£700,000 plan for green improvements around Dudley
Council chiefs look set to back plans to spend nearly £700,000 on improving green spaces around Dudley's canal and river network.
The investment – for which most of the cash will come from external funding – is part of the Black Country Blue Network.
The project is a region-wide scheme to improve biodiversity of green spaces through habitat improvement works. It will also see canal and riverside locations rejuvenated to make them more attractive to visitors.
The Dudley sites earmarked for improvements include open spaces in Coseley including Cannon Drive and Clayton Park; Sedgley Beacon; Castle Hill woodland and Peggy’s Meadow; open space in Holloway Street, Upper Gornal; and Turls Hill and Swanbrook Valley.
Members of Dudley Council’s cabinet will be asked to back the plan at a meeting later this month.
Councillor Ian Kettle, Dudley Council's cabinet member for regeneration and enterprise, said: "This is a very worthy scheme. Not only will it help plants and animals flourish and protect their natural habitats, it will also open up better access to beautiful canalside locations.
"That in turn will make them more popular as walking or cycle routes, encouraging healthy lifestyles and active recreation for people in the borough.
"Canals in particular form such an important part in the history of our borough, so I very much welcome any investment in them."
The £675,000 for the scheme will be funded by £339,000 from a European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) grant; £272,000 from developers through either section 106 or Community Infrastructure Levy contributions; £24,000 from the Wildlife Trust; and £40,000 from prudential borrowing.
