The County Hall ( cy, Neuadd y Sir) is a municipal building located beside the disused Bute East Dock in the
Atlantic Wharf area of
Butetown
Butetown (or ''The Docks'', cy, Tre-biwt) is a district and community in the south of the city of Cardiff, the capital of Wales. It was originally a model housing estate built in the early 19th century by the 2nd Marquess of Bute, for whose t ...
,
Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...
. Formerly the home of
South Glamorgan County Council
South Glamorgan County Council ( cy, Cyngor Sir De Morgannwg) was the local government authority that administered the county of South Glamorgan, Wales from its creation in 1974 until its abolition in 1996.
History
Local government in England and ...
, it is now the headquarters of
Cardiff Council
Cardiff Council, formally the County Council of the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Cyngor Sir Dinas a Sir Caerdydd) is the governing body for Cardiff, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. The principal area and its council were established ...
.
History
Design and construction
Following the implementation of the
Local Government Act 1972, which broke up
Glamorgan County Council
Glamorgan County Council was established in 1889 together with the administrative county of Glamorganshire under the Local Government Act 1888. The first elections to the council were held in January 1889. The council was abolished under the Local ...
and established
South Glamorgan County Council
South Glamorgan County Council ( cy, Cyngor Sir De Morgannwg) was the local government authority that administered the county of South Glamorgan, Wales from its creation in 1974 until its abolition in 1996.
History
Local government in England and ...
, the new county council was initially headquartered in a building on
Newport Road, Cardiff. After finding this arrangement inadequate for their needs, the new county leaders decided to procure a purpose-built county hall: the site they selected was derelict land on the west side of Bute East Dock.
The building was designed by J. R. C. Bethell, the County Architect for
South Glamorgan
, Government= South Glamorgan County Council
, Status= Non-metropolitan county (1974–1996) Preserved county (1996–)
, Start= 1974
, End= 1996
, Arms=
, HQ= ...
, and built between 1986 and 1987.
This was at a time when the surrounding area consisted mainly of post-industrial dereliction. Hence the construction of the new building has been described in ''Buildings of Wales: Glamorgan'' as a "remarkable gesture of faith
ythe South Glamorgan County Council". It is seen as representative of a new form of civic building that does not dominate its surroundings by its size, or formal language, to the extent that it could "even
ea deliberate abregation of the arrogant assertiveness of the late C19, expressed across the water".
It was officially opened by
Lord Callaghan in October 1988.
Development
On 1 April 1996, under the
Local Government (Wales) Act 1994
The Local Government (Wales) Act 1994 (c. 19) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which amended the Local Government Act 1972 to create the current local government structure in Wales of 22 unitary authority areas, referred to as ...
, South Glamorgan County Council was broken up and
Cardiff Council
Cardiff Council, formally the County Council of the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Cyngor Sir Dinas a Sir Caerdydd) is the governing body for Cardiff, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. The principal area and its council were established ...
became the local authority in the area and took over County Hall. In September 2007, former Council chief executive Byron Davies unveiled plans aimed at large efficiency improvements and bringing in additional funding, which could include selling County Hall, the
Cardiff Heliport and up to 40% of
Cardiff Bus
Cardiff Bus ( cy, Bws Caerdydd) is the dominant operator of bus services in Cardiff, Wales and the surrounding area, including Barry and Penarth. The company is wholly owned by Cardiff Council and is one of the few municipal bus companies to ...
. In 2013 the potential sale and demolition of County Hall was again raised, as part of Cardiff Council's plans to reduce their property commitments. It was suggested an indoor arena and convention centre could be built on the site.
Architecture
County Hall is generally three storeys in height, but rises to four and five storeys in places. The distinctive shallow pitch roofs are of black slate. In plan the building is formed around a central courtyard.
It is the main headquarters of
Cardiff Council
Cardiff Council, formally the County Council of the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Cyngor Sir Dinas a Sir Caerdydd) is the governing body for Cardiff, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. The principal area and its council were established ...
and is home to many of the council's departments. Internally, the principal rooms are the council chamber and committee rooms.
The
Cardiff Council
Cardiff Council, formally the County Council of the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Cyngor Sir Dinas a Sir Caerdydd) is the governing body for Cardiff, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. The principal area and its council were established ...
Camera Control Room is also located at County Hall, where operators use
CCTV to monitor locations across the city in an attempt to stop
fly-tipping
Illegal dumping, also called fly dumping or fly tipping ( UK), is the dumping of waste illegally instead of using an authorized method such as curbside collection or using an authorized rubbish dump. It is the illegal deposit of any waste onto l ...
and other criminal activity. County Hall is also marketed as a venue for conferences, weddings and other events. It boasts an in-house catering team, a large bar for refreshments and function suites to accommodate up to 300 people.
References
External links
Cardiff County CouncilCardiff County Hall website
{{Politics and Government in Cardiff
Buildings and structures in Cardiff
Politics of Cardiff
County halls in Wales
South Glamorgan
Government buildings completed in 1987