High Wycombe would not exist were it not for the River Wye.
It allowed the milling and furniture industries to develop – not to mention the harvesting of watercress for “export” to London. Sadly, in the town centre, the Wye is now buried in concrete culverts, which we understand will require maintenance in the not too distant future. Rather than spend money on that, with no benefit to the town, we believe it makes more sense to deculvert the river and see a real, tangible benefit.
The roads between Westbourne Street and the Arch Way roundabout are currently being remade as part of the ‘alternative route’ around the town centre, which provides an immediate opportunity to greatly enhance the look and feel of the town by making it once again a ‘river town’.
To make this happen, we need to pull together, and quickly. We believe a formal decision on whether to look further into deculverting, or to abandon the idea, will be made by the Cabinet of Wycombe District Council before the end of February. Individual Cabinet members are making their minds up right now.
Please express your support for bringing back the river through town by emailing or sending a letter to all ten WDC Cabinet members. Their contact details can be found here.
You don’t have to write a long message. It’s the number of people writing that counts. Please be sure to mention that you are a High Wycombe resident.
Part 1: Deculverting the Wye: A brief history
Part 2: Enhancing the Wye: Progress so far