Development of the week: The Waterspace project

There are major plans to revitalise Daventry's centre by building a new waterway. Nadia Ghani reports

Look around Daventry and you will see a place in need of revitalisation. Development in recent years has not been strategic. The town consists of several disjoined areas and has no clearly-defined centre.

But the Daventry Waterspace project aims to modernise the town and give it a ‘beating heart’.

The plan is to build three mooring sites that lead into the town, on a new stretch of canal linked to the Grand Union.

The canal will be used to draw people towards the central site and developments will become progressively more commercial as they get closer to it. Shops, restaurants, bars, office space and housing will all be built around the central mooring point.

Chris Over, Daventry Council’s economic, regeneration and employment portfolio holder, says: “At present the town is structurally defined by a series of ring roads, underpasses and dual carriageways.

"The new masterplan shows what an important role the Daventry Waterspace can play in creating a thriving and sustainable town centre.

“This project plan will weld the town together to create cohesion, unity and a new heart.”

In conjunction with the new Waterspace there are plans to build a £30m educational academy. This would be close to the mooring basin at the centre of the town.

An £8.5m technology innovation centre called the iHub, close to the second mooring site, is also being planned. The council hopes both of these projects will establish the town as a centre for excellence.

Daventry Council estimates the project will bring at least 550 jobs and 250 new homes to the town. Over says: “Job losses are happening across the UK at the moment, and Daventry is no exception. It is very important that the Waterspace project provides a real employment benefit.

“The jobs that will be created, by the iHub innovation centre in particular, will be highly skilled jobs for a new high-tech era. We want to raise the bar for a bright and prosperous future. We want to put Daventry back on the map.”

Canals vs the credit crunch

Nadia Ghani investigates how UK projects are weathering the gloom.

Canalside development is not immune to the effects of the worst economic downturn to hit the UK in 50 years. Although waterside locations usually hold their value relatively well during recessions, sev

eral large-scale projects have ground to a halt this month.

A lack of funding is the common issue and scare stories have been hitting the headlines. Projects still going ahead are looking for increasingly creative ways to ensure that investors remain interested.

In Scotland, the future of the £500m Falkirk Gateway looks uncertain. The multi-use development of a business village, retail park and marina had full planning permission and was ready to be built, but has been put on hold indefinitely. Two key retailers have pulled out and without their capital, the project cannot go ahead.

Niall McLean, project officer from Macdonald Estates, which is handl

ing the development, says: "We had lined up retailers that deal in things like electricals and homewares. This sector has been particularly affected by the downturn in the housing market. Many companies can no longer get credit and without credit they cannot invest. We have all the building blocks in place but until the market recovers and we have retailer confidence and funding, we cannot get the project off the ground."

Although the outlook at Falkirk is bleak, developers in the industry are used to the slow burn. Canal-based projects typically take several years to complete, so there is often flexibility with timelines.  This is being demonstrated in Exeter, where a £5m plan to transform the canal basin is being adapted due to a lack of funds. 

Plans to develop 14 affordable housing units and a new restaurant are going ahead, despite press speculation that all elements of the regeneration proposal have been put on hold.

The council is offering a two-year delay on two earmarked contracts, to give developers time to come up with the cash. It would not consider looking for alternative partners to take on stalled elements of the project, it has confirmed.

John Rigby, council director of economy and development, says: "It is unrealistic to think we could look for funding elsewhere. The market is stagnant, so speculating for business would be posturing.  We are affirming our co

mmitment to the project, by extending the 'sold' position on the development sites for our partners, Sutton Harbour Developments and Millhouse Property."

The Bedford to Milton Keynes Waterway project (BMKW) is trying to be dynamic in the  face of economic uncertainty. The proposal to cut £24km of new canal, linking the Grand Union to the Great Ouse, is expected to cost £200m. So far only ten per cent has been raised.

But BMKW's project managers are confident that their plan contains imaginative solutions that will incite investment even in difficult times. These include building part of the new canal through a registered flood plain, to remove the flooding risk and make the land fit for developments.

Richard Wood, the project's senior implementation officer, says: "During a recession it is critical to show how a waterway project can provide added value for developers. We have come up with effective solutions that work with the environment to provide long term, strategic opportunities that will be attractive even during a downturn." 

BMKW is looking for ways to continue without raising funding. A deal being negotiated with construction firm Balfour Beatty would see the company make the first cut of the canal in exchange for use of land needed for a road construction.

Wood says: "If you want to make things happen when funds are scarce you have to be prepared to think laterally and come up with solutions…The Balfour Beatty cut is not yet a done deal but it is backed by councillors and road contractors. There is a clear benefit for both parties."

But funding isn't always scarce. A £500,000 grant from the East Midlands Development Agency means the Ashby Canal Restoration Trust in Leicestershire can start restoring the canal, and seek involvement from developers.

Peter Williams, project officer for Ashby Canal Restoration, says: "In a downturn receiving a grant like this is a vote of confidence. We will now be able to restore the first stretch of the canal, and we hope this will be an incentive for developers to get involved. This kind of cash injection shows that the project is happening and that it is worth investing in."

He chairs local meetings to keep the project at the forefront of residents' and businesses' minds. He has also set up a canal restoration lottery scheme. Tickets are sold locally, to raise funding for and awareness of the project.

Williams urges those with financial worries to look for opportunities to drive awareness. "It pays to do all you can to make sure people know what you're doing. You never know where funding might come from."

Grantham awaits River Trent link update

By Nadia Ghani

Grantham Canal could become a rural leisure destination, if a Green Infrastructure Study reveals that it could be connected to the River Trent.

The study’s results will be made public on 2 March. If they are positive, the Grantham Canal Partnership hopes there will be greater possibility of capturing private sector funding, which is needed to restore the canal.

Mike Stone, chairman of the Grantham Canal Society, said: "While the area is very rural, there are opportunities for the service industry. There could be business openings for caravan parks, angling clubs, cycling tour operators and pubs."

Stone said the canal will act as a "green buffer" between urban areas, preserving an area of “natural rural delight”.

He estimates the restoration of the entire 33-mile stretch may cost anything up to £40m.

The Grantham Canal Partnership has been campaigning to restore the stretch, which was once a major commercial route in the area, since 1997.

British Waterways recycles to offset dredging costs

By Nadia Ghani

British Waterways has offset the high cost of dredging for the first time by recycling waste created in the process.

Silt and debris that was dredged from the Brookfoot Lock near Halifax has been blended with green waste from Bradford City Council’s household rubbish plant.

The treatment created a soil substitute, which can be sold off to construction companies.

The waste would normally have been scrapped as landfill or sent to a dredging lagoon.

Although other companies have utilised this process in the past, it is a first for BW and comes at a time when funds are in short supply.

This financial year, BW has spent £4.5 million on dredging.

Tracey Garrett, marketing manager at BW Yorkshire, said:

“Due to the current economic climate, British Waterways has limited funds available and the dredging of the canals is expensive.

“Being able to create something out of the dredging process that can be sold off is a key opportunity.”

BW also highlighted the environmental benefits of using this process. Recycling material is far more energy efficient than creating refined soil from scratch using virgin materials.

Gavin Beat, BW’s waste management surveyor, estimated that 106 tonnes of carbon had been saved.