Anttoni James Numminen

North Yorkshire Council will repair and renovate Scarborough’s Grade II listed Museum Steps and retaining wall after more than a year of complaints about their poor and hazardous condition. An updated scheme replaces a proposed concrete frame with a less invasive steel frame anchored to the side walls, following structural engineering advice. The works are intended to preserve the historic stone fabric while providing a long-term solution, and the Scarborough and Whitby Area Planning Committee unanimously approved the application.

North Yorkshire Council approved plans to convert the former Hylands Hotel and care home at 23–26 The Crescent in Filey into 17 apartments. The Grade II listed Victorian building once hosted The Beatles after a performance in Scarborough. The scheme includes 11 three-bedroom, five two-bedroom and one one-bedroom flats, with parking for 14 vehicles but no affordable housing. Planners, residents and heritage groups raised concerns about parking, alterations to the listed façade, proposed aluminium doors and potential damage to the building’s historic interior; approval was granted subject to conditions intended to protect its heritage significance.

North Yorkshire Council is preparing a £119,000 long-term strategy to manage urban gulls in Scarborough, Whitby and Filey. The proposed measures include public education, gull-proof rubbish bags, improved and retrofitted litter bins, waste reduction, cleaning and jet washing, targeted building proofing, monitoring and planning. The strategy aims to address noise, fouling, aggressive behaviour and public-health concerns while meeting conservation requirements and protecting Herring Gulls and Kittiwakes. Council executive member Richard Foster urged residents not to feed gulls and said the approach would help coastal communities coexist with the birds.