Flood protection funding agreed as project costs double

A MAJOR project to protect historic homes from tidal surges in a Yorkshire seaside town has been secured despite costs doubling to more than £2m.

Large parts of Whitby were plunged into darkness as flooding hit in 2013, with dozens of homes and businesses damaged as surges breached the town’s defences. The strength of the flooding also carried away cars from the Church Street car park and the clean-up bill ran into hundreds of thousands of pounds.

Scarborough Council, in the wake of the devastation, drew up plans in 2015 to protect the area, agreeing to build a 1.2m wall to safeguard the homes at a cost of just under £1m.

Now, after it emerged the scheme will cost an estimated £2.3m, other authorities in the county have stepped in to meet the shortfall.

As a report went before the council’s cabinet this week, the York, North Yorkshire and East Riding Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) agreed to pick up the bill, investing £1.1m, with North Yorkshire County Council to put forward £15,000.

The reasons for the increase in costs are put down to the procurement of floodgates, works in Church Street car park and additional design elements.

There has also been some inflation since the budget for the plan was set in 2014, the report said.

A final report of the scheme will be presented to the council’s cabinet in December.