic windows of the building getting re-shaped;
Right: January 2017 - Stone supporting plinth removed from between the 2 windows

Above from left: The new steps down to the basement; The new door into the basement and tidied up exterior; The rear extension

Work lasting 12 weeks was to get underway at one of Whitby's busiest road junctions on 11th April. Junction improvement works at the Prospect Hill/Waterstead Lane traffic lights had been in the pipeline for some time, but cash restraints meant the project was put back time and time again. The near £700,000 scheme was funded mostly from other organisations which was a stipulation when planning permission was granted to said organisations, for instance Sirius Minerals' Potash mine near Sneaton was passed on the agreement they paid £400,000 towards upgrading this notorious junction. Sainsbury's also chipped in, along with other businesses totalling a further £200,000, leaving the county council only to fine £86,507.
The project would see improved safety for pedestrians & motorists, making the junction fully traffic light controlled. The give-way filter lane from the New Bridge towards Mayfield Road was to be removed, which would be replaced with traffic lights with its own lane, the right lane to be used by traffic heading into town or for Waterstead Lane. The pedestrian crossings would all be altered, adding a crossing through the middle of the junction from Waterstead Lane across to a traffic island towards Mayfield Road.
The first couple of weeks' work involved test drilling into the existing traffic islands so temporary traffic lights were not needed. Traffic control was introduced on 25th April however, but was taken away for the rush hour each day.

Above - The Prospect Hill junction before major works began - from top left to bottom right: The New Bridge approach; A closer look at the New Bridge approach; From Waterstead Lane;
Looking out of Prospect Hill towards New Bridge with Waterstead Lane to the left; From Mayfield Road with the New Bridge to the right

The first phase of work which was complete in time for May Day bank holiday was to remove a chunk of the traffic island separating the filter lane towards Mayfield Road from the main junction. The next section of work was to install ducting across the end of the Mayfield Road leg of the junction, which meant the filter lanes from Mayfield Road towards Prospect Hill & Waterstead Lane were closed until the day before the Spring Bank Holiday weekend when they were brought back into use after the island separating traffic for town & Waterstead was also re-built. More ducting was then laid under the approach roads of the junction, firstly the Prospect Hill side working in a clockwise direction finishing with the New Bridge approach, just after the Spring Bank Holiday. The signal formerly situated on the left of the lane for traffic from Mayfield Road to New Bridge was repositioned from the far end of that traffic island to the front of the traffic island & the stop line moved back a little distance from the actual junction. The right hand island separating traffic turning in towards Mayfield Road was removed at this time which was complete during the first week of May. When the first stage of ducting had been installed it was then carried on through the top of Prospect Hill Junction towards Waterstead Lane. During the early stages of work, the filter lane from New Bridge to Mayfield Road was occasionally reopened when the main traffic lights were put back into use each night and at weekends. The ducting work was complete by June & the main work commenced, causing more mayhem for locals & visitors - made worse at high water when the Swing Bridge opening brought the whole town to a standstill.

Above left: Showing the alterations to the junction near the filter lane from New Bridge; Centre: From Prospect Hill towards New Bridge & Mayfield Road; Right: From Mayfield Road

Left: Ducting laid under the junction of Waterstead Lane; Right: New traffic island on Mayfield Road/Prospect Hill between the town centre & Waterstead Lane exits

Left: The slip roads from Mayfield Road showing progress with the traffic island separating right turn & straight ahead lanes; Centre: Ducting laid under the road from New Bridge;
Right: Preparation works for the new footpath to Caedmon College Scoresby site started

From left: Looking up Mayfield Road with the former pedestrian crossing soon to be removed; From Waterstead Lane towards New Bridge; Looking out of Waterstead Lane; From New Bridge towards Prospect Hill

The following photos were taken with one week left before the contractors pack up & leave the junction to the test of Summer traffic in Whitby. During the past week lots of work has taken place, including installation of safety rails, removal of former pedestrian crossing from Mayfield Road, installing traffic lights & pedestrian crossing call points, laying of tactile crossing slabs & resurfacing of the entire junction & line marking, which was carried out over night to minimise traffic disruption. Reflective studs were then laid across the road at the crossings & a new sign was erected from the New Bridge approach indicating to drivers which lane they needed to be in to reach their destination, which required a hole to be dug into the embankment beside Whitby College Scoresby Site for the sign's supports.

Photos taken 17/7/2016

Top row from left: The Prospect Hill approach heading out of town remains largely unaltered; Looking out of the entrance into Waterstead Lane; New safety railings installed across the bottom of the junction next to Waterstead Lane towards the New Bridge; From the bottom of the junction looking straight up Mayfield Road

Middle row from left: Heading down Mayfield Road at the lane split with the left lane splitting again nearer the junction. The red-coloured tactile slabs of the former pedestrian crossing can just be seen on the pavement behind the cones; The left lane splits again for Prospect Hill or Waterstead Lane; Looking over the junction towards what was the filter lane from the New Bridge towards Mayfield Road; The very end of the Mayfield Road approach at the pedestrian crossing

Bottom row from left: The new sign with lane advice with the old sign in front of it, yet to be removed; The junction from the New Bridge approach

Friday 22nd July saw the official launch of the new junction layout at Prospect Hill. During the last few days of work, line marking work was finished off, including some double-yellow lines alongside traffic islands in the junction & signs were erected. The traffic signals were tested & then put into proper use about 5pm. Less than 24hours later however, the signals had failed & motorists were left to manage the junction themselves. The cause of this was said to be a faulty signal controller & was remedied on during Monday, after traffic was left to fend for itself with no temporary lights brought in until Monday morning whilst repairs were being carried out. The new traffic light sequence had changed from the old system & a green arrow was displayed for traffic filtering left to Mayfield Road from the New Bridge whilst traffic was exiting Mayfield Road so as to clear some more traffic through from the New Bridge. The next sequence after Mayfield Road was then traffic from the New Bridge & also from Prospect Hill. This was followed by traffic from Waterstead Lane. The lights remained on green for longer than the previous system, letting more traffic pass through each time. The pedestrian crossing was of a Puffin Crossing which meant the green & red man symbol was next to the crossing rather than across the road, meaning pedestrians would be looking at oncoming traffic whilst watching for the 'green man'. The works also saw an advanced signal installed for traffic from the New Bridge, making it easier for the car at the front of the queue to see the traffic light, & the advanced traffic light for the exit from Waterstead Lane was removed.

Top left to bottom right: The approach to the junction from Prospect Hill with a new road sign to the left; The junction when approached from Prospect Hill; The New Bridge approach to the junction with new lane guidance sign; The junction at the approach from New Bridge;
The diverted footpath around the edge of Caedmon College Whitby Scoresby site to the new pedestrian crossing; The new crossing across the end of Mayfield Road; Te approach to the junction from Mayfield Road showing the new lanes

Work was taking place at Royal Crescent Gardens by the council around Easter time, which saw the concrete whale sculpture relocated to the grassy bank at the top of Khyber Pass & replaced with a feature relating to the seaside. Reclaimed sleepers & cobbles were used to give the effect of breakwaters on a beach. Designed by Tom Mutton, the work was carried out by Groundwork who teamed up with Scarborough Borough Council along with Whitby in Bloom volunteers.

Left: The iconic whale in Royal Crescent Gardens before being relocated; Left & Right centre: The centre piece of Royal Crescent Gardens after the whale was removed;
Right: The new position for the whale by Khyber Pass

A burst water main at Spring Hill Terrace caused disruption to local residents' water supply for a few hours on the evening of 25th April, whilst contractors worked to fix the problem. The water supply for Albion Terrace & Gray Street was affected & Spring Hill was closed from the entrance to the hospital's main car park to & Spring Hill Terrace from Gray Street. The closure of Spring Hill Terrace lasted about a week until more contractors could come in to fill the hole and re-surface the section of road. A further rupture occurred overnight of 29^th October in the same place, again leaving residents without water overnight.

Burst water main at Spring Hill Terrace

The Station Gallery & Copy Shop at Unit 2, Whitby Railway Station was transformed into "The Waiting Room A Micropub", owned by Robert Wildsmith. The alterations to the unit, which was once part of the original booking hall for the station, involved generally tidying up the interior of the unit, exposing floorboards & the opening up of a former doorway onto the station platform, but the door was not to be used. The suspended ceiling was to be upgraded and pendant lights fitted, lowering the perceived ceiling level. The new venture opened at the beginning of May with seating for 30 patrons. The 1st May saw the second welcome in as many years by Whitby people & enthusiasts as the Tour De Yorkshire passed through the town. The route involved the cyclists coming along the B1460 from Sleights to Ruswarp & therefore the traffic calming chicanes at each end of Briggswath were temporarily removed and instead replaced with bollards. The chicane nearest Sleights however was permanently removed due to it being too close to the bend.

Left: Waiting Room Micropub; Left centre: Entering Briggswath from Ruswarp; Right centre: Classic example of why that traffic island is in completely the wrong place!; Right: The chicane nearest Sleights removed!

Residents of Whitby’s East side were to benefit from having their own pharmacy from May onwards, when Day Lewis pharmacy moved into the former Eskdale Stores of Mount Farm Close. The former shop closed in 2015 after the owner, Zia Hussain, made an attempt at branching out, when he opened a hair salon – Zizani - after portioning off part of the shop premises in 2013, which closed again in the following year. Also on this side of town, a two-storey side extension was in the process of being added to a house at 2 St. Peter's Road which would also include a porch entrance to the front. Work progressed very quickly indeed & was complete by mid-June.

Left: Eskdale stores shortly after closing; Left centre: Day Lewis Pharmacy moves in; Right centre: The extension at 2 St. Peter's Road; Right: Only a month on & work almost complete

A boardwalk consisting of over 150 planks was laid on part of the pathway at California Beck by Whitby Gateway group with help from Groundworks North Yorkshire & was officially unveiled on 21^st April to mark the Queen’s 90^th birthday. The 90^th plank of the boardwalk from the direction of Spital Bridge was marked with a plaque informing people of the walk.

Top left & Top centre: Boardwalk at Calla Beck with plaque on 90th plank from Spital Bridge direction; Various boulders with inscriptions on them throughout the pathways of Calla Beck

Emergency repairs were needed to the pedestrian crossing at Helredale Road after a car collided with it on the morning of 1st May causing damage to the downward side of the central island & traffic signal.

Oakridge School in Hinderwell unveiled a new outdoor seating area with stage & artificial grass in between. The project was paid for by the 'Future Lawns' scheme.

Peter's Shop which had sat at the top of Skinner Street for 44 years closed its doors for the last time at the beginning of May after then owners called it a day. Peter & Linda left a note in the window of the shop thanking their loyal customers. The couple left the house above & the house would be converted into apartments in due course, with the inhabitant of the shop round the corner, Home & Lifestyle moving into the former Peter's premises after alterations had taken place. This included removing & re-building the shop front & adding a bay window into the attic. This work was started in early August. By April 2017 the shop front & paving to the front was complete & internal alterations to the floors above had been on-going for some time. By August 2017 the words "Stuart Duckett" was added to the front fascia.

Peter's shop shortly after closing with a note left on the window from Peter thanking his shoppers for their custom

Above left: Building work began - the front of the shop ripped apart; Centre: The shop front being rebuilt; Right: The full house above having extensive interior alterations

Left: Former Peter's shop premises & house above towards Clarence Place; Left centre: Towards John Street; Right centre: The shop front being built back up; Right: Bay window added into the roof

Above from left: Work really taking shape on the new shop front & internal alterations; Right: "Stuart Duckett" added to front fascia; Almost ready to open - mid September 2017

Gas works were taking place in the town at the beginning of May with work underway at the foot of Khyber Pass & extensive work at the entrance to St. Andrews Road & Rosemount Road from Mayfield Road.

Left: Gas works at Mayfield Road & Rosemount Road; Right: Gas works on Khyber Pass

Work started in early May on erecting kiosks at the site of the former ice house on Pier Road which resulted in the road being closed to traffic for a few days on two occasions in May. Local businesses moved into the kiosks tempting tourists and the like with whatever they had to offer.

Erection of kiosks at Pier Road from left: Towards the bandstand; looking back along Pier Road; Round the back looking towards the fish market

Around this time, what was known most recently as 'The White House' at Upgang Lane - renamed around 5 years previous dropping 'Hotel' from the end of its name - was renamed again to the 'White House Inn' and was no longer 100% true to its word, the building now painted partly in grey. As well as changing exterior signage, the interior was also given a facelift at this time.

Over the Spring months & into the Summer, a team of people worked effortlessly to enable Children of the Green Lane area a safe place to play. Children's outdoor play equipment was installed at Green Lane Centre thanks to the Action Eastside Plan - drawn up in 2013 to improve the infrastructure for people living on the Eastside of town. The play equipment was the first to come to fruition of a number of ideas by the Action Eastside group for the Green Lane field area.

Left: The entrance to the field from Green Lane Centre's car park; Right: The new play equipment is finally installed

Work was started at Boro Tyres' old establishment on Church Street, by Parkol Marine, over 4 years after the tyre specialist closed its Whitby branch. The building at 5 & 6 Church Street had been the home to Boro Tyres for a number of years with the area next door which the garage used for the storage of cars originally being the town's gas works, erected in 1837. Signage was firstly removed followed by blocking up of the old roller door. The roof was renewed & the adjacent yard was tidied up. This was in preparation for works which would see the building converted into an office space on the ground floor with the ground floor to a flat behind. A first floor was added with a larger blueprint which would contain 3 residential flats. The entrance to the flat to the rear of the site was via "Horse Road" to the right of the building. The entrance to the courtyard underneath one of the newly created flats to the left of the building was made also made wider than previous.

Above from left: Boro Tyres shortly after closing in February 2012; Work begins at the establishment which had remained unaltered for the past 4 and a half years; The adjacent yard; The yard & side of the building

Above left: The yard area next to the former garage building; Left centre: The building now with unfinished windows instead of the roller door; Right centre & Right: Building re-roofed

Left: Building work began in the entrance to what was the yard;
Centre: Looking down Horse Road adjacent to the building showing work on-going including the addition of windows to the side of the building from what will become residential flats;
Right: A similar view from the previous photo but showing the entrance to what will be flat 4

Left: The left side of the former garage building; Left centre: The block-work coming along to the left of the former yard area; Right centre: Girder installed across the open section; Right; The full building frontage

Above: Work progressing rapidly with a dormer window in the roof to the right of the photo

Left: The left side of the front of the building with roof tiling underway; Centre: The right side of the front of the building; Right: The rear & side of the building with the entrance to what will become flat 4

By the end of November the development was looking almost finished, with secure gates added to prevent unauthorised access to the rear courtyard. The project was completed in early December.

Above left: The front of the new development almost complete; Left & Left centre: Looking into the rear courtyard; Right & Below: The side yard from the front & the rear of the development respectively

Above left to right: The front of the building in its completed state; The side of the building bordering Horse Road; Looking down Horse Road with the new building to the right;

Below: The rear courtyard with fire escape down the the rear flat, accessed from Horse Road

Around this time a small wall was re-built outside Anderson & Brown Solicitors in Victoria Square. Hughie Gollogly moved out of the premises into a unit at St. Hilda's Business Centre around this time.

Left: Small wall replaced at Anderson & Brown Solicitors; Right: New sign fitted to the front of Flowergate United Reformed Church

Work began in Ellis' greengrocers at 8 Baxtergate, which saw the ground floor ripped up. It was only at this time that the shop name was removed from the fascia boarding. The bnsement was said to have been left in a flooded state for some time following the tidal surge of December 2013. In January 2017 the wood shop front was totally removed, exposing the iron girders. The shop front was completely re-built and the finishing touches were taking place in May 2017 with the fascia signage painted on in the first week of July.

From left: Ellis' fruit shop signs removed; Shop front completely removed; Shop front almost rebuilt; Finishing touches to the shop front underway

Above: Al Taco now open

 Airy Hill Nursery was launched in September of this year which was renamed from Pebbles playgroup. The playgroup was first set up in 1976 & had been operating from the former caretaker's bungalow at Airy Hill since 2009. In similar news, long-running nursery group Coliseum Kids which ran from the scout hut at Spring Hill ceased operation after the Summer term of 2016.

Work was underway in August at Four Lane Ends Service Station which firstly saw the jet facility relocated slightly to the West of its former home. This was in preparation for the extension of the shop & relocation of the drive-thru car wash, which would exit in a westerly direction instead of onto the forecourt. The shop was made larger with a 2-storey extension to the West where the drive-thru car wash previously exited.  The whole car wash building was demolished allowing the car wash to be redirected to exit the building to the West, removing the need for vehicles making a 90° turn on entry. The first floor of the extension housed a conference room & office space while the ground floor housed a staff toilet & the extension of the shop. The other end of the shop next to the drive-thru car wash entrance was also altered, to include a disabled accessible toilet next to the ladies'. The new shop was fully open by mid-June 2017 and was operated by Spar.

Above: Photos taken late 2013 before work began showing the garage and shop building with car wash exit to the left & rear of the car wash

Above from left: Garage & car wash exit before the changes; The new location for the jet wash facility is being prepared; The rear of the site showing the roof line from High Stakesby Road

Left: Work on-going with re-locating the jet wash facility; Right: Work moves into the far corner of the site before the jet wash machines are moved

Above from left: The shop with extension to the left; The shop & forecourt from Guisborough Road; The rear of the building with the entrance to the car wash

Work started in mid-October to re-tile the front aspect of the shop roof & work started on the extension behind the shop. From sometime at the beginning of November, the automated car wash was out of use and work was started on dismantling the machinery inside before they could re-site the car wash on a different angle but in a similar location after demolishing the building it was housed in during late November. The framework for the extension was soon in place on the site of the former car wash. From late April the garage shop was moved into a portakabin for a couple of weeks to allow interior work to the shop to be undertaken.

Above left: The front aspect of the shop roof gets re-tiled; Left centre: Small extension built to the rear of the shop; Right centre: Automated car wash closed off; Right: The front of the car was demolished

Above left: The car was building gone; Left centre: The rear of the shop & what was the car wash; Right centre: Framework in place - January 2017; Right: New building taking shape - February 2017

Above from left: The extension containing the car wash almost complete; The extension to the left of the original shop building; Work almost complete; Shop temporarily closed while interior works undertaken

During the first half of the year, Chubb Hill Court at 6 Chubb Hill Road was hidden behind tarpaulin, during which time the exterior of the building was completely cleaned & re-pointed. After this work, an extension was erected to the rear of the building which would allow the building to house 10 flats, as opposed to the 7 it previously housed, which were all re-furbished during the works.

Above left: The front of Chubb Hill Court after the work; Centre: The rear extension underway; Right: The rear of Chubb Hill Court with the work almost complete

Sometime during the first half of the year, yellow markings appeared in the lay-by of Captain Cooks Crescent. The top of the lay-by was edged with a single yellow line, with the bottom part outside the garages marked with a hatched yellow line, this obviously to stop people blocking access to the garages, the single yellow line however remains a bit more of a mystery.

Left: The yellow line at the edge of the lay-by; Right: The yellow hatched markings outside the garages

Work got underway in September on Church Street which saw checks carried out to the harbour wall after problems were found near to Parkol Marine. A week-long no parking enforcement was put in place for the whole of Church Street & the car park was used as a temporary site office whilst this initial work was carried out.

Work on Church Street's harbour wall started

During September also, Baxtergate was closed to traffic for a few days whilst gas works were carried out in the road. Also in September, scaffolding was erected from the harbour wall to provide access to the roof of the swing bridge hut at the western side of the harbour to allow contractors access to carry out a small repair job.

In other news, two yellow lines appeared at the entrance to St. Hilda's Business Centre from The Ropery, to mark the boundary of the business centre meaning any cars parked within the boundary could expect a fine, as per the signs erected within the parking areas.

Left: Whitby's Swing Bridge control hut is surrounded by scaffold; St. Hilda's Business Centre from the Ropery has yellow boundary lines

Building work was started during the summer on the last phase of houses at East Row's Boat Yard development, after a very lengthy stoppage of work. The houses were at the ends of the site, first at the northern end and then the southern end.

Left: Building work begins on the last phase of houses at the East Row Boat Yard development; Left centre: Building work progressing with the last phase of houses;
Right centre: Almost complete; Right: Just doors & windows to be added

By February 2017, the houses were almost complete from the front but the rear was a different matter as seen below.

Above left & centre: The last phase of houses at East Row Boatyard development almost complete when viewed from the front; Right: The houses from the rear showing a bit of work still to be completed

6 months later in August 2017, the development looked like this....

Above from left: The front of the houses nearest the surgery; The front of the houses nearest East Row; The rear of the houses nearest East Row; The rear of the houses nearest the surgery

October 2017 - work still to be done at the rear of the house nearest Sandsend Surgery, which wasn't complete until 2020!

Above left & Centre left: The front of the house nearest the surgery almost complete; The rear of the same house with work still to be done; Centre right & Right; The southern end of the development complete

Whitby's Tourist Information Centre based at the heart of the town centre since 1991 was to be relocated to the Harbour Office halfway along Langborne Road after the building was put up for sale by Scarborough Borough Council & bought by famous chef allowing him to fulfil his ambition of owning a fish restaurant in Whitby. The Tourist Information Centre closed its doors for the final time on 9th October after the date was put back a week from the initial 2nd October. The Customer First services which operated from the premises since the closure of Skinner Street's Scarborough Borough Council Offices in 2013 were to be relocated to the Job Centre at Bobbies Bank from 30th September. The Tourist Information Centre was extended in 2001 when Yorkshire Water had completed their works nearby & agreed to make a donation towards the cost of the project.

Above left: Tourist Information Centre before closing; Right: The new home of the Tourist Information Centre at the former Harbour Office premises

Work on upgrading parts of the West side of the town’s water supply began in September, which saw temporary traffic lights in operation on Stakesby Road near to the junction with Oak Road. This work lasted a number of weeks into December, as the work moved down Stakesby Road towards Spring Vale & was part of a larger scheme which would run throughout the Winter period on numerous streets. Work on Heworth Drive & Runswick Avenue was complete quite early in the project. Work at Laburnum Grove, Oak Road, Abbeville Avenue was completed during October followed by short disruption at the rear of Clarence Place. Work then moved to the Flowergate & Golden Lion Bank area, with holes appearing in the road at both top & bottom of Skinner Street, as well as at Elm Grove & Mickleby Drive. Work on Crescent Avenue & Upgang Lane got underway in the new year.

Left & Centre - Re-surfacing at Stakesby Road: Looking up towards White Leys at Abbeville Avenue; Looking down Stakesby Road from the same position;
Right: Crescent Avenue towards John Street from St. Hilda's Church in January 2017

Towards the end of September two new BT cabinets were installed on the grass verge of Guisborough Road near the old water works. In the week following this, a telegraph pole, encased in a brown plastic tubing was erected near to the cabinets, presumably enclosing a transmitter.

Left: The new BT cabinets at Guisborough Road; Right: Telegraph pole in place next to the cabinets, installed a few days later

Larpool Lane was closed from Eskdale Road junction in the direction of Ruswarp for two weeks from 10th October to allow for works to be carried out in association with the new junction for the on-going housing estate at Larpool which also included burying utility cables under the road.

Above: The junction to the new housing estate just past the white van

Left: The new junction from Larpool Lane; Centre: Looking up towards the houses from the Larpool Lane junction; Right: Utility cables buried under the road across Larpool Lane

Also during October, it was noticed that work was underway with removing old York Stone flagstones from near to Rievaux Road & Byland Road & replacing with tarmac. This followed similar work near Tucker's Field, where the York Stone flags were replaced with tarmac on the footpath from Upgang Lane.

West Cliff Congregational Church between Skinner Street & Silver Street was surrounded with scaffold, originally to allow work to replace the church's spire to commence after inspection over a year previous. It was realised on closer inspection however that the structure was in a better condition that first thought so the work wasn't necessary. The scaffolding was removed between Christmas & New Year.

Above left: Before work began; Right: Scaffold being put in place

In October, Argyle Garage of Argyle Road, which closed without warning on 28th March 2014 was fenced off facing demolition. The garage was a main Vauxhall Franchise for most of its life before losing the Vauxhall dealer status some years before eventual closure. The garage had been in operation for 51 years and had seen some changes over its lifetime. The owner of at the time of closure, Alan Marshall - along with manager Frank Tolomeo, decided the time was right to call it a day. Alan bought the building back in 1963 from the Metropole Hotel and it was no more than tin walls & an empty shell. Frank joined the business as manager in 1977 & in 1979 the garage was awarded the franchise for Vauxhall. It was at this time a rear extension was added, allowing the garage to offer MOT testing services. As well as vehicle repair, services & MOT's, the garage also sold used cars & sold fuel. The building was emptied around the middle of May 2014 & the fuel pumps were removed. It stood empty for the next 2 and a half years. The front section of the building, built in brick was first to be addressed, with the blue slate roof being removed. Behind this front section of the building was an asbestos-roofed, steel-framed workshop area & behind this was another brick building. It was noted by an inspector for bats that these brick-built sections to the front and rear of the building had been re-roofed in quite recent times with a bitumenised underfelt lining over the original roof timbers. The building to replace the garage housed 14 two-bedroom flats, the building split into two sections with two lifts and separate stairways for each side. The left section of the building would house two flats per floor over 3 storeys & a forth storey with the one flat to the right of the left section. The right side of the building would house one flat per storey over 5 storeys. The top floors of both sections would have dormer windows in the top floor. The two sides of the building will have no access between them internally. All flats would have a designated parking space & would include a balcony & en-suite shower rooms with toilet & a separate bathroom. The adjoining dwellings to the sides of the garage were to be retained, to the left of the garage was a private garage. There will be an enclosed garden area to the rear of the development also with private parking spaces. Individual parking spaces would also be created to the front of the new building off Argyle Road.

Above left to right: Front left, centre & right side of the Argyle Road frontage of the former building before being demolished;
The asbestos roofing of the workshop part of the building in the centre of the photo with the rear brick part of the building to the left of this

Below from left to right: The rear part of the building from Lady Smith's Avenue; The asbestos roof of the middle part of the building; The rear of the building;
The rear of the adjoining dwelling to the right of the garage if viewed from Argyle Road

Top left & Centre: Argyle Garage from the front with a small section of the front part of the building remaining; Top right: The left side of the garage towards Argyle Road showing the centre part with the roof removed; Bottom left: The rear of the garage which was the extension of the '70's still standing; Bottom right: The mass of rubble from the left side looking towards Argyle Road

Left: General view of the front of what was Argyle Garage; Centre: The left side of the front of the garage where the side wall still stands next to the house; Right: The extreme right section to be converted into a house

Building work went on hold at the end of 2016 and nothing seemed to happen for over a year. Then in Spring 2018, work was in progress again with the back wall of the former garage building being retained and patched up where necessary. The building to the right of the former garage was also retained and made safe.

From above left to bottom right: The front of the rear buildings being retained; The right side of the front section with a small section being retained;
The rear of the back section being retained with the adjoining private residence to the left; The centre of the back of the rear section;
The side of the rear section nearest Ladysmith Avenue with some new breeze-block walls

Above from left: The ground works under which we can still make out the parking bay markings; The adjoining building to the right has been tidied up and converted

Above from left: The front of the development taking shape; The rear of the development from Welton Court, The rear of the front part of the development can be seen between the buildings

Above from left: The building looks rather huge by April 2019; The building from the direction of North Promenade

By August 2019 the project was almost complete. Externally, the rear of the former garage workshop saw some alterations where the part of the building which protruded was made slightly shallower but was made into 2-storeys high. Inside the garage area the corrugated iron roof was removed and this served as the residents parking area. This was accessed through an archway at the rear of the building when the old rear access doors were removed. This part of the building was also converted into a couple of apartments. The work was complete in its entirety by early 2020.

Above from left: The front of the new building from Argyle Road; The rear of the former garage workshop with some alterations; The front-facing side of the former garage workshop now facing into the courtyard;
The rear of the new building which front Argyle Road as seen from inside the courtyard

Above from left: The front of the development in all its glory; The front of the building from the right; The rear of the main building from the courtyard

Above from left: The courtyard showing the rear of the site; The entrance to the courtyard from the rear; The rear side of the building

The 2nd November saw permanent repair work carried out by Yorkshire Water to the upward side of Downdinner Hill following work repairing a collapsed sewer in January of this year. This work clashed with repair work to the main Prospect Hill & Mayfield Road junction which was announced at the time of junction improvements in the Summer. Due to the work at Downdinner Hill the work on the Mayfield Road junction was put on hold until the work by Yorkshire Water was complete. The work on the main junction was undertaken on 2nd December which saw temporary traffic lights in operation at the junction between the school run times. The work included flattening any dips out in road & pavement surfaces, which would result in the pooling of water.

Also at this time alterations were taking place to the garden of a property on St. Hilda's Terrace overlooking Pannett Park. A massive breeze block wall was constructed with new access steps to the right of this leading to the house. This didn't look complete though for a long time, even in 2019 work was still on-going! On 5th November a burst water main left residents of part of Whitby's West Cliff estate without water for most of the day. The burst was thought to have occurred at Kirkham Road near to Kirkham House, as this was the location of a massive puddle covering the whole road, which occurred in the early morning. Luckily a resident of the flats at Kirkham House noticed the water before it had chance to get into the basement flats of the building.

Left: The new breeze block wall; Right: The new steps to the right of the wall with the house behind

By November also, work was well underway on the construction of another part of the housing development by Barratts. The plots at the most northern end of Wagtail Crescent were now taking shape and work was progressing towards the bottom of the site to make the road complete all the way through.

Left: Plot 78 with plot 77 & 76 just visible to the left; Centre: Plot 59 to the extreme left with plots 60 & 61 now underway to the right; Right: Plots 8-14 (exc. 13) almost complete

Whitby's iconic Wellington pub, locally known as 'The Welly' was re-named 'The Whitby Way' after refurbishment works were carried out during November. This included moving the bar area to the back wall of the pub, creating more room inside.

Above: The Wellington Pub from Wellington Road & Baxtergate

Above left: The Whitby Way from Baxtergate; Centre: From Baxtergate & Wellington Road; Right: The new bar can be seen through the window on the far wall  

Repair work to Whitby's Old Town Hall was started in early November after it was revealed that the stonework was in need of a lot of attention after previous work & corner-cutting by the authorities was to blame for the continuous weathering of the building.

Repair work to Old Town Hall

We'll turn our focus to the Green Lane area of town for a minute now, as this area witnessed a couple of bits of work during November. The junction of Green Lane & Spital Bridge was made slightly narrower with the widening of the footpath where the Bottom House pub was (converted into private residence 2012), which made the junction safer for pedestrians crossing across the junction, especially from the direction of Spital Bridge, allowing them to see up the hill of Green Lane before entering the road. Another junction was added at the entrance leading into the wall of the former Hoggarth's Lemonade Factory. Give way lines & double yellow lines were also painted on the very small 'road to nowhere'. Scaffolding appeared on the building in early December & a door to the lower level of the building was left open inviting any intrigued passer by. The building to the rear of the factory was demolished during November & December having been stood in a precarious condition for some time. The fate of the main, front part of the building was no different, and this soon followed when demolition work started around the New Year of 2017. Demolition was largely complete by February 2017 with clearance works to the site continuing for some months after, before the bank side at the rear was shored up.

Above left: As the junction used to look; From Green Lane; From the front of Abraham's Quay; The works from Green Lane with the new pavement partially in place

Above left: 'Road to nowhere' created into the wall of the former Hoggarth's lemonade factory; Centre: The former drinks factory surrounded by scaffolding; Right: A peek through the open door

Above left: A view of the rear of Hoggaths Lemonade Factory during December whilst work on demolishing a warehouse-type building was underway;
Right: Demolition of the warehouse-type building in progress; Right: The rear of Hoggaths Factory building

Left: Hoggaths Factory loses its roof - demolition work begun as seen from Spital Bridge; Right: A similar view from Green Lane

Above from left: The rear of the former factory premises with the lack of render on the formerly adjoining building to the right clearly visible. The small lean-to with the entrance & window still remains;
The buildings to the rear gone, looking East; The front of the factory down to ground floor level

Left: The empty area of land where the lemonade factory stood; Left centre: Close up of the space with the front of the lean-to building to the centre-right;
Right centre: Building gone viewed from the front; Right: Building gone viewed from the right towards Green Lane

Above from left: The site of the former factory from the front; The site showing the neighbouring properties of Spital Bridge; The rear of the site is home to a large container

Above from left: The front of the site during the latter stages of clearance works; The rear of the site - how many works vehicles can get in such a small area!; Ground works really taking shape

Above from left: The side of number 4 Spital Bridge where it used to join the old building; From the front of the site with Green Lane to the left;
The front of the site with number 4 Spital Bridge on the right; The rear of the site now shored up

Above from left: Building work started at the rear of the site

Building work was officially started in December 2017.

Above left & centre: Building work started on 2 blocks looking through the gap from the bottom of Spital Bridge; Right: From Spital Bridge showing the work in the distance beyond Raft Yard

Building work really picked up the pace into the new year of 2018 with 2 blocks soon springing up from the ground & an archway forming to allow access through to the rear. The development was given a rather fitting name of 'Hoggaths Yard'.

Above left & centre: From Church Street showing the two blocks already up to roof height; Right: From Spital Bridge showing the roofs of the buildings

Above left & centre: The development from the foot of Spital Bridge; Right: From Spital Bridge looking across to the development

Above: Looking into the courtyard in front of the new dwellings

Above from left: The development really taking shape; Showing the girders which will support an archway

Above from left: The archway taking shape with breeze-block walls being built around it; Looking into the site through the steel archway

Above from left: Looking through the archway; The front of the building looks massive here

Lots of progress had taken place between November 2018 & February 2019 with the main building being built at this time after the archway was constructed.

Above from left: The front of the new development; The rear of the area from Raft Yard

Below from left: The building from the bottom of Green Lane; Renovation work to the adjoining building to tie it in with the new building; The new building looking rather grand

Above top: The building name & year above the archway
Above from left: The courtyard to the left: The courtyard to the centre; The courtyard to the right

Another change occurring at the same time on Green Lane was near Folly Gardens when a high stone wall was partially demolished to allow alterntaive access to Folly Gardens camp site. The large stones were re-used to make the wall to line the edges of the new road. The road surface was eventually laid in April 2017 & the project was complete by early June.

Left: The area affected by the demolished wall; Left centre: Looking through the gap from Green Lane towards Abbots Walk;
Right centre: Stones from the demolished wall are re-used at the edge of the new road; Right: Four months later the road is taking shape

Above: Road surface in place

Above from left: Looking into the new entrance to Folly Gardens; The end of the new access road;
The end of the new access road looking up towards Captain Cooks Crescent; Looking back along the new road towards Green Lane

Whitby was battered as a band of torrential rain swept across the region, arriving about 12 noon on 21st November which took about 8 hours to clear the area. As a result of this the river Esk between Ruswarp & Briggswath burst her banks and roads were impassable throughout the area. The A171 towards Guisborough was particularly bad at Scaling & further afield at Charltons & Guisborough was also affected. The most unusual problem though was at Sleights, as the sand from the escape lane of Blue Bank was washed out of the bed & down into Sleights. Blue Bank itself was closed to all traffic & problems occurred through the village itself including in the Ingham Close area presumably not made better by the sand being washed into the drain system. It would be more accurate to call Coach Road 'Coach Beck' and this was basically impassable near to the Iburndale Lane turn off due to deep sand & grit on the road. Contractors for North Yorkshire County Council worked through the night though to clear the mess up & the arrival of daylight the next day revealed a huge pile of sand in the middle of Coach Road near Iburndale Lane from the escape lane, with the A169 remaining closed until the 24th November.

Left: The Carrs near to Mini Monsters & ruswarp pleasure boats; Centre: The Carrs looking towards Ruswarp through the deepest floodwater. The road here was impassable without a high vehicle;
Right: Coach Road, Sleights with the sand & water pouring down from Blue Bank making the road impassable to most vehicles due to the amount of sand on the road

Demolition work on a garage at Well Close Square, near to Harold Mansions was underway by early November with re-building of the new structure started soon after. Steel bars were added in place of doors by late April.

Above from left: Garage demolished next to the steps of Harold Mansions; Breeze block wall built; Almost complete; Steel bars in place of doors fitted to garages

A massive 50-foot-long mosaic was finally unveiled in all its glory at Robin Hood's Bay sea wall on 30th November, after taking 3 days to erect. The mosaic titled 'The Story of Bay - Footprints through Time' was created using 50 meter-long mosaic panels covering a total length of 125 meters, designed by artist Ruth Wilkinson. The mosaic would allow tourists & locals alike a chance to step back in time as far back as the Jurassic period & follow a timeline back to the present day. The mosaic was made using 300,000 tiles known as tesserae and was funded through the Coastal Communities Fund as part of the 'Sea life, See life' project & was commissioned by the North Yorkshire Moors National Park.

A new business opened its doors on 4^th December in the former Fluffy Cakes premises at 76 Coach Road, Sleights after small internal alterations. The new business, Post Box Cafe, aptly named after the former Post Office occupied the premises. The new business opened in November offering hearty food including full English breakfasts and more. Fluffy Cakes moved into the premises just 18 months earlier when they wanted to expand their business after taking over the premises from the Post Office.

Post Box Cafe moves into the former Fluffy Cakes premises in Sleights

During December also, the Food Weighouse store closed its doors of its Baxtergate premises after being based at the site since around 1993. The food weighouse was officially named 'Weigh & Save Wholesaler Ltd" with the closure of the Whitby store coming about quite sudden with the fascia signage being covered within a few days of closing. The business sold items by weight which was stored in big cylindrical containers. The customer scooped the quantity required into a bag and it was weighed at the till. The business had a distribution centre at Catterick & from there items could be shipped nationally to other businesses. Lavander's Bizarre moved into the premises in January 2017 from their former premises at 31-33 Skinner Street. White Rabbit, a shop previously based in Silver Street moved into the former home of Lavander's in Skinner Street in April 2017.

Above left: Food Weighouse premises undergoing maintenance work in 2013; Left centre: Food Weighouse closed its doors for good in early December; Right centre & Right: Lavander's Bizarre moves from Skinner Street to the former Food Weighouse premises

Above left: White Rabbit's former home at 1 Silver Street; Right: White Rabbit moves into the former Lavander Bizarre premimses in Skinner Street

Work got underway towards the end of this year at Whitby's water treatment plant at Broomfield Farm South of Whitby. The works costing £10M included replacing the inlet works & sludge treatment plant, as it was announced that they had reached the end of their life. The removal of trees was necessary before the works could commence but Yorkshire Water promised that these would be replaced after the work was complete.

Whitby's dredger the Sandsend & Saltwick broke down in May and since then the town had been without a dredger allowing the harbour to silt up, causing boats to get stuck at low tide. The vessel had to go to Hull to be repaired & during the repairs the 2 parts to the boat were made to be 1, making it more efficient & easier to manoeuvre. The vessel's return to the town was delayed due to bad weather & necessary safety tests.