{"id":41209,"date":"2017-12-11T11:10:26","date_gmt":"2017-12-11T11:10:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jomec.co.uk\/altcardiff\/?p=41209"},"modified":"2017-12-11T11:10:26","modified_gmt":"2017-12-11T11:10:26","slug":"cardiff-coal-exchange-restored","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/altcardiff\/2017\/12\/11\/cardiff-coal-exchange-restored\/","title":{"rendered":"In depth: Restoring Cardiff’s mining past"},"content":{"rendered":"

From hotels and heritage to cafes and campaign groups, Cardiff\u2019s industrial past is being well and truly remade for the present<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"coal

The grandeur strikes you the second you enter the building. It\u2019s not just spattered here and there \u2013 it\u2019s endemic to the entire space. The floor is a dark parquet, the walls richly ornamented and panelled, the seats a plush leather that could swallow a person whole. To describe it merely as glamorous would be doing a severe disservice.<\/p>\n

Step back two years, however, and the Coal Exchange is a mess, its floors covered with asbestos and dry rot. The building had been out of use since 2013, closed due to structural safety concerns. Then in February last year, the Liverpool-based hotel firm Signature Living<\/a> acquired it for the nominal sum of one pound; although according to Mike Johnson, now director at the Coal Exchange, this does not tell the full story.<\/p>\n

“No-one wanted it, but everyone recognised its value and significance.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cIt was in a state of limbo. No-one wanted it, but everyone recognised its value and significance,\u201d he explains. \u201cSo yes, Signature Living were given it for a quid, but however you calculate the GDP, it was worth minus seven million pounds.\u201d<\/p>\n

The significance of the deal cannot be understated. Cardiff Coal Exchange<\/a> was once the centre of a worldwide coal industry that reached its zenith in the early 20th<\/sup> century. Despite closing its doors in 1958, the building has become a famous symbol of the city, and it was hoped that any new purpose would feature the local community at its heart.<\/p>\n

\"hotel,

Yet it is now a lavish hotel, and arguably looking better than it has for decades. The head of Signature Living, Lawrence Kenwright, has made no secret of his mantra to \u2018find an old building that\u2019s in trouble, tap into its DNA and put a social beacon on top of it.\u2019 It\u2019s an attitude that quickly won over Mike.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving emotional and business links to the place for 25 years, of course I was bothered about who was coming in,\u201d says Mike, the Exchange\u2019s caretaker from 2003-13. \u201cAfter I\u2019d looked very carefully at what Signature Living were doing, I thought they were worth backing. Didn\u2019t know whether they could succeed or not, but Lawrence\u2019s intentions were good.\u201d<\/p>\n