The City of Wolverhampton Council (CWC) has bid for £20m from the UK government’s Levelling Up Fund Round 2 to support the delivery of its ‘Green Innovation Corridor’ to help make the city a centre for green construction.
The initiative was also designed to boost the region’s green economy and create highly skilled jobs across sustainable industries, while also developing new commercial opportunities and attracting and retaining students.
The government announced in February 2022 that Wolverhampton and Sheffield would be the first of 20 cities to benefit from part of £1.5bn of levelling up funding for new infrastructure.
Phase one of the corridor is the Springfield Innovation Hub, which is planned to be a net zero carbon facility located at the University of Wolverhampton’s £120m Springfield site.
The council claims the site will see the development of about 90,000ft² of commercial floorspace and the creation more than 300 jobs.
The corridor’s long-term aim is to better connect the city’s key assets with its research and commercial centres and the advanced manufacturing facilities in the north of Wolverhampton.
CWC hopes it will stimulate regeneration along the corridor by encouraging private sector investment.
Andy Street, West Midlands mayor, said: “The Green Innovation Corridor is a fantastic initiative to help create new well-paying jobs in emerging growth sectors.
“These will be jobs based in Wolverhampton, creating new opportunities for residents, and harnessing the great home-grown local talent we have in Wolverhampton.
“We at the West Midlands Combined Authority have worked closely with the University of Wolverhampton to help deliver £120m of investment in the world-class facility at the National Centre for Sustainable Construction, Europe’s largest specialist construction and built environment hub at Springfield Campus.
“This Green Innovation Corridor is the next step in the process of capturing the growth opportunities that new businesses in green technology and innovation give us.”
Further phases in the project should involve redevelopment, such as of Six Mile Green at Wolverhampton Science Park and Cross Street North.
The Six Mile Green site will reportedly see the construction of units for start-ups and innovation, while the Cross Street North facility will see new housing and commercial development and public spaces.
