Whitlingham project dealt a blow

An ambitious scheme to improve links between the city and countryside has been dealt a blow, it has emerged.

Civic leaders told of their joy at the end of 2007 after the Sustrans' Connect2 project won the People's £50 Million TV competition in a public vote.

Part of the bid included a pedestrian and cycle link between the city and Whitlingham which is expected to receive £900,000 of the cash. This money needs to be spent within five years and be match-funded by local authorities.

Philip Hardy, Green Party candidate for county councillor in Thorpe Hamlet posed a question at a cabinet meeting of Norfolk County Council calling for specialist officer time to help implement the Sustrans' Connect2 project.

He said: “This is the kind of project we in the Green Party embrace with open arms.

“Walking and cycling are good for our health, our wallets and the environment. Improving the pedestrian and cycle links will encourage more people to visit Whitlingham Country Park and enjoy the wildlife, scenery and watersports.

“It would be unacceptable if this project failed to materialise due to county council procrastination, especially since the lottery money was secured by a public TV vote.”

But at the meeting, Ian Monson, cabinet member for waste management and the environment said the county council did not have the specific expertise to provide the support needed in the project for which Norwich City Council was the lead authority.

Mr Monson said: “The county council has been pleased to provide officer advice and support over several years to enable it to be developed.

“The current need is for various specialist surveys, including ecological, topographical and geotechnical work which is not available through county council staff and would have to come from external specialists.

“Although the county council is willing to continue to offer officer support where it can, it simply does not have the expertise to meet the project's current needs.”

The Whitlingham Along the River Over the River project - as it has been named by the city council and the Norwich Connect2 steering group - is one of more than 70 schemes across the UK to receive partial funding after the competition in 2007.

The total cost of the scheme is nearly £5m and, like all local schemes, the project must gain supplementary funding from other sources to make sure it gets its share of the Connect2 cash, and complete the work, to a plan agreed with Sustrans, within a five-year period.

A Norwich City Council spokeswoman said: “Unfortunately our bid to county council for some monies to fund officer and other experts' time has been unsuccessful due to the tightening up of government funding regulations.

“We are still actively seeking, as a matter of priority, other sources of funding essential to complete this project.”

Have you got an environmental story for the Evening News? Call Kate Scotter on 01603 772426 or email kate.scotter@archant.co.uk