A derelict former pub and houses in Newport are set to be demolished as part of a multi-million-pound regeneration of one area of the city.
Permission has been granted by Newport City Council to demolish the old Friendship Inn in Ringland as well as six properties at Park Homes, Cot Farm Circle.
The plans form part of a £24m regeneration of the Ringland area which includes proposals to build 170 homes and a new shopping centre to replace the old Ringland Circle which adjoins the pub.
The first phase of the development, consisting of 55 homes on the Cot Farm estate in Hendre Farm Drive across the road from Ringland circle, was completed last June.
According to the 2019 Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation (WIMD), through which the Welsh Government measures deprivation levels, Ringland was among the areas of Newport with one of the highest rates of deprivation. Read more about how the pandemic has affected deprived areas of Newport here.
The Friendship Inn was once a popular bar in the area but has been closed for a number of years. It has since been targeted by anti-social behaviour including in June 2021 when a fire broke out at the site. Gwent Police later said it believed the fire had been started deliberately.
Another former pub in the same road, the Open Hearth, was also plagued with anti-social behaviour following its closure including being set alight three times in one week before it was demolished last year.
Demolition of the Friendship Inn and houses is expected to take place by Wye Valley Demolition in the coming months with the rest of the shopping centre set to be redeveloped at a later date subject to planning permission.
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