Shrewsbury to benefit from £1.9m fund
A popular bridge and footpath in a suburb of Shrewsbury which has caused concern for residents will be improved and upgraded thanks to a £250,000 contribution.
Belvedere Bridge, which links the Column area with Belvidere, has long been criticised for being too narrow and unsafe.
But now Taylor Wimpey has allocated £1.9 million to spend in the local community as it builds its development at Weir Hill, off Preston Street.
As part of the planning agreements for Lily Hay, the house builder will be contributing more than £1.6 million towards education facilities, more than £250,000 towards the Belvedere Bridge Plan, to improve paths and roads in the area, and £50,000 towards improving the connectivity for London Road.
In addition to this, it will also be making contributions towards a residential travel plan and £25,000 towards monitoring fees.
Carl Cooke, sales and marketing director for Taylor Wimpey North Midlands, said: “In every town we build new homes, we also try to give something back in support of the local community. We understand the importance of bringing the community together and we’re proud to say that we are working to improve facilities in Shrewsbury for our residents and other local people.”
Up to 600 homes are being built on the site. The development had attracted controversy from people living in nearby homes who said there would be an increase in traffic, a lack of infrastructure to support the estate and poor access routes.
Hannah Fraser, councillor for the Abbey area said she was pleased to hear that the improvements would be made. "The footpath is extremely narrow and for the most part people stop and wait but it is dangerous. The solution is to widen the footpath and make it single carriageway. The work should be done sooner rather than later."
