THE multi-million-pound regeneration of Barry waterfront has passed another milestone.
The completion of the £2m redevelopment of Barry Pumphouse is part of an overall £230m waterfront project which aims to bring Barry docks back to life.
The Pumphouse, which was built in the 1880s, is a grade II listed historic building and is one of the last hydraulic pumphouses in Wales. Its 42 metre high chimney is a local landmark and a reminder of Barry’s rich dockyard history when it was built to give hydraulic power to the coal drops, lock gates and swing bridges in the docks.
Although the docks declined in the twentieth century with the collapse of the Welsh coal trade, the Vale of Glamorgan Council and the Welsh Government invested £1.6 million into the Pumphouse in 2012 to save it from dereliction.
It has now been redeveloped with a further £2 million by DS Properties. The new Pumphouse includes restaurants, offices, a gym and 15 apartments.
It sits at the heart of Barry’s Innovation Quarter and will be surrounded by other social projects such as a water sports centre which is opening at Barry’s former Number One dock and will be run by the Ocean Watersports Trust.
Persimmon Homes are also bringing private and affordable housing as part of the Waterfront housing development.
Vale Assembly Member Jane Hutt said: “The redevelopment is very impressive. It deserves an award. The attention to detail and the finishing touches are incredible.”
“The transformation of the building is utterly unbelievable.”
