Maesgeirchen is a large

housing estate A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex or housing development) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Popular throughout the United States ...

on the edge of the city of Bangor in Gwynedd, north-west

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, with roughly 4,000 inhabitants. It is the third-largest single housing estate in Wales behind

Gurnos Gurnos is a community of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough in Wales, United Kingdom. It consists principally of the Gurnos Estate. The population in 2011 5,280. Background The Gurnos Estate is a large housing estate established by Merthyr Tydfil Coun ...

, Merthyr Tydfil, the second largest and

Caia Park Caia Park () is a suburb and community in Wrexham, Wrexham County Borough, Wales. Created in 1985 after a boundary commission review of the four community areas within the city, of which, Caia Park occupies its east, with the others being Acton, ...

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...

, which is the largest with nearly 12,000 inhabitants. The estate is located away from Bangor's main spread, being separated by

Bangor Mountain Bangor Mountain (Welsh: ''Mynydd Bangor'') is a scarp face of a hill below which the city of Bangor in Gwynedd, Wales, sits. Though not a mountain in the true sense of the word it is so-called because of the way it rears up behind Bangor and ap ...

. The name of the estate is often shortened to a simpler "Maes-G" in casual use, by residents of both the estate and the city. North it goes over Bangor Mountain towards the city and south it goes through the nearby

Llandegai Llandygái (; ; ; also Llandegai) is a small village and community on the A5 road between Bangor and Tal-y-bont in Gwynedd, Wales. It affords a view of the nearby Carneddau mountain range. The population of the community taken at the 2011 ...

industrial estate. Recently there have been major environmental works throughout the river area including walkways, paths, and picnic areas designed for use by pedestrians and wheelchair users. The estate also boasts its own residents' organisation and 'communities first' division which is run by locals. It has a

community centre Community centres, community centers, or community halls are public locations where members of a community tend to gather for group activities, social support, public information, and other purposes. They may sometimes be open for the whole co ...

(Ty Cegin, built with National Lottery funding as a Healthy Living Centre and later taken over by the local Communities First Partnership following cessation of five years of lottery funding), It used to have a social club, which closed in 2014, although plans were made to demolish it and replace it with a

Costcutter Costcutter Supermarkets Group is a business based in the United Kingdom and Ireland primarily operating as a symbol group supplier to various independently owned convenience shops and off-licences. It has operations in the United Kingdom, the ...

convenience store in 2020.

History

It was originally constructed in the late 1930s, with more homes being added after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and in recent years. It was named after the farm Maes-y-geirchen which settled near Queens Avenue. In 2002 the estate was fitted with CCTV, which covers most streets, In 2003, the local council-owned pre-war homes on the estate underwent an expansive home-improvement scheme funded by the council, which saw them all fitted with double-glazing and central heating, as well as maintenance and modernisation work to both the interior and exterior of the buildings.

Transport

Path between the Maesgeirchen Housing Estate and the Llandygai Industrial Estate - geograph

Bus services into the estate until 2006 were provided exclusively by

Arriva Buses Wales Arriva Buses Wales ( cy, Bysiau Arriva Cymru) is a bus operator providing services in northern Wales and Chester in northern England. It is a subsidiary of Arriva UK Bus. History Crosville Motor Services was formed in 1919 and operated serv ...

, but starting in 2006 services from

Padarn Bus Padarn Bus was a bus company based in Llanberis, Gwynedd. It operated 21 routes in North Wales plus three summer services in Snowdonia National Park. Many of its vehicles and routes were acquired when it merged with larger company KMP. The o ...

commenced following a request by residents unhappy with Arriva's service, Following Padarn Bus ceasing operations in 2013, services returned to be exclusive to Arriva.
The estate has only one road entrance and exit, via "Maes-G Hill" (official road name: Penrhyn Avenue), which gives the residents of Maesgeirchen a strong sense of community. There are also numerous un-made footpaths leading to and from the estate; one called Lôn Felin Esgob (meaning "Bishop's mill lane") is an old highway with some of the paving still in place.

References

External links

Maesgeirchen and Tan-y-Bryn Residents ' Association
*{{oscoor gbx, SH588716 Bangor, Gwynedd Neighbourhoods in Gwynedd Housing estates in Wales