Exciting projects set for Swansea in 2022 and beyond
Swansea's multi-million pound transformation into one of the UK's best cities to live, work, study and visit is set to make even more progress this New Year and beyond, thanks to a series of major projects.
Completion of the city's new £135m Copr Bay phase one district is among the projects residents and businesses can look forward to, with Swansea Arena due to open its doors in March.
Arena acts already announced include John Bishop, Alice Cooper and The Cult, Jersey Boys and Katherine Ryan. Other features of Copr Bay include a 1.1-acre coastal park with plenty of new greenery and water features.
Also soon due for completion is a £3m transformation of Wind Street into a more family-friendly, all-day destination. New paving has been introduced there, along with new flower beds, street furniture and other additions to add colour and vitality.
Main construction work has also now started on a major new office development at the former Oceana nightclub site on The Kingsway that will provide space for 600 jobs in the tech, digital and creative sectors once complete next summer.
Swansea Council is leading on the development of all these schemes, along with a number of other projects that are set to take major steps forward. These include:
- Progress of a Castle Square Gardens overhaul scheme, which will feature more greenery, new water features and new places to eat, drink and meet when complete next year
- An aim to hand over a key part of the historic Hafod-Morfa Copperworks to world-class Welsh drinks brand Penderyn, which will feature a distillery and visitor centre
Cllr Rob Stewart, Swansea Council Leader, said: "An enormous amount of progress took place last year on Swansea's redevelopment throughout the pandemic.
"This means schemes like Copr Bay phase one and Wind Street's transformation will soon be complete for the benefit of our residents and businesses, but that's just the start of an on-going regeneration story with many more schemes set to take major steps forward in 2022 and beyond.
"As well as our plans for Castle Square Gardens, the former Oceana nightclub site and the Hafod-Morfa Copperworks, progress this year will also include the development of more detailed proposals for our Shaping Swansea development sites including the Civic Centre and the former St David's Shopping Centre site.
"Everything that's either complete, on-going or in the pipeline will combine to create more jobs, high-quality facilities and opportunities for local people, while acting as a catalyst for even more investment."
Other schemes being led by the council include bringing new life to the historic Palace Theatre building on High Street. Due to re-open next year, this project will save an architectural gem and bring exciting new-style workspace to the city centre.
The council will also forge ahead with its plan to deliver a super-convenient new community hub in the city centre's former BHS/What! building. Once open next year, it will offer residents swift access to key services from across the council and other organisations.
Progress is also anticipated on private-sector led plans to transform the city's historic Albert Hall on Cradock Street into a live music and entertainment venue, as well as dedicated new spaces for lifestyle businesses and offices.