Worried residents of Tadcaster heard last night that the Environment Agency were still trying to resolve concerns from Sam Smith’s Brewery about a planned flood alleviation scheme for the town
They met senior managers from the Environment Agency at a town council meeting to discuss why there are further delays in pushing a planning application through.
Nicola Eades, from the Tadcaster Flood Action Group, asked Paul Stockhill from the EA if he would confirm where the latest objection was coming from
Watch our video from the meeting last night.
He said that they were still working with Sam Smith’s Brewery on resolving a number of issues but could not go into detail because the talks had been private.
A lack of concrete information was frustrating for the residents who had come to the meeting for answers.
What they did discover was it could take months to resolve and the funding for the scheme was not ringfenced.
Mike Dugher is the Yorkshire area director for the agency.
In an interview for this Sunday’s Late Show with David Dunning on YorkMix Radio he said: “We’ve taken the decision in recent weeks that it’s right moment in time just to pause the planning application process to make sure that we can fully re-engage with some key local stakeholders to make sure we give our best chance of getting a sound outcome to the planning application process.
“So we’ve come along to meet members of the community this evening. I’ve heard their frustrations. I know they’re worried. I know they’re concerned, but we want to make sure we get this right, and get it right first time.
“Sometimes it’s also important that we respect an element of privacy and work through some conversations and some difficult choices that we’ve got to make, and respect some of that privacy.
“We’re trying to do that at the moment, and then we’ll take our decision and see what our next steps will be.”
This coming December it will be ten years since the bridge collapsed.
That event is always in the front of everyone’s mind when flood alerts come in and people in Tadcaster say it high time that they had a solution.
Zoe Devine is from a flood affected business in the town, Devine Meats.
Speaking after the meeting, she told YorkMix: “I think there’s massive concerns. I didn’t feel we came any further forward with answers that I would have liked for some of the questions.
“Whilst I fully supported the EA along the way, and have worked with a lot of them, if they’ve come into the town, I feel it’s now time that we need answers and we need movement.
“We’ve been talking about the objection from Sam Smith’s brewery. This has happened in the past and the town have just said, no, we’re going ahead, and it’s been all right.
“I think they need to listen to us as the public, as the people on the ground that lose their businesses, lose their homes, lose their livelihoods.
“Can we still afford to pay staff if we flood? Do we open again if we flood what goes on, we have no insurance. Nobody will insure us near a river.
“While they do listen and I know they have listened, we’re ten years on from the bridge collapsing. People are getting fed up, and we’ve had enough of it.”
Independent North Yorkshire councillor, Kirsty Poskitt, said this week: “It goes without saying that this delay is incredibly disappointing news and leaves us in a position that none of us were expecting to be in.
“With winter around the corner, getting planning approval for the scheme was the boost everyone needed to get through another wet season.
“This change could mean that the planning isn’t brought before the committee until early 2026.
“It is very important at this stage to note that the delays are at the request of the applicant (EA) and not North Yorkshire Council who were preparing the report with recommendations.”
