Up for discussion at this month’s full council meeting was the £20million renovation of Porthcawl’s Grand Pavilion.
The Grand Pavilion closed on Monday (5th February) for up to two years. The renovation is mainly funded via the UK Government’s “Levelling Up Fund”, with Bridgend Council contributing £2million.
Cllr. Graham Walter (Lab, Porthcawl East Central) sought assurances for residents living near the Pavilion about noise and nuisance during the work.
Cllr. Richard Granville (Lab, Cornelly) also asked what lessons had been learned from the Maesteg Town Hall project.
The Maesteg Town Hall renovation project has been beset by delays and cost overruns.
Refurbished pavilion will be a “jewel on the coast of Wales”
Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Cllr. Rhys Goode (Lab, Nantymoel), told councillors that consultation with nearby residents has been extensive and will continue. Before and during work, air pollution will be monitored to determine what changes, if any, occur.
Contractors will also be subject to a management plan signed off by the council to set out working arrangements to keep disruption to a minimum.
Cllr. Goode hoped the council would support the project, stating that the finished Pavilion would be a “jewel on the coast of Wales”.
Lessons already learned from Maesteg Town Hall project
Nonetheless, the Cabinet Member accepted there are lessons to be learned from Maesteg Town Hall, which “had not gone according to plan” due to circumstances beyond the council’s control.
There was a commitment to a full review of Maesteg Town Hall to determine what could be done differently with future projects.
Some changes to the Pavilion project have already been made in light of what’s happened in Maesteg.
Cllr. Goode noted that the Grand Pavilion is another Grade II listed building which has had a “hodge-podge” of work added to it over decades – similar to Maesteg Town Hall.
So one change is that two contracts will be awarded. The first contract would strip the building back to ensure issues that were discovered late on in the Maesteg project – like dry rot – would be uncovered earlier.
The second contract to complete refurbishment will then be awarded with a clear understanding of the required tasks.
