A CRACKDOWN on A-board advertising by traders in a busy town centre has had a positive response.
Of the original 250 A-boards regularly on display in Harrogate, only a handful remain following action by the local authority.
And legal proceedings have now begun against those who continue to display such boards.
Council leader Mike Gardner said: "As a thriving tourist and business destination, we were quite prepared to be tolerant about increasing and improving our 'street scene'. That is why we started the licensing of pavement cafes some few years ago.
"But sadly, businesses have let the illegal advertising situation grow to such an extent that we had to take this enforcement action."
Harrogate Borough Council is not the only local authority to begin to regularise the A-board situation. The county council is taking action in Ripon and Skipton.
Coun Gardner added: "We are exploring ways with the county council of controlling A-boards through a licensing scheme.
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