Depot reveal plans to open huge new Cardiff venue on the site of former Doctor Who Experience

Ted Peskett, local democracy reporter

Popular Cardiff venue Depot has revealed plans to open another huge venue in the city on the site of the former Doctor Who Experience.

Depot Warehouse Limited, the company behind DEPOT Cardiff off Curran Embankment in Butetown, is looking to open a new space in Cardiff Bay – but the plans have already been met with opposition.

An application for a premises licence by the company will be decided by Cardiff Council this afternoon.

The proposed premises, which have been described as a street food market with regulated entertainment, would be located at Tiger Yard on Heol Porth Teigr. Plans submitted appear to show that the site would contain a number of double-height 40ft containers, a raised decking area alongside a raised stage.

South Wales Police said they will object to the application unless the applicants agree to a number of conditions being attached to the license.

These include the installation of a CCTV system on site, the use of door staff, permitting the entry of under 18s when accompanied by an adult until 7pm and the maintenance of an incident log.

As well as the sale of alcohol at the premises, the applicants are seeking to gain permission to provide entertainment in the form of indoor and outdoor plays, live music, films and indoor sports.

If the license is granted, the premises will be open to the public between 10am and 11.30pm, Monday to Sunday.

The sale of alcohol and provision of regulated entertainment would take place between 10am and 11pm from Monday to Sunday.

A resident in the nearby Adventurers Quay wrote to the licensing authority to object to the application.

‘Disruption’

In a letter attached to the application, the resident wrote: “Having myself been to previous events at the existing Depot in its two most recent locations I have no doubt that this proposed new development will bring a much increased noise problem which will be detrimental to the peaceful nature of the surrounding area.

“Furthermore additional footfall and traffic will cause disruption to nearby shops and services and increased drunken behaviour will severely impact the wellbeing of neighbouring inhabitants and businesses and visiting tourists.”

The Shared Regulatory Service (SRS) has also recommended a number of conditions, including an adherence to the premises dispersal procedure, the carrying out of noise monitoring and clear signage asking customers to leave the premises quietly.

Correspondence between the applicant and the SRS revealed that both parties have agreed to dispose of a condition that would have required the fitting of a noise-limiting device.

Tiger Yard’s dispersal policy details that closing time “may cause unnecessary noise and lead to antisocial or offending behaviour”.

However, it adds that a number of control measures are in place to tackle and prevent this.

These include the use of security staff to politely encourage customers to leave the premises quietly during closing time and the designation of taxi and Uber pick-up points.

The proposed development is on the site of the former Doctor Who Experience. The once-popular venue shut in September 2017 and was later dismantled in 2019.