Report & photos: Phil PIckin
WEST Midlands mayor, Andy Street, helped by children from the Tiverton Junior and Infant School, has unveiled an information board to officially open the refurbished Whitehouse Wharf in Selly Oak, Birmingham.
The opening attracted significant attention from both members of the Lapal Canal Trust, Canal & River Trust and the general public, who took the opportunity to visit the site close to the busy Bristol Road in the city.
Whitehouse Wharf was designed, financed and managed by the Lapal Canal Trust, with funding provided by over 45 donors. Funding was also forthcoming from a number of major donors, including Veolia Environmental Trust, Garfield Weston, Headley Trust and Unite Students. The freehold to the site is owned by CRT, while Sainsbury’s and M&G Real Estate surrendered their lease rights to the area.
Restoration of the site began in March 2022, helped by Land & Water, which removed more than 5000 tonnes of excess soil.
Over the following year, 480 tonnes of puddle clay from Gloucestershire was used to waterproof the wharf basin, and paths were installed along with new mooring bollards from CRT. Finally, a number of benches donated by the Dulverton Trust were installed for visitors to make full use of the green space created.
Whitehouse Wharf is part of the plan to reopen the Dudley No 2 Canal, which, it is hoped, will eventually link up with the proposed new 100-berth marina at California near Dudley.
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