City eyesore to be demolished

DEMOLITION work at a city centre eyesore will start in early 2019, it has been confirmed.

St David’s House, near Cardiff Central Railway Station and the Principality Stadium, will make way for a new public square and an office block at the Central Square regeneration scheme.

Many of the leases at the building are coming to an end and the 14 tenants have been informed of the demolition timetable, developers said yesterday.

While a planning application has not yet been submitted, the aim is for the new public square to have a statue in honour of a woman who has played an important role in the promotion of the city of Cardiff and Wales.

Meanwhile Tesco, one of the largest tenants at St David’s House, could end up taking up space in one of the retail units on the ground floor of the new BBC Cymru Wales HQ, which is currently being built.

Alternatively, it may find space at the Interchange scheme, which will also house a new bus station.

Both schemes are within the wider Central Square scheme.

The building’s largest tenant is Arriva Trains Wales, which last month announced it has pulled out of the race to run the next Wales & Borders rail franchise from next October next year.

Demolition work on the 120,000 sq ft building will be carried out by main contractor Sir Robert McAlpine.

The contractor is currently working next to St David’s House, building a major new office which will serve as a hub for UK Government offices in Wales.

HMRC will occupy most of the 12-storey building, which will be one of 13 regional tax centres across the UK.

More than 3,600 HMRC workers will be based in the Gensler-designed building.

It will also be the new home for the Wales Office, which will relocate from its current offices at Caspian Point in Cardiff Bay.

While a lease deal has yet to be finalised, the building is also expected to be occupied by the Department for Work and Pensions.

The building will be ready for occupancy in 2020.

Central Square is being developed by Rightacres Property, which recently acquired St David’s House and the whole of the north of Wood Street from Cardiff Council – excluding Six Park Street, which is home to the South Wales Echo.

St David’s House had been acquired by the council back in 2013 from investor Albemarle.

The proposed 180,000 sq ft building next to the public square could be occupied by other UK Government offices.