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Basingstoke Canal set for makeover
The Hampshire stretch of Basingstoke Canal is set to be repaired and upgraded after Hampshire County Council (HCC) agreed to plans to invest £870,000 in the scheme.
HCC and Surrey County Council own the 32-mile (51.5km)-long canal, which was built during the 18th century and restored during the 1980s and early 1990s. According to HCC, the canal needs repair work to be carried out as a result of the "natural ageing process" and to safeguard it for the 1 million visitors it attracts each year.
HCC leader Ken Thornber is due to decide whether to approve the investment plans on 14 April, which will be phased over three years based on the findings of condition surveys.