Empty North Kesteven homes could face massive council tax bill

Lincoln’s new arcade bar Carousel will open on the High Street next week after more than £1 million of investment — and The Lincolnite went to check it out for a sneak peek.

Carousel will open in the building formerly occupied by Ruddocks on Wednesday, May 19. It includes various experience zones, including simulation shooting range Quickdraw, Shuffle board, social darts with interactive lanes, and a plethora of arcade machines.

The arcade machines include Time Crisis, Daytona racing, Sonic and Mario at the Olympics and Down the Clowns, as well as a dance mat, basketball hoops and air hockey.

Tables can be pre-booked for food and drinks, or experience areas for fun and games, both via Carousel’s website. Walk-ins will be accepted from the opening date on May 19, but due to the coronavirus restrictions the venue’s capacity will be limited initially.

There is a wide range of food ranging from large plates, such as the Carousel beef brisket, to burgers, hot dogs and plank pizzas.

There are also small plates including Halloumi sticks, Korean BBQ Bao buns, sweet chilli chicken skewers and Bombay Caulibombs.

The variety of drinks includes beers, wines, spirits, alcoholic and non-alcoholic slushies and a what is described as an “Instagram worthy” cocktail menu.

Carousel has created 40 new jobs for the local community and Operations Manager David Nejrup can’t wait for the venue to welcome its first customers.

He told The Lincolnite: “We are delighted to launch our new concept Carousel in the city.

“Carousel has been in development for over two years. In that time and through our research and development, we noticed a shift in what guests wanted from a new bar concept.

“We found that guests wanted more than the usual extensive product range, amazing cocktails and fantastic food. They wanted to be entertained and have an experience while socialising and at Carousel we feel we have created just that.

“Not only do we have a fantastic street food-inspired food menu, an extensive selection of draught beers, wines and spirts and an Instagram worthy cocktail menu, we have taken competitive socialising to the next level. There is so much to do here, there is something for everyone.”

Carousel is operated by Lindum Leisure, which is leasing the building and has links to a group of businesses including Home, Curiosity Shop and Craft.

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Detective Constable Aaron Flint of Grantham is appealing for witnesses and information following the report of substantial damage being caused to Ancaster Valley Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

Branches have been cut from trees, some of which are hundreds of years old and rubbish, including tyres, wood, and other items, have been dumped at the site. It is believed this has happened sometime during the last two weeks.

The area in question is protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which makes it an offence to intentionally or recklessly damage a SSSI.

The penalty for this offence up until 2015 was a fine of up to £20,000. This has now been changed giving the courts the power to give an unlimited fine.

DC Flint said: “These sites are extremely fragile and highly vulnerable to damage. We will be working closely with Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust to identify the offenders and bring them to justice. This is not only a mindless and selfish act of vandalism but also serious crime against our environment.

“We take all reports of wildlife crime very seriously. We would encourage anyone who has been in this area in the last two weeks and may have any information, not matter how irrelevant you may feel it is, to contact us on 101.”

Rachel Shaw, spokesman for Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, added: “This is a senseless act of vandalism to a wonderful nature reserve. It’s also a drain on our resources as it’s likely to be costly to remove, and, most concerning of all, the damage to the trees and shrubs will have a long term impact.

“A number of trees have had branches removed and bark damage that may affect their survival. The shrubs that have been damaged are box. Box is very slow growing and unfortunately some of the stems cut and damaged are over 100 years old so will take a long time to regenerate.”

A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) is an area that’s of particular interest to science due to the presence of rare species of fauna and flora, important geological or physiological features. These areas are of very high conservation value, and need to be protected.

DC Flint is asking for anyone who may have information about this offence to contact 101 or crime stoppers quoting occurrence number 21000263099 or by emailing him directly at [email protected]

There have been seven days in a row without any coronavirus deaths in Lincolnshire, as cases dropped by nearly 5% so far this week.

The latest figures show there have been 238 new Coronavirus cases so far this week and no deaths — compared to 248 cases and three deaths last week.

The government’s COVID-19 dashboard on Friday recorded 22 new cases in Lincolnshire, 11 in North Lincolnshire and four in North East Lincolnshire.

But the figures, which include deaths both in and out of hospitals, as well as residents in hospitals outside the county, showed no further deaths.

NHS England has also reported no new local hospital deaths across Greater Lincolnshire’s four hospital trusts for the seventh day in a row, standing at 1,305 since the pandemic started.

National cases increased by 2,193 to 4,446,824, while deaths rose by 17 to 127,668.

In local news, a “handful” of Indian variant cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Lincolnshire, but local health bosses remain unconcerned at this time.

The variant has caused concerns after UK cases more than doubled in a week.

In some areas it is expected that second vaccine doses could be brought forwad to help tackle the worst-affected aras, while surge testing is already taking place.

Elsewhere, England’s R number range has increased to an estimated 0.8-1.1, meaning on average every 10 people infected will infect between 8 and 11 others.

It comes as Office for National Statistics figures show that about one in 1,340 people in the country had coronavirus in the week ending May 8, down from one in 1,180 the week prior.

Lateral flow testing sites for COVID-19 across Lincolnshire will begin winding down as local health bosses urge people to go to their local pharmacists or order online instead.

From Monday, May 17, pubs, bars, restaurants, and other hospitality venues will be able to reopen indoors as the easing of the coronavirus lockdown continues.