Fenland and East Cambridgeshire proposals win market town funding
Chatteris has been given £92,000 to help make its town centre more attractive improving the appearance of street furniture and enabling refurbishment works to help businesses recover post Covid-19.
The Combined Authority Board approved funding for a raft of imaginative projects for market towns in Fenland and East Cambridgeshire at its meeting on Wednesday (25).
On the table was some £1.5 million for Chatteris, Ely, Soham and Whittlesey, all seeking to increase their pull for residents, visitors, and businesses. Future-proofing and history featured high on the town’s wish-lists, with heritage and digital connectivity, plus ideas for greener active travel and Covid-19 recovery.
In September, the Board approved four proposals, a total of £599,900 for projects in the first tranche of market town bids. A further £1,426,169 was on offer for this second tranche, ten more project proposals which received approval at Wednesday’s Combined Authority Board.
James Palmer, Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough: “Investment in our market towns is the key to our continued prosperity and the Combined Authority is in the right position to deliver it. Strung throughout the county, our market towns provide economic and social hubs for very substantial rural populations. I want all communities in Cambridgeshire to thrive and that means ensuring these much-loved centres are equipped for the future – dynamic go-to destinations for business and pleasure, properly linked in by road, rail and digital, and attractive to residents, visitors, and new businesses alike.
“Through Covid, we’ve glimpsed a future that may be less city-focussed, with stronger local communities and digital connectivity freeing more people to work smarter and more flexibly. Market towns, with their generous space, fresh air, community feel, and scope for good, green growth are in a wonderful place to grasp opportunity and move forward. The Combined Authority investment programme will help drive this.”
The Mayor urged the Board to approve 10 proposals for a combined £1,426,169 of funding towards projects in the area’s key market towns including the £92,000 Chatteris scheme and two for Whittlesey totalling £718,169.
