The future of two important heritage buildings in Cardiff Bay will be safeguarded for future generations as Cardiff Council’s plans to secure ownership have been given the go-ahead.
The Merchant Place/Cory’s Buildings occupy a prominent position in Cardiff Bay directly opposite the Wales Millennium Centre, but both have been empty and boarded up for over a decade.
Cardiff Council plans to buy the Grade 2 listed buildings and will seek grant support to support the costs of refurbishment and regeneration.
Cabinet Member for Investment and Development, Cllr Russell Goodway, said: “We’ve seen both of these important buildings lying empty for far too long now. They stand at the gateway to the inner harbour area opposite one of Wales’ most iconic buildings the Wales Millennium Centre.
“The Council has been approached by a number of potential development partners and we are therefore confident we will be able to fully recover our initial outlay in acquiring the buildings. Our intention is to market the opportunity as soon as possible to attract a developer to inject pace into the completion of the project.”
“The buildings sit on the crossroads between the Inner Harbour and the Atlantic Wharf area, which will become the focus of our attention as we seek to bring forward the next phase regeneration of Cardiff Bay. We have an ambition to establish Cardiff Bay as a premier UK visitor destination, to attract more visitors to Cardiff and to provide jobs and opportunity for local people. Delivery of the new 15,000 capacity Indoor Arena is the start of these plans.”
At this stage the council remains open minded about proposals for the buildings, which could include a mixture of offices, residential, hotel and food and beverage.
