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Cardiff Council Update: 24 May 2024
Here is your Friday update, covering:
- New Lord Mayor chooses food bank to benefit from her year in office
- New plans to address urgent and pressing housing challenges
- Clare Gardens to benefit from investment
- Cardiff Music Board seeking new members
New Lord Mayor chooses food bank to benefit from her year in office
Cllr Jane Henshaw has officially taken up her role as Cardiff new Lord Mayor.
She was presented with the official chain of office at a ceremony in County Hall today, during Cardiff Council's annual general meeting.
Formerly the Deputy Lord Mayor to Cllr Bablin Molik, Cllr Henshaw has chosen Cardiff Food Bank as her nominated charity, a cause close to her heart.
"Through my work on the Council, I have seen at first hand the great work the staff and the volunteers at the charity do, how they are changing lives in these difficult times and helping people out of poverty. It is a sad fact of life today that they exist at all, of course, but I am determined to help Cardiff Food Bank in any way I can this year."
New plans to address urgent and pressing housing challenges
The housing emergency in Cardiff continues and the need for more permanent and temporary affordable housing remains an urgent and pressing issue.
The Council remains committed to delivering rapid solutions to tackle the unprecedented demand for homelessness and housing services in the city and has developed a set of new proposals to create around 250 new affordable homes in the city, as quickly as possible.
Some property and land purchase proposals, approved by Cabinet to help alleviate pressures when the authority declared a housing emergency in the city in December, are now no longer available so new plans have been brought forward to increase the availability of accommodation at pace.
At its meeting yesterday (Thursday, May 23) Cabinet approved recommendations to buy two commercial properties - one which could be converted for residential use to deliver 79 new homes, while the second building would deliver 20 new family apartments, ranging from one to four bedrooms units.
A vacant development site close to these two buildings is also available and would allow the Council to rapidly expand its successful modular homes programme to create around 150 homes for temporary or long-term family accommodation.
Clare Gardens to benefit from investment
A new community garden, exercise area, and social space will be introduced to Clare Gardens in Riverside, alongside meadow planting, and a range of other improvements.
Funded by Welsh Government's Transforming Towns Programme and the UK Government Shared Prosperity Fund, the works are due to begin in June and will include:
- A new community garden.
- A new table tennis table.
- New picnic tables.
- A new bodyweight/calisthenics exercise area.
- A new social space with seating.
- Re-surfaced paths and walking loop.
- New meadow area and other new planting.
- Two new gate entrances, one on each corner of Clare Street.
- New tree planting and existing mature trees retained.
The improvements are designed to complement the play area and sports facilities in nearby Despenser Gardens.
Cardiff Music Board seeking new members
Cardiff Music Board are seeking three new members to help develop and support the city's music scene.
Established in late 2019, Cardiff Music Board plays an important role in delivering Cardiff Council's music strategy and has been integral to bringing the 6Music Festival to Cardiff, the delivery of a series of industry sessions during Sŵn Festival, putting on a series of open air gigs at Cardiff Castle to support local independent venues during the pandemic, the launch of ‘Little Gigs' - a new music talent development project in Cardiff schools, securing new premises on Barrack Lane for popular independent bar and venue, Porters and the recent announcement of the Cardiff Music City Festival, which will take place this autumn.
The expertise and commitment of board members has been invaluable to support the music sector in challenging times and the call for new faces comes after some members extended their initial terms of membership, to provide continuity after the pandemic.
