The year 1987 saw the commencement the biggest regeneration in Welsh history. The Cardiff Bay Development Corporation was set up by Margaret Thatcher's government to transform the capital's declining docklands.
The ambitious plans of the corporation, which dissolved in 2000, changed the once-derelict area of the city beyond recognition, turning it into an attractive destination for tourists and residents – the vibrant Cardiff Bay we know and love today.
But the development was not without its controversies and even its most ardent supporters would not claim that it has achieved everything it set out to. Despite promises that the regeneration would create job opportunities for local people the surrounding communities like Butetown seem to have derived little benefit from it.
Read more: The grand promises of Cardiff Bay: Success and failure in the biggest regeneration in Welsh history
Critics of the development said it had failed to engage and involve locals, only reinforcing "psychological barriers" between the Bay area and the Butetown community, which is one of Cardiff's most socio-economically disadvantaged areas and also has a large ethnic minority community. Speaking to WalesOnline in 2018 Butetown councillor Saeed Ebrahim said "a big opportunity was wasted in [not] joining up what was existing and what was new". Now Cardiff Bay is set to undergo another major transformation.
Plans have been approved for a new indoor arena at the bay and the wider redevelopment of Atlantic Wharf. The 17,000-capacity indoor arena will be built on the current site of the car park at County Hall and part of Schooner Way. Construction work is due to begin this summer with the arena due to open in early 2025.
Councillors on the planning committee granted permission for the arena on March 16 as well as the wider redevelopment with 890 flats, hotels, museums, offices, a replacement Red Dragon Centre, tourist attractions, a multi-storey car park with 1,300 spaces, and more. You can read more about those plans here.
Currently only the arena and a 182-bed hotel behind it have full planning permission with the rest of the wider development given only outline permission. This means further planning applications will be made in future, with full details, for each part of the redevelopment.
But locals are concerned about history repeating itself and wonder what, if any, benefits this second regeneration will bring their community. The developers behind the first phase of the development said up to 2,000 jobs will be needed for the construction phase, and the arena alone is set to create up to 1,000 jobs. This is something Cllr Ebrahim is particularly hopeful for so that young people from the area can access "high-quality jobs" and people can become " far more prosperous in their local community".
"The [former] Cardiff Bay development was an utter failure from a community perspective," he said. " I have expressed and put it into the proposals that they should not replicate what the Cardiff Bay [Development] Corporation did but I’ve expressed for the community to be included."
Cllr Ebrahim may be hopeful but Ahmed Hassan, the founder of community football club and education provider Tiger Bay Youth Development, remains sceptical and believes that the benefit will be "for the city, not the community".
" I remember when Mermaid Quay was being built, and Lloyd George Avenue and Dumballs Road, and all the developments that have happened," he said. "It feels like Butetown is being boxed in and the local people have never really benefited in terms of work, in terms of apprenticeships, so it feels to me that it’s just another one. It's not the first time they've built around us."
Mr Hassan, who was born in Butetown, believes the problem lies in a "class issue" and says complaints from locals fall on deaf ears. Harking back to the perceived injustices of the previous development he said: "I remember with the barrage they promised financial benefits to the families affected and a lot of things were put in as sweeteners – like nothing solid, nothing that’s going to lead to longevity [for the community]."
He said that lots of parents from the community approach him looking for apprenticeships for their children but it's difficult to secure any. " You’d think with all these developments that are happening that opportunities would be created with all these big firms coming in but it doesn’t feel like they give us a second look in," he said. "I’ve got parents on the phone who I'm ashamed to phone back because apprenticeship people are running me ragged, making false promises – there's a little bit of light but then it goes back."
Mr Hassan believes a "tangible" solution needs to be found such as allocating a proportion of jobs or apprenticeships created by the redevelopment to the community. "[We need something] where we can say we've got 20 apprenticeship schemes allocated to the community and we could speak to the parents and tell them more about it – what it consists of, where it will lead, and the routes after," he said.
While he admits there has been a "massive shift" over the years in terms of young locals going to university he believes apprenticeships are crucial for those who aren't academic. " We want kids to aspire higher than a call centre, security guard, or customer service. T hat’s what some people want and fair play to them but we don’t want kids to think that all the girls and boys are there."
He continued: "I think apprenticeships would be the start. That’s how you change areas from working class to middle class eventually – it's getting these trades in, getting kids educated, and aspiring for bigger and better things. Otherwise everybody's been going to happy working in warehouse."
Mr Hassan also claims he submitted a freedom of information request to Cardiff Council in the last year looking at the proportion of people working in Butetown and the Cardiff Bay area who actually lived in Butetown as well as the proportion of ethnic minorities in the workforce in Butetown and the Cardiff Bay area. He claims the numbers were "ridiculously low".
A spokesman for the developers behind the first phase of the development has assured that "the consortium has committed to working with local schools and colleges at the appropriate time to offer apprenticeship opportunities to suitable candidates". Meanwhile the council said has "stipulated that all the new developments will create jobs and opportunities for local people not just in the construction phase but also in helping to run these initiatives when they are completed."
Yaseen Ahmed, a 20-year-old student who attends a college right next to Butetown, was also doubtful the development would "target people living in the area". Like Mr Hassan he pointed to the importance of offering opportunities to and supporting the young people in the area who he said are "the backbone of future Cardiff."
But he is concerned that if jobs are offered to locals by the development it will be those which don't require qualifications and this will "bypass the actual problem" in the community rather than fostering ambition. " I have loads of friend in Butetown. I went to St Cyres [School] – everyone there came from Grangetown or Butetown. In that area they’re only known for being a footballer or drug dealer. I was influenced to be like that as well – that's the type of mentality they have. It hurts me so much," he said.
He continued: "L ook at Cardiff, its ethnic minority – half the working men are taxi drivers. Look down City Road, corner shops and barber shops – they're the easiest way out, no education is needed. That’s what these kids are growing up in – so if you’re giving them a job like cleaner that’s what they’re going to be growing up in."
Mr Ahmed also believes more needs to be done to tackle the "stigma" of women from ethnic minority communities getting qualifications and working. Meanwhile Ibrahim Alansi, the owner of Yemen Gate Mini Supermarket in Loudoun Square, said the development itself "sounds good" and hopes it will enliven the area. But he also thinks unless the development creates jobs and facilities for locals it will "create more difficulty" for them. He is particularly concerned about parking availability with the influx of residents and visitors to the area.
Having lived in the area since 1998 Mr Alansi said the area has changed for the better since Cllr Ebrahim was voted in. But he still believes more should be invested into Butetown, such as new facilities, and implored the council to ask locals what they need – especially the youth and elderly.
"I'd like them to c ome and see what’s going on in the area – talk to people, elderly people, who spent their life working hard in the factories. They have difficulties now, a lot of illnesses from the work," said the 44-year-old. "[I want them] to see what this area needs," he continued, adding: "It's time for the council not just to look into the arena, hotels, and things."
The council said it has spent around £25m on regeneration projects alone in Butetown in the last 10 years including a £13m redevelopment of Loudoun Square, a new health centre, a community centre, a pavilion, a new health centre, new schools, and new playgrounds.
A spokesperson for the consortium behind the arena development and phase one of the regeneration said: “During the construction phase of the arena and the wider masterplan it is anticipated that up to 2,000 jobs will be needed. These jobs will be across both the construction sector and the infrastructure required to support that number of workers. Whilst a main contractor is still to be appointed for the construction it is anticipated that, where possible, the main contractor will employ local workforce and create employment and training opportunities through a partnership with Cardiff Council’s Into Work Advice Service.
“When operational the arena is set to create up to 1,000 jobs across a variety of roles including technical, front of house, food and beverage, and security among others essential for the operation of a world-class entertainment venue. The operation of venues like the arena benefit greatly from local knowledge and it is anticipated that a great number of these roles will be filled by the local community.
“The consortium has committed to working with local schools and colleges at the appropriate time to offer apprenticeship opportunities to suitable candidates.”
A Cardiff council spokesman said: “In the past 10 years the council has invested heavily in services, infrastructure, and housing that has directly benefited the residents of Butetown.
“This programme of improvements has included a £13m redevelopment of Loudoun Square that included a new health centre, retail units, and affordable housing, and new schools, including Butetown’s first Welsh-medium school Ysgol Hamadryad. We are also about to start on a new £13m sheltered housing scheme on Bute Street specifically for local people.
“In addition we have created new playgrounds, worked with partners to deliver a 3G all-weather pitch at Canal Park, provided multi-use gym areas, the Butetown Community Centre, the Youth Pavilion, and upgrades to footpaths and seating areas. On regeneration projects alone we have spent around £25m.
“Looking to the future we will continue to invest in schools, such as St Mary the Virgin CiW Primary, and we recently announced an exciting range of new development proposals that will transform the Cardiff Bay area, including Butetown, into one of the UK’s premier tourist and visitor destinations.
“Importantly this will be a partnership between the council and a number of developers but we have stipulated that all the new developments will create jobs and opportunities for local people not just in the construction phase but also in helping to run these initiatives when they are completed.
“We also feel that better transport in and out of the area is key to its future prosperity and we and the Welsh Government are investing in major upgrades of the transport network to include safe cycle and walking routes from the city centre to the Bay, a Metro extension including a new station north of Loudoun Square, and the potential for a transport hub at Pierhead Street and connections to Cardiff's proposed Crossrail project and the new Cardiff Parkway station near St Mellons. More parking facilities are also part of this plan.
“We are aware, of course, that Butetown has historically been one of Cardiff’s most deprived neighbourhoods but our investment here in recent years and in the months and years to come is intended to improve this area for Cardiff as a whole and its residents in particular.”
