The biggest change to local government for 50 years is now just 10 weeks away.
With 10 weeks until Scarborough Borough Council ceases to exist there are concerns that coastal issues might get lost when they come under the preview of the replacement North Yorkshire Wide authority.
The new authority has already indicated it will have a financial shortfall in it's first year, and has hinted that it might need to use some of the reserves it inherits from the borough and district councils to plug that gap.
Scarborough Borough Councillor, Michelle Donohue-Moncrieff, thinks that's worrying when it comes to things like coastal defences.
Councillor Donohue Moncrieff - says coastal defences is a big issue that needs constant focus.
The scale of the task involved in merging North Yorkshire County Council with the District and Borough Council's was underlined at a meeting of the county council’s transition scrutiny committee last week where officers revealed it could take several years to complete the transformation from eight councils to one.
Councillors heard the unification would see North Yorkshire having about 2,500 property assets – some of which it would have no control over – including 143 farms, market stalls, a hotel and even beach huts.
The new authority will also have 23 leisure centres, 352 educational establishments, 542 highways assets, eight museums, four crematoria, 127 car parks and more than 400 commercial and investment properties.
The meeting heard North Yorkshire’s largest employer would continue to review new ways of working and reconfigure offices and workplaces, it would provide hubs to ensure customer access to services.
Earlier in the week the authority’s leadership announced it was launching an accelerated property rationalisation programme, to raise funds and cut the costs of operating buildings such as the 37 offices it will have in April.
The meeting heard officers from across the eight councils were putting in long hours ahead of vesting day on issues such as bringing together the 550 different computer systems in use across the eight councils, as well as a huge disparity in ways of working, into a more efficient and cost-effective operation.
Corporate director Stuart Carlton told the meeting:
“It is by no means an easy task bringing some of this together.”
Officers said transforming the council’s IT system could take up to five years, so their ambition for April 1 was limited to appearing to operate as a single council, having completed essential elements for day-to-day work such as a single email system and website.
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