Salisbury River Park project expected to open in mid-July
The two year project is nearing its completion
The Environment Agency has exclusively told Greatest Hits Radio the Salisbury River Park project should be open to the public by mid-July.
Development to the River Avon sections around Central Car Park and Ashley Road Green is almost completed despite issues caused by the weather.
DEFRA's Andy Wallis is leading the project and says good progress is being made.
"The project is doing well and we are getting close now. It may not look like it some ways, but we're just onto the final bits of work now, the final landscaping, so we're looking to be pretty much done in most parts by mid-July time," he said.
The project, which started in 2022, aims to achieve the following things:
- Reduce flood risk to existing homes and businesses
- Create wildlife corridors and improve biodiversity by connecting fragmented green spaces
- Improve the recreational and amenity value of the area
- Enable regeneration of key development sites
Finishing touches after public opening
Mr Wallis told us that there would still be work to do after we're given public access.
He said: "There are a couple of bits of work, mainly seeding and planting that we weren't able to do in the last season.
"We have to wait now till until next season starts October, November time to come back and plant the trees. It will look a bit barren until the winter when we can finish off."
The weather has made things difficult for the construction teams, with Mr Wallis saying he doubts he's seen a worse year of weather during his 25 years in construction.
"It's not just been the winter, it's just that it's been solid probably for about 18 months now of really bad weather," he said
On site, they've had to contend with groundwater issues. And while there's been a couple of flooding instances, the biggest problem has been the river levels themselves staying so high.
And with much of the work being earthworks, something that can't really be done when it's wet, there have been delays.
"We've just been waiting for that to dry out long enough to be able to do that. It's only really been in the past month now that we've actually been able to properly really get going on some of the areas, especially around Ashley Rd," Mr Wallis said.