Bid for funding for Market Arcade
Posted on Friday 26th August 2016
Newport City Council is set to make a bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund towards a project to restore the historic Market Arcade.
A first stage application is being made for Townscape Heritage funding to enable a detailed project to be developed over a year.
Councillor John Richards, Newport City Council's Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Investment, agreed a bid should be made by the deadline of 1 September. HLF is expected to make a decision in January 2017
"We have long recognised that the Market Arcade is in need of refurbishment and some tender loving care but until recently the multiplicity of ownership has prevented any major
progress being made on improvements to the arcade.
"I am pleased that the majority of owners have now expressed a willingness to work with us and, as a result, we have been able to explore the possibility of finding external funding for the arcade.
"I would stress that this is still at a very early stage and we will have to wait and see if this first stage bid is successful. However, this is a significant step forward and the positive response the proposed project has already received from owners and the wider public is extremely promising.
"Enhancing this historic structure will improve the environment for those who live in, work in and visit the arcade but it will also have a wider benefit for the city centre and complement the regeneration work in that part of the city centre."
Originally called Fennell's Arcade, it was created in 1869 as a key pedestrian route between the railway station and the then new provisions market.
As well as seeking funding for a restoration project, the council is also pursuing its statutory obligations to prevent further deterioration of the arcade.