Growth Deal: Black Country economy set to be transformed by new infrastructure schemes
THE economy of the Black Country is set to be transformed by the latest Growth Fund settlement awarded to the area. Business leaders have said.
Wolverhampton has received more than £18m for projects aimed at enhancing the city centre, creating new jobs and attracting inward investment.
The funding, secured by the Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership, will facilitate the development of a new railway station, the major refurbishment of the Civic Hall, support the Bilston Urban Village programme and create a new science centre.
Cllr Roger Lawrence, leader of Wolverhampton City Council and a member of the LEP, said: “This is great news for the city and the whole of the region. It is an excellent example of collaborative working by the four Black Country councils and the LEP.
“We produced one of the best bids in the country and we have been recognised for the strength of the schemes that this funding will support.”
The LEP had submitted a bid for £55.6m from the Growth Deal to support the various projects across the region from 2015/16.
The projects include:
– Wolverhampton Interchange – £4.5m towards the £91m Interchange scheme including the construction of a new railway station, refurbishment of the multi-storey car park and a new office and retail block to complement the new bus station and improve a main gateway into the city.
– Civic Halls and Grand Theatre Improvement Programme – £6.2m (alongside £3.5m investment from the city council) to transform the Civic and Wulfrun Halls by increasing capacity, improved conference and hospitality facilities and modernised staging and new facilities. The Grand Theatre will receive £400,000 for improvements.
– Bilston Urban Village – £3.3m funding towards the £176m commercial and residential housing scheme between Wolverhampton City Council and the Homes and Communities Agency. This money will fund improvements to Bankfield Road, further infrastructure works and provide a new bus link.
– Science, Technology and Prototype Centre – £2.8m funding towards the £10m University of Wolverhampton centre to be based at Wolverhampton Science Park. The centre will provide laboratory testing space and offices for research and development.
In Walsall, plans to remodel the road network around junction 10 of the M6 as part of a £64.5m scheme have been welcomed.
The scheme will involve new bridges over the motorway, which will be widened to create more capacity; installation of intelligent traffic signals; improvements to the motorway slip roads; widening and modernisation of nearby Bloxwich Lane junction; and modification to a small section of the Black Country Route. This investment is designed to make the junction operate efficiently and reduce vehicle delay.
The improvements to Junction 10, which are expected to start during 2017, will help to safeguard existing jobs and create new jobs, by encouraging inward investment such as that within the nearby Black Country Enterprise Zone.
Other projects approved for investment include the £8m Bentley Lane Remediation project in 2015 – 2017 which will create 11 hectares of high quality employment land.
Also funded by this deal is an £8.8m contribution commencing in 2015/16 towards the development of 735 homes and associated infrastructure by Walsall Housing Group within the Goscote Lane corridor.
Cllr Adrian Andrew, portfolio holder for regeneration and transport with Walsall Council, said: “The improvements will have a significant positive impact on not only the transport network in Walsall but also the regeneration of the borough and from an employment point of view will not only safeguard existing jobs but also create new ones.”
