Restoration of historic theatre may cost more than double original estimate
Richard Youle, local democracy reporter
A major revamp of Swansea’s Palace Theatre may end up costing well over double the original estimate.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service understands the project commissioned by Swansea Council could exceed £17 million compared to an initial £7 million estimate in 2019. The council isn’t commenting on the figures.
The empty grade two-listed building was in a poor condition when the council acquired it from its previous owners, and safe access was limited. Restoring it has been a complex job at a time when construction costs everywhere have risen substantially.
Council officers, it is understood, have sought throughout to ensure that value for money has been achieved. The Welsh Government has provided financial support which is believed to be just under half the project cost, with the council funding the remainder.
The Palace Theatre reopened last November as an office hub and cafe, and the hope is that it will attract and support new jobs and generate additional footfall and spending in the area.
‘Exciting’
Council leader Rob Stewart said: “Our project to save and bring exciting new life to this unique and much-loved architectural treasure has received widespread acclaim.
“Our timely and decisive intervention took this 136-year-old grade two-listed building out of private ownership and transformed it from dereliction into our city centre’s first grade A office space. Before we stepped in, it had been close to being un-savable.
“Our incredible transformation project involved a great deal of specialist expertise and is now a sustainable and high-profile Swansea success story.”
The Palace Theatre, on the corner of High Street and Prince of Wales Road, dates from 1888 and has been used as a music hall, bingo hall, nightclub and for movie screenings before falling into disrepair. A campaign group, Friends of the Palace Theatre, was formed to raise awareness of its plight in the hope that it could be saved and restored.
The subsequent transformation is one of a string of regeneration projects by the Swansea Labour administration. Another one, turning Castle Square into a greener, more welcoming space with two food units is expected to start shortly. These projects require borrowing and grants.
Preserved
Features such as the decorative iron balcony, original Ebbw Vale brick and floor tiles at the Palace Theatre have been preserved. While the building is still owned by the council it is being operated by a company called Tramshed Tech, which provides flexible work space, business growth programmes, and skills and training for the creative, digital and technology sectors.
Speaking ahead of the opening last November, Tramshed Tech’s co-founder and chief executive Louise Harris described the wedge-shaped building as an iconic space and pledged to create a thriving hub.
Cllr Stewart said the restored Palace Theatre could boost the local economy by an estimated £5 million-plus every year. “TramshedTech tell us that they’ve already created a thriving new business community, validating their own investment in the Palace and contributing to Swansea’s economic growth,” he said.
One person taking a trip down memory lane when he visited the new-look Palace Theatre last year was DJ and promoter Matt Hutchinson. Recalling his DJ-ing experiences there, he said: “It was amazing. It was a venue designed to entertain. You felt like you had 100 years at least of history with you – that energy was in the walls.”
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Can we please see a detailed breakdown of the cost published online. £17m sounds a lot and I’m sure the money could be spent on more deserving projects such as repairing our crumbling roads.
The cost of everything and the value of nothing.
Sad but you could see it coming. I’ll make a prediction that this building will need a taxpayer funded subsidy every year to keep it up and running also, but who cares? After all, Swansea City Council can do what they always do and increase our council tax.
According to purplebricks, on average, the cost of building a house in the UK is around £150,000-£200,000 for a 3-4 bedroom property. So compare that with the cost of renovating an old building in Swansea at £17m …….. 85 to 113 new 3-4 bedroomed houses could be built at cost price. Wow!!! Who’s ripping who off?
Try building bespoke for that. The prices you’re quoting are for bulk building the thousands of fake tan orange identikit properties that blight our urban environment. They’re the human equivalent of chicken battery cages.
This development is unique and preserves heritage for generations. On top of that, as a small business incubator it has the potential to boost the local economy by millions every year.
Do you work for the council Larry? Old decaying buildings such as this one end up costing dearly in maintenance upkeep. If it was knocked down and a similar new building erected it would probably cost a fraction of £17m. Llanelly House in Llanelli cost £6m to renovate several years ago and since then it has had problems because quite simply it is old and decaying and no amount of remedial work will prevent that I’m afraid. You need to think with your head not your heart.
Most people bemoan the lack of heritage preservation in their communities. Reducing the built environment to short term profitability reduces humanity to the farming of economic resources. It places no value on heritage and culture, on the benefits of living in places that tell our own story rather than erasing history as though embarrassed by it. And most of these cheap replacements you tout won’t even outlive the property they’re replacing if properly restored. So it’s not even saving money if it’ll be torn down and replaced again in 20 years. And why does someone have to work for the… Read more »
Nonsense
You might’ve had a point worth debating if you’d said the money should’ve been used to build and buy more council homes to help homeless locals and New Brexit Arrivals. But instead you wanted to erase 130 years of history and trash the economic benefits of a new business incubator.. for potholes. Which, as everyone knows, will be back after 6 months.
The example I gave was just a comparison of what could be achieved with £17m. Building homes for the homeless, as you say, is another good example. I also agree with your pothole theory but the same applies to the building in question….. it will always need repairing. Like us humans, we grow old, infirm and decay until we cannot go on and it will also eventually be the fate of the Palace Theatre as it will end up being abandoned because of high annual maintenance costs. My other point is the amount needed for renovation. Don’t you agree that… Read more »
Then you’ll agree with me in the interest of taxpayer value for money we should knock down the other Palace in Westminster and replace that with a prefab office block.
Yes, knock down their ivory towers. They only deserve a tin shed on an industrial estate with a hot dog van outside with no subsidies.
Tramshed Tech must be running such a sustainable business model considering the council have given them a loan of £110k. With cheap interest.
https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/13301519/charges/m9Pamy9S7wusgeh_xxKCHJzBG6I
Swansea Council must be nearly maxed out on borrowing?