‘12 businesses going to the wall, and 20 jobs lost’
That’s the warning from Maesteg indoor market traders - but council officials say they WILL press on with closure plans:
THE 135-year-old Maesteg Town Hall needs £1m worth of repairs and will close if nothing is done.
That was the stark message from senior Bridgend council members on Tuesday who said the minerfunded building was letting in water and had both wet and dry rot.
At a cabinet meeting they decided to plough ahead with the development of a controversial regeneration plan for a socalled cultural hub, which will see the closure of the indoor market.
The plan would see it replaced with a new library to replace the town’s current library, which is split over two sites, bars and cafes and performance space.
But the authority has admitted there is no guarantee it will secure the £4m of European funding it said it needs for the scheme, which could mean the market hall in the basement of the town hall is left empty once the 12 stall holders have left.
And despite the cabinet approving an amendment to the proposals that commits the council to work with indoor market traders on listening to their con- cerns and finding alternative premises, the many traders and market customers who attended the meeting voiced their deep disappointment.
“I felt that they made light of the market traders’ plight – 12 businesses going to the wall and 20 jobs lost,” said David Evans, deputy chairman of Maesteg Market Traders’ Association after the meeting.
“No one in our group opposes the regeneration of the town hall. We are all in favour of that and renewed investment in our library. We totally support those two actions.
“However, we feel that they could have sourced different funding where it’s not predicated on the removal of the market traders.”
The corporate director of communities for Bridgend council, Mark Shephard, told the meeting that even though the authority has allocated £1.3m towards the regeneration project, it would not be able to afford all the work necessary without external funding.
He said they hoped to get that from the Europe- an-funded Welsh Government Buildings of the Future fund.
He said the council had been advised by both the Welsh Government and the Wales European Funding Office to proceed quickly with their proposal so the work could be completed by the end of 2018, which would give them the best chance of securing European finding while it lasts following the Brexit vote.
“There is no surety that funding will be available beyond that point,” said Mr Shephard.
“The fund that we are proposing getting up to half of the money for the development is a competitive bidding process.
“You have to comply with what those funds are seeking and they are seeking transformational legacy, viable buildings and regenerative proposals that increase footfall not just preserving what is already there.”
He said they hoped the regeneration would address all of the hall’s structural issues so it could be handed over in its entirety to be run by the Awen Cultural Trust – a charity it set up last year to take over the
management of the county’s cultural facilities – and run without a need for a subsidy.
He added that bars, food and function facilities would be included in the new building.
A new glass atrium could also be added as could more performance space.
A redeveloped town hall would also be fully accessible for disabled people and would incorporate much-needed new public toilets for the town.
Mr Shephard said people should also not think of the library in “traditional terms”, but as more of a “vibrant space” which encourages people to come into the town.
He added that without investment the town hall would face “incremental closure”.
Councillor Ceri Reeves, the member for Maesteg west and the cabinet member for communities, said: “This is our only chance to get this right.
“We are trying to save the town hall here and we need the strongest proposed bid to get the grant funding.”
Caerau councillor Phil White, also a cabinet member, addressed traders stating: “I do understand that tension and anxiety levels are quite high, but we don’t take decisions lightly, we take them very seriously.”
He warned them there could be no further delay in the project.
“The alternative to not proceeding with this project is the unthinkable,” he said.
“Please work with us to ensure that the heritage of the town hall is there for another century in Maesteg.”
And, also addressing the public, Councillor Hywel Williams said: “I want you to go back to Maesteg and tell the people of Maesteg that this council is doing its damndest to save this building for another 135 years.
“We owe this to our grandchildren.”
Speaking after the meeting, Mr Evans said the traders’ association now hoped to secure the backing of three county councillors who could call in the cabinet’s decision for further scrutiny by a committee.
He accused the cabinet of “appeasement” and said the fact remained that with 12 stall holders in the indoor market and only three vacant units in the outdoor market, it is likely people will lose their businesses.
“We are being sacrificed for the sake of this cultural hub.”
Market customer Dan Casey, 69, from Maesteg also attended the meeting.
Afterwards, the retired engineer said: “I use the market quite a lot and I am not on my own. A lot of older people tend to use it, but if it’s lost now it’s also lost for the youngsters.”