Outline planning nod given to Swansea city centre revamp

Swansea Council’s planning committee has approved an outline planning application for the Swansea Central development site, a 125,000m² scheme consisting of land north and south of Oystermouth Road.

Plans for land south of the road, on an existing car park, include a 3,500-capacity digital indoor arena and conference centre above a new multi-storey car park, as well as a hotel of up to 13 storeys.

New shops, restaurants, cafés, landscaped public areas, cinema and car parking spaces are among the plans for the former St David’s shopping centre site north of Oystermouth Road. A pedestrian bridge across Oystermouth Road is also planned to link both sides of the development.

Rivington Land is managing the development of the overall scheme for Swansea Council.

Martin Nicholls, the council’s director of place, said the approval of outline planning consent for this scheme was “a major step forward” for the regeneration of Swansea city centre.

“It means we can now especially push on with our plans for the site that’s south of Oystermouth Road, which will form the first phase of the overall development.

“Working in partnership with Rivington Land and their design team, detailed design work will now take place on the planned indoor arena, hotel, multi-storey car park and pedestrian bridge. We also soon hope to appoint an indoor arena operator as the southern development site’s anchor tenant, who can work with us on the design and specification of the attraction,” he added.

Nicholls said that once specific plans were in place, planning consent would again be needed, “but we’re looking to start work on the southern site of the overall development by the late spring or early summer of 2018”.

Other imminent work will include a detailed travel plan and the appointment of a hotel operator.

David Lewis, chief executive of Rivington Land, said: “The Swansea Central scheme will considerably enhance the city centre’s shopping attraction, while also giving local residents and visitors a much improved dining, leisure and recreational experience.

“We’re continuing to press ahead with the development on the council’s behalf, with the aim of delivering the venue and hotel on the south site in 2020, and completing the whole development in 2022.”