Plans to transform a vacant old park keeper's hut in Cardiff into a cafe have been approved.
The popular and well established Waterloo Tea is set to take over the small 10-square-metre building in Waterloo Gardens and turn it into a snack bar serving food and drink.
The historic hut is estimated to have been built around 1912.
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The cafe will be takeaway only, with food and beverages served through the hut's window, and there will be no public access into the building.
However, there will be a separate section of the building which will function as a public toilet. This will only be accessible to the public during operating hours to "ensure the amenity of nearby residential occupiers is protected".
Full planning permission was granted on Monday, February 21, and black shutters have already been installed on the hut.
The small Edwardian public space is a registered historic park and garden, developed on land donated to Cardiff by Lord Tredegar.
Due to the historic nature of the park and hut, Cadw, the Welsh Government's historic environment service was consulted.
They had no objection to the development, as "the only external change to the structure included in the application is the installation of roller shutters to a door and a window", which they noted was necessary for "security reasons".
The council's lead heritage and design officer also approved the plans, commenting that the character of the park would be "enhanced". They suggested that an external seating area should be applied and noted that this is already being "considered".
The application was submitted by Mr Kasim Ali, the director of Waterloo Tea, on December 17 2021.
The new takeaway cafe will be open from 8am to 6pm from Monday to Thursday and on Sunday. On Friday and Saturday it will be open from 8am to 7pm.
The new development comes after major flood defence work that saw Waterloo Gardens redeveloped from February 2017 to Autumn 2018.
Waterloo Tea was set up in 2008 at the original premises in Penylan.
This new development will be the sixth outlet for the company. They already have another store in Penylan, as well as outlets in the city centre, Lakeside and Penarth.
They serve a selection of the world's finest teas and have launched a new all-day menu, featuring dishes like a panko chicken burger, Welsh rarebit and chai porridge.
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