The council’s scheme to reopen the River Roch in Rochdale town centre and reveal its historic bridge, which has been hidden for more than century, has been shortlisted in the heritage category of the 2016 RPTI (Royal Town Planning Institute’s) Planning Excellence awards.
The project, which, has been supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, The Environment Agency and the North West Regional and Coastal Flood Committee, will now by vying for the top heritage prize, against the likes of the Holyhead Townscape Heritage Initiative in Wales and the Nottingham Heritage Strategy.
Councillor Richard Farnell, Leader of the council, said: “Revealing the Roch is a unique project which will significantly improve the already fantastic heritage we have here in Rochdale borough. We’re very proud to have been shortlisted for this prestigious award. It’s great to see that to see that the experts in the field see the obvious historic value of this scheme and the really hard work which has gone into making it a reality.”
Rochdale’s entry highlighted the key benefits of the scheme, which include a £5.02M future saving from reduced flood risk and the local economic benefit, with the bridge expected bring around £6.72M into the local economy over ten years. The submission also highlighted the fact that the project will reduce maintenance costs for looking after the culvert and bridge, saving the council around £3.13M over the next 30 years.
Work to reveal the river, which began in spring 2015, is expected to be complete in May 2016.
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on 5 May 2016.
