Optimism as demolition begins on fire-hit High St buildings

CITY centre buildings destroyed in a “catastrophic” fire more than a year ago are being demolished.

Large sections of Bangor’s High Street have been closed to traffic after a fire broke out above a Japanese noodle restaurant in December 2019.

The fire caused extensive structural damage to Noodle One and Morgan’s clothes shop next door, with both buildings being held up by scaffolding ever since.

Plans to demolish the buildings (pictured above) were submitted and approved last spring by Gwynedd Council. The delay in work starting was partly due to the need to squeeze in a 200-tonne crane to carry out some of the work. But the council announced the 13-week week.

From Monday and expected to take seven weeks, the first phase will see the strengthening of the road to support the crane.

Once that is in place the second phase, expected to take another six weeks, will see the demolition of the buildings and allow reopening of the road.

The council’s head of environment, Dafydd Wyn Williams, said: “We fully acknowledge the impact and disruption this situation has caused.

“I am therefore very pleased we have reached a situation where work can now begin on the site, with a view of reopening this section of the High Street to traffic as soon as possible.

“We project will be was asking to start for this updates and greater certainty on the timetable as the work progresses.”

Both buildings had to be demolished because of the risk of a “potential collapse”.

Council officers acknowledged the ongoing road closure was of “great concern to local business”.

Welcoming the development, in a joint statement Arfon MP Hywel Williams and MS Siân Gwenllian said: “’We are very pleased to see work starting at long last.

“We have been pressing for months for the work to begin, working alongside County and City Councillors and the Mayor of Bangor to push things forward. We hope the work progresses swiftly.

“High street trade has suffered significant disruption over the past year. They now need our full support.”