Senior councillors in York will be asked to agree to Levelling Up funding bids to deliver transformational projects in the city.
The council is looking to submit two bids to the Government’s Levelling Up Fund (round 2) to invest in major regeneration and transport projects in the city centre and beyond.
Subject to approval by the Council’s Executive, the Council will bid for £20m of funding to revitalise the city centre, as part of three linked projects supported by partners and stakeholders.
This includes £10m to deliver the new Castle and Eye of York public realm as part of the Castle Gateway regeneration, and a further £10m for Parliament Street and Coney Street and the Riverside Quarter developments.
In addition to this bid, the Council will submit a transport bid to help deliver Haxby Railway station. The bid will seek to secure £5m to support the proposed station and improve active travel links and accessibility in local communities, beyond those already proposed as part of the Haxby Station project.
Despite being in the government’s lowest priority areas for Levelling Up investment, the Council submitted a strong first round Levelling Up bid in 2021 to support the delivery of the three key city centre regeneration projects. Although this bid was unsuccessful, it received positive feedback from central government, with the submission scoring well across the three main assessment criteria; strategic fit; value for money; and deliverability.
Results of the competitive bidding process are expected to be announced later this autumn.
Councillor Nigel Ayre, executive member for finance and performance at City of York Council, said: “We are leaving no stone unturned in our efforts to deliver these ambitious projects.
“If successful, this funding would help us deliver world-class public space in the Castle Gateway area, major improvements to Parliament Street and open up a riverside walkway and make improvements to Coney Street, all of which are hugely exciting and transformational projects. Our second bid will look to develop more active travel options as part of our ambitious plans to bring a railway station back to Haxby.
“Whilst our first bid for Levelling Up for funding was unsuccessful, we were pleased to receive such positive feedback. We have listened to the comments and will adapt our bid to give it the best possible chance, and whilst understanding the city has been placed in the lowest tier for levelling up grants, we feel we have a very strong case.”
