Famous building signage that once greeted visitors on their way into Swansea has been saved from the scrap heap by Swansea Council.
The signs on the side of St David’s car park on Oystermouth Road were taken down and handed over to Swansea Museum for preservation before demolition work on the car park started.
The building is being pulled down following the recent opening of the new Copr Bay North car park and will help clear the way for future development at the prominent city centre site.
The former multi-storey car park has been a familiar part of Swansea’s cityscape for decades, but its removal marks the start of a new chapter for an area that sits between Swansea Arena, Y Storfa and St David’s Church.
Cllr Rob Stewart, Swansea Council Leader, said: “When it was announced St David’s Car park was making way for redevelopment, we had lots of requests to save the signs.
“They were part of the everyday landscape, a signal to thousands of motorists every day that they were entering the city centre and over the years people clearly developed a fondness for them.
“So before the demolition got underway, we removed the signs and they are now with Swansea Museum for safekeeping, as we’ve managed to do with other iconic features like the Swansea Devil, or ‘Old Nick’ as he’s fondly known.”
He said: The opening of Copr Bay North car park has enabled us to move on to the next stage of work at this important city centre site.
“The demolition of the car park is another visible sign of progress as we continue delivering our long-term vision for Swansea city centre.
“This is a significant site in the heart of Swansea and its transformation will help support investment, jobs and city centre activity for years to come.”
The demolition is the latest phase of work on Porth Copr, one of Swansea’s flagship regeneration projects.
Being delivered by Swansea Council in partnership with regeneration specialists Urban Splash, the scheme will bring new office, learning and commercial space to the city centre, alongside new public spaces around St David’s Church.
