Daniel Ionescu

A Lincoln woman who repeatedly left her rubbish bins out in the street was taken to court and fined £100, in a first such case brought on by the City Council.

Lincoln Magistrates Court heard on July 21 that Victoria Todd, 28, of Coulson Road, was given two opportunities to remove the bins before a fixed penalty notice was issued.

After failing to pay the fine, Ms Todd was taken to court, where she admitted ignoring a legal notice and failing to ensure her bins were removed from the street after collection.

She was given a six month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £100 costs after failing to comply with a section 46 notice under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

Sam Barstow, Service Manager for Public Protection and Anti-Social behaviour at the City Council, said: “Bins on the street can be a real problem for people making their way around our city.

“In particular, those who are disabled, pushing push-chairs or carrying a good handful of shopping bags can find it a real struggle to navigate past bins on public footpaths.

“Bins also detract from the quality of our neighbourhoods and drag the image of an area down.

“The city council, its partners and community members take pride in the city street scene and we collectively seek to make improvements wherever possible. This work is part of that ambition.

“This is the first court case taken by the City Council under a new procedure for dealing with these types of issues and so this result is particularly encouraging.”

Anyone who experiences problems with neighbours leaving their bins out can call the Public Protection and Anti-Social Behaviour Team on 01522 873378.

The City Council is looking for alternative sites for a skate park in Lincoln after they proposed to withdraw their Hobblers Hole plans due to noise concerns.

An application was submitted earlier this year by the City of Lincoln Council to create a site for skaters, scooter and BMX riders at the site between Long Leys Road and Yarborough Road.

But a noise study carried out by the council revealed a 1.8 metre high wall would be needed at one end of the site to prevent any disturbance to people living nearby.

Due to the aesthetic impact such a wall would create in the area, the council said it is proposing to withdraw the application and look for a more suitable site in Lincoln.

Hobblers Hole

John Latham, Director of Development and Environmental Services, said: “As part of the normal planning process, we undertook a number of studies including a noise survey, which revealed the need for a high wall at the proposed park.

“This was unexpected as the site is more than 100m from any housing and is not something we could have foreseen happening.

“We have now come to the conclusion this would be an unacceptable addition to the site and have therefore recommended to the Executive Committee that the application is withdrawn so that we can consider what the alternatives are, review all sites previously assessed and work with users to create a skate park which meets their needs but doesn’t have any impact on surrounding neighbours.”

The council has been searching for a suitable site for a skate park near the city centre since 2011. They first wanted to build it near the Grandstand off Carholme Road, but faced opposition from local residents and a legal setback.

Then, the City Council moved the plans for the Hobblers Hole site, but local residents unanimously voted to request the withdrawal due to a range of concerns.

Executive councillors will consider the recommendation to withdraw the application at a meeting on July 28.