Solihull wins £7m for green schemes
The European Regional Development Fund (EDRF) has awarded £7m to Solihull after the Council made a successful bid for funding to improve green networks and wildlife sites across the borough.
A three year programme of work will start this autumn to make improvements to 69km of existing paths for both walkers and cyclists, plus creating 23km of new shared paths, as well as improving 23 wetland and grass land sites.
The Solihull cabinet member for managed growth, Cllr Ian Courts added: “We submitted bids from various organisations to get this project off the ground. The ERDF bid was the biggest, so work can now begin in earnest , moving fro the planning phase to physical work that people across Solihull will really start to notice. The environment and bio-diversity is a vital part of our plans to continue making this borough the best place to live and work in.”
Cllr Tony Dicicco, cabinet member for environment and housing said: “The borough is divided by major roads and can feel quite disjointed. The idea behind this scheme is to open up and enhance existing routes to allow wildlife to fourish and people to use their cars less and enjoy walking or cycling to get about. By planting and widening our paths they will become more attractive and useable for people, plants and wildlife alike.”
