16/10/24

Why is a new County Hall building being considered?

The current County Hall is much larger than the Council now needs. Currently the Council has 277,000 square feet of core office space, but it only needs 100,000 square feet.

The existing County Hall has significant maintenance issues. The mechanical, electrical, and ventilation systems are at the end of their operational life, making the building expensive to run. The overall maintenance liability is unaffordable.

Why not refurbish the current County Hall building instead of building a new one?

The cost of refurbishing County Hall to meet modern standards is extremely high. The estimated cost for a full refurbishment is more than £100 million, which is significantly more expensive than building a new office. Also, the running costs of the existing building are high due to its size and inefficiency, and it is much larger than the Council needs.

If the current building is bigger than needed, why not use part of the current County Hall and rent out the rest?

The building can only be retained in accordance with the existing office wings and stair cores. The retention of 2 of the 4 wings would still result in a significantly larger area than the Council needs.

The capital investment required for partial refurbishment, including retaining the north and east wings, three cores, and the committee rooms, would still be significantly higher than the cost of a new build. Additionally, the ongoing running costs for a partially retained building would be higher than those for a new, more efficient building.

Because the extent of refurbishment required, and the fact the building would still be much bigger than required, the carbon benefit of a partial refurbishment would be negligible. The building would also retain the same operational constraints as the current building compared to a new build and there would be significant disruption whilst the works were undertaken. 

Given the cost of refurbishment, it is unlikely that the Council would find a tenant to occupy the excess space because the rent that would be required to meet these costs would be much higher than the highest rents currently being paid in Cardiff. Similar to the Council, a prospective tenant could have a modern fit for purpose new building for a cheaper rent. 

Why not refurbish and use the office space in City Hall?

The cost of refurbishing City Hall's office space to meet Grade A standards and One Planet Cardiff compliance was found to be more than double the cost of building new office space. Even a minimal refurbishment to make the offices usable in the short term would cost a similar amount to new build space but would only have a short lifespan before requiring significant additional works.

The use of City Hall to meet the whole of the Council's office needs would require the use of the whole of the building including the event space which is not configured appropriately for office accommodation. The Council considered use of the existing  c35,000 square feet of office space at City Hall as a means of lowering the amount of new office space required but this was also considered too expensive compared to the new build option.  .

In that case, what are the plans for the future use of City Hall?

The front of City Hall, which serves as an Event Venue, is set to re-open once the current maintenance works are completed in January 2026. It will continue to be used for Civic Events, for example monthly Council meetings etc.

Most of the office space in City Hall has been unused for a long period of time due to the refurbishment required. The Council remains committed to securing the full long-term use of City Hall and will continue to work to secure funding to upgrade the former office area so that it can be used in the future. Work has now started to explore potential future uses and this will be reported back to Cabinet in due course.

What about the environmental impact of building a new County Hall and not refurbishing the existing one?

There will inevitably be an impact relating to the construction works involved in building a new building. However, because the new building is significantly smaller than a refurbishment of County Hall, and because the refurbishment of County Hall would require almost a full rebuild to meet Building Regulations, with only the foundations and building frame retained, the new building would still have less of an upfront impact.

The new office building will also be net zero in terms of operational activity, aligning with the Council's One Planet Cardiff commitments and net zero aspirations.

When considering the impact of construction projects the accepted approach is to look at impact over a 60 year period known as Whole Life Carbon, taking account of the upfront carbon alongside the annual operational impact.

The new build option would offer the lowest Whole Life Carbon impact because it would be smaller and more efficient to operate than the a refurbishment of the existing building. The new build delivers an overall projected saving of approximately 26,230 tonnes of CO2 compared with refurbishing the existing building.

How is a new building the cheapest option?

The cost of refurbishing the existing County Hall to meet modern standards is extremely high. The estimated cost for a full refurbishment is over £100 million. This includes addressing significant maintenance issues, upgrading mechanical, electrical, and ventilation systems, and ensuring compliance with modern Building Regulations. In contrast, the cost of constructing a new building would be half that. The existing building is more than 2.5 times the size of the proposed new building.

The new building will be designed to be highly energy-efficient, incorporating modern insulation, heating, cooling, and ventilation systems. This will significantly reduce the operational carbon footprint and running costs compared to the existing building even if it were to be refurbished. A building that is 2.5 times bigger will have to pay significantly more rates for example, and that is a major part of the annual running costs.

Why not move to an existing office somewhere else in Cardiff?

There is no existing office space available in Cardiff that meets the Council's requirements.  Therefore, a move to an existing office building elsewhere in Cardiff could only really be considered as a short-term option. To make it a long-term option, a similar upgrade to the existing County Hall building would be required and this would be expensive. 

As a short-term option, it would still cost a similar amount to building new, without the benefits of a bespoke new building. This is because running costs would still remain significantly higher than a new building and there would be rent to pay, which would also be subject to inflation. At the same time, if would in effect delay the decision to build new and would inevitably increase the cost of the long-term solution due to the impact of inflation. For example, a five-year delay to the existing new build project is estimated to result in an increase in the capital cost by c£15m.  That equates to an additional £3m p.a. over 5 years.

The decision to build a new County Hall is also part of a broader strategy to regenerate Cardiff Bay. The new office building is a key component of the Atlantic Wharf regeneration scheme, which aims to stimulate wider private sector investment in the area.

How much money will be saved by moving to a new County Hall?

The cost of refurbishing the existing County Hall to meet modern standards is estimated at over £100 million. In contrast, the cost of constructing a new building is significantly lower, with a projected capital investment half that amount.

The new building will be designed to be highly energy-efficient, incorporating modern insulation, heating, cooling, and ventilation systems. This will significantly reduce the operational carbon footprint and running costs compared to the existing building. The estimated running costs for the new building are projected to be half those of a refurbished County Hall.

What are the economic benefits of building a new County Hall for the wider area?

The new County Hall isa key component of the Atlantic Wharf regeneration scheme, which aims to stimulate wider private sector investment in the area.

The decision to build a new Council office as part of the proposed Cardiff Live venue would be a major vote of confidence in the site which should act as a catalyst for private sector investment in the Atlantic Wharf regeneration scheme and the wider Cardiff Bay area, attracting new businesses, residents, and visitors.

There is also the opportunity to look at social housing which could help tackle the housing emergency.