THE Five Valleys is always growing, with independent, quirky businesses lining the high streets of Nailsworth, Stonehouse and Stroud.

Currently, there are lots of plans for the district council and a number of private firms to regenerate Stroud and the surrounding area.

Stroud District Council is heavily involved with two of the biggest regeneration projects in the area – the restoration of the canal and Brimscombe Port.

Back in 2008, much of the canal was a derelict wasteland.

The towpath was overgrown, unloved and generally a place to avoid.

Restoration of the canal had stalled and its future looked grim until SDC stepped in to support the Cotswold Canal Trust.

Since then, six miles of towpath have been upgraded and five miles of canal opened up, with six new bridges and nine locks restored.

The canal’s real importance, though, lies in its ability to transform the surrounding area into an attractive and vibrant place.

Property values have increased and inward investment attracted by canal restoration already totals a massive £114 million.

Mote than 2,000 students from 33 schools have been involved in canal- related learning and roughly 70 young people with learning difficulties have worked alongside hundreds of volunteers .

Canal restoration has also reduced areas prone to flooding.

New wildlife habitats have been created - with kingfishers, otters and other species regularly seen.

The council has recently announced a further £3 million investment into restoring the canal between Stonehouse and Saul, which will be the subject of a Heritage Lottery Funding bid in November “This would mean that boats from the country’s canal network can sail into Stroud and beyond,” said Dave Marshall, SDC’s canal project manager.

“Even though the benefits of restoring the canal are already tremendous, that really would realise its full potential.”

Stroud News and Journal:

On Wednesday, March 8, the first private canal boat took up residence in the regenerated Stroudwater canal for the first time in 65 years.

Meanwhile, SDC is also investing £1million in Brimscombe Port, alongside £2million from the Homes & Communities Agency.

Engineers are now working on plans to put the canal back into the port, after which the rest can be developed into a visitor destination and residential area.

SDC wants to completely redevelop the historic inland port, which dates back to the 1780s, with around 200 waterside properties, a new community centre, cafes, bars, shops and a reworked canal and quayside.

Work has already started on designing a new road bridge over the river and canal and over the next three years SDC is set to pump a further £2.9 million into the first phase of infrastructure works to create roads and the new bridge to make the site attractive to developers.

The first phase of work will also see money spent on the removal of unused manufacturing buildings from the site and the restoration of the historic form of the port..

New canal channels will be dug to replace those lost in the 20th Century and a range of new buildings will be built to complement those of Port Mill.

Infrastructure work will also involve raising the bridge so canal boats can pass underneath and creating a new river crossing under the canal.

Work is expected to start on this side of the project in 2018. l Next week we look at the varied employment opportunities in the district.