Filey’s £5 million flood scheme is on track
Councillor responds to concerns about delays to vital protection works
He told The Mercury: “It has taken a long time, it still is taking far longer than I would wish.
“However, if it had not been for the work of the Filey Flood Working Group (FFWG) supporting and being supported by SBC we wouldn’t have got this far.
“Guidelines and processes for applying for government funding have altered since the formation of the FFWG following the 2002 event. This built on the work of the multi-agency group I had brought together following the smaller but still worrying event of november 2000.
“We succeeded in having the Planning Inspector specify that the surface water drainage system for Mill Meadows was deigned to a far higher specification than the current industry norm.
“We have succeeded in working with Yorkshire Water and persuaded it to invest circa £3.5 million in improving the capacity of their surface water assets within the town.
“We have the end in sight, we are working towards being able to start the work following the one remaining outstanding matter, that of compensation for the land owners.”
In December, Scarborough Borough Council, which is leading the project to improve flood defences in Filey, commissioned a series of boreholes and trial pits in fields to the north and west of the town so soil and rock samples could be gathered and analysed.
The idea behind the scheme is to create a series of swales and bunds around much of Filey to intercept run-off water. + DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS YOU WANT US TO LOOK INTO?