Mixed reaction to capital’s £60m county hall

Kieran Molloy Local Democracy Reporter

The final decision has been made on what Cardiff’s new £60m county hall will look like but not everyone is happy.

The new county hall is intended to be a key part of the council’s ambition to regenerate Atlantic Wharf and the wider Cardiff Bay area.

The city’s current county hall, also in Atlantic Wharf, has been previously described as a high-risk liability for several years due to spiralling maintenance backlogs caused by worsening structural deterioration.

According to the plans, lodged by Goldbeck Construction Ltd, the development consists of a “dual-use civic ensemble” with a modern office building for the council and a “cultural destination” for the Wales Millennium centre known as “capella”.

The application reads: “The simplicity of its form reinforces its internal focus and experiential nature while the contrast between the transparent, gridded office building and the solid, self-contained theatre establishes a deliberate architectural dialogue.

“Together they reflect complementary modes of occupation: productivity and focus alongside immersion and collective experience.

“This relationship enriches the overall character of the development and broadens its appeal beyond a single user group.”

The plans also included road infrastructure works and active travel routes.

Addressing this, ward Cllr Saeed Ebrahim said: “This is not an objection to investment in Cardiff.

“Residents in Atlantic Wharf have lived through years of construction, road changes, diversions and disruptions.

“Many tell me they feel exhausted by the constant change around them.

“Too many people feel they have been expected to simply put up with disruptions because regeneration is happening around them.”

Cllr Helen Gunter, also a ward councillor, added: “It’s disappointing to see the report does not put enough weight on the impact of this application on residents living in the area.”

Cllr Jon Shimmon also criticised the application as not being accessible from anywhere outside the city centre.

He continued: “This is your once in a generation opportunity to go ‘This is Cardiff, look at us’ and you haven’t – you’ve produced a boring box.

“It’s just another office box that could be anywhere rather than a nice statement building.”

The councillor continued to call it “another missed opportunity for this council”.

This sentiment was echoed by councillors Emma Reid-Jones and Adrian Robson.

Cllr Robson said: “We are the capital city of Wales, the council needs to remember we are the capital city of Wales and embrace that and this does feel like it’s not doing so.

“There’s no real civic pride in this particular building as far as I can see.”

However, he did vote to approve the application.

In contrast, Cllr Sean Driscoll said: “I quite like the design. Call me old fashioned but that 80s-look rings with me and I think it looks fantastic.”

Cllr Peter Wong called the design “underwhelming but inoffensive”.

He continued: “I’m not so sure about the need to have grandeur built into a council building.”

He praised other aspects of the building such as the active travel provisions.

Cllr Garry Hunt said: “The fact is buildings will reflect their times and the time we are in is of this sort of development.

“If you look at the CGI presentations, it looks quite imaginative inside.”