Town Hall regeneration should ‘just be the start’ for Welshpool’s future prosperity

Creating a Welshpool town centre fit for generations to come could be sparked by the major project to regenerate the town hall, with the lead consultant saying more ideas can inspire future prosperity for the town.

With concerns over the lack of banks and several retailers operating in the town centre mounting, Richard Lewis, Director and Architect of Hughes Architects based in Berriew Street, said successful initiatives such as ‘I Love Newtown’ which inspired Powys’s very first Place Plan in the town, could be the way forward.

The practice is already working with Welshpool Town Council with ideas to renovate and regenerate the Town Hall on High Street. The proposals would not only enhance its architectural heritage but would also widen opportunities for community use.

“There’s been some debate about the current economic issues affecting Welshpool’s town centre, including the number of chain stores and banks that have left the community. This was a similar issue in Newtown more than 10 years ago and the ‘I Love Newtown’ initiative helped inspire ideas and enthusiasm to regenerate it,” said Richard.

“It’s fair to say it was the enabler to the Newtown Place Plan, the first of its kind in Powys. The Place Plan was developed by the town council through wide public engagement in economic, planning, social and other areas. This is now used not only to guide the town council and its policies but also wider planning policies and applications in the community.

“We worked closely with the community a decade ago to create visual ideas and inspiration that was key to this and it could well be one way of inspiring ideas for the future of Welshpool’s town centre.”

The practice is already working with several businesses in the town in addition to the town council. They have been working on projects involving the Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns Programme with grants available for the transformation of town centre buildings.

The most recent work has been the design and planning application for the expansion of The Angel public house on Berriew Street.

The plans include a restaurant. It has been backed by the town council and the planning application will now be considered by Powys County Council’s planning committee.

Richard said they had also been working closely with Welshpool Town Council on the Town Hall plans and were keen to engage further on wider community matters, as well as on the remodelling of the existing tourist information centre.

“This is our community and it’s important for us all to be involved in supporting its future prosperity both socially and economically.”