£41m town centre transformation takes shape

Richard Youle, Local Democracy Reporter

Soft play, adventure golf, electric go-karts and a 24-hour gym are taking shape as part of a £41 million town centre transformation.

The major redevelopment in Carmarthen will also bring NHS services, university teaching facilities and a council customer service hub under one roof.

The work is taking place inside the former Debenhams store at St Catherine’s Walk Shopping Centre, which is being converted into a new development called Atriwm.

Scaffolding has become a familiar sight around the building, but work inside is now revealing how the former department store will be divided between leisure, health, education and council services.

Soft play equipment has already been installed on one floor alongside what will become indoor adventure golf, a TAG Active arena, a small electric go-karting track and a cafe.

Elsewhere, a 24-hour gym is taking shape with spin and activity studios, while a range of health treatment rooms, including dental facilities, are also being created.

Health and social care training facilities will include a viewing room where trainees can be observed in a life-like hospital ward, with a kitchen and living room setting on the other side.

Carmarthenshire Council, which is behind the project, expects work to be completed in early 2027.

Cllr Hazel Evans, whose cabinet portfolio includes regeneration, said: “It’s going to be amazing.”

Asked by the Local Democracy Reporting Service whether she believed the investment would be worth it, she said: “When you consider what will happen here and what footfall it will draw into the town, it is a long-term investment and worth it.

“There’s nothing worse than a redundant building.”

Atriwm will be occupied by Hywel Dda University Health Board, the University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD) and the council.

The council will move its customer service hub into the building and operate the gym and children’s activity area.

Health board services will include community and children’s nursing teams, children and young people’s therapies, and dental, sexual health, phlebotomy, podiatry and mental health services.

Health board director of strategy and planning Lee Davies said: “This integrated approach will make it easier for people to receive the support they need, enhance outcomes, and help our population lead healthier lives.”

UWTSD will use space in Atriwm to support its BSc sports and exercise therapy programme.

A university spokeswoman said: “The space will provide an additional teaching facility that gives students access to a modern clinical environment closer to service users.”

Around 20 students and five members of staff are expected to use the facilities, with teaching focused on clinical education, injury rehabilitation and community health and wellbeing.

Rising costs

The council bought the building after Debenhams’ high street business went into administration.

The purchase was funded as part of the Plaid-Independent-led authority’s successful 2021 bid for UK Government money through the former Levelling Up Fund.

A redevelopment scheme was approved the following January, a construction contract was awarded in 2023 and work began in 2024.

But the project’s rising cost and delays have attracted criticism from the council’s opposition Labour group.

One councillor called for an inquiry earlier this year after previously unidentified structural problems were discovered.

Some of the building’s wall facades are now being rebuilt and new wall ties installed as a result.

The council was initially awarded £19.6m from the Levelling Up Fund based on what it described as a conceptual design in 2021.

It said the scope of the project subsequently increased significantly, including additional healthcare facilities and the activity centre, while structural problems and construction-sector inflation also pushed up costs.

The council estimates the remedial structural work alone will cost £4.2m.

It said the original independent building survey had not identified significant structural problems other than with the roof, although it described such issues as a recognised risk when converting large buildings.

A new roof has now been installed, carrying a 63-panel solar array as well as mechanical and electrical equipment.

Apprentices

The overall £41m cost is being met through £20.19m from the UK Government, £11.458m from Carmarthenshire Council, £9.045m from the Welsh Government and just over £309,000 in partner contributions.

The council said principal contractor Bouygues UK had subcontracted packages of work locally, with 31 apprentices involved in the project and 21 “new entrant” jobs created.

It said the scheme had become larger and more ambitious than originally envisaged.

In information published about the project, the council said: “While challenges have emerged during delivery, the objective remains to create a major town centre asset that will service communities across Carmarthenshire for decades to come.”

---

Get more trusted Welsh news

Choose Nation.Cymru as a preferred source in Google News to see more of our journalism.