Hunslet residents attended the monthly Tenants and Residents’ Association meeting last night – with the travellers’ encampment on Pepper Road discussed.
Residents expressed concern about the travellers setting up in an area regularly used for football.
City and Hunslet councillor Mohammed Iqbal said that the council had approved additional permanent sites for travellers in Leeds which it was hoped would reduce the number of groups travelling around the city. He said the council was aware of the travellers in Hunslet and was goign through legal proceedigns to get them evicted. Cllr Iqbal added:
“It costs the council hundreds of thousands of pounds a year to deal with issues like this. We arre aware of the peoblems here but we have to go through a legal process which is costly and takes time. I hope we can have better laws from central government to make eviction a quicker process.”
When South Leeds Life visited the camp last night, no-one was available for an on-the-record comment, but one traveller said they weren’t doing anyone any harm.
In other news, Cllr Iqbal said Hunslet’s new skatepark had been delayed, but wasn’t sure why. He said he’d chase up more information. He stressed the commitment of the three local councillors to this project.
It was reported 15 crimes had taken place in the area since the last meeting, five of those were shoplifting from Morrisons, two stealing diesel from wagons and a couple of domestics. A ‘couple of names’ have apparently been put forward to police in connection with the ‘Secret Millionaire’ car jacking.
Nicola Turner spoke on the work of the Leeds Play Network, which has just moved into Church Street in Hunslet, near the Hunslet Club. Drop-in sessions start on Saturday, 10am-noon. Follow the above link for more details.
The group now has a new logo, courtesy Aire Valley Homes, which will be used at Hunslet Gala on Saturday, 30 June.
Hunslet Tenants and Residents Association meets the first Wednesday of the month at the Church of the Nazarene, Hunslet.
