General Developments

Newport is in the Cardiff Capital Region so to me Cardiff is getting a new conference centre, but then I've always thought of the whole area as some sort of Greater Cardiff.

A convention centre is not an arena!

Hopefully, one will be planned on the Brains site when the south station masterplan is released this summer

Newport is in the Cardiff Capital Region so to me Cardiff is getting a new conference centre, but then I've always thought of the whole area as some sort of Greater Cardiff.

I've argued in favour of the Cardiff Capital Region on other sites, but tribalism keeps getting in the way and its so frustrating. Maybe its because such views are so entrenched that people prefer it that way.

Not sure this has been mentioned, Schooner falls:
http://www.silvercrescentdevelopments.c ... rdiff-bay/

Can't see any falls on those CGIs??!

That's a remarkably daft name even by property developer standards. Falls are waterfalls. If a schooner (ship) goes down them, that's not a very good thing at all. Did they think for a second?

Maybe it's next to a pub and they are thinking of schooners of sherry.

It's on Schooner Way which is where they get that from, never noticed Cardiff's very own Niagra there though.

Maybe there will be a small Homebase water feature in one of the gardens

Off topic but I don't know where else to put it - did anyone see How Green is My Valley on BBC1 the other night?

Jonathon Adams (architect behind the WMC) and Prof Dai Smith went toe to toe about the future of the valleys. JA's proposal was to effectively depopulate the heads of the valleys and return the land to nature, leaving smaller and higher density settlements akin to market towns. He also proposed that larger valleys towns like Merthyr, Aberdare, Ponty be centres for growth but only on the basis of greater connectivity with Cardiff, Newport etc.

Prof Dai Smith's solution was leave things as they are, the Valleys are not as bad as people think and that they should be at a vanguard of a new economics instead of falling in line with current thinking regarding city regions. His view was that significant depopulation of the valleys would have a detrimental effect on Welsh culture and identity and that, in effect, there was more to life than money.

I thought JA was by far the braver. He was taken to meet former Burberry workers to outline his proposals and as you could imagine was given short shrift by some elderly women who didn't want to be forcibly removed to Cardiff. Their solution was to build a factory for the youngsters to work at and they were not interested in why JA thought that was unlikley in a globalised economy. He also articulated what I think are some unpalatable truths - that there is a cottage industry in propogating valleys mythology and that it suits some peoples agenda to nurture historic grievances and in doing so nothing actually happens to improve economic performance.

I found myself disliking Dai Smith intensely. He went to Sardis Road to guage opinion about what the punters thought about Cardiff (not prizes for guessing what the answer was) and the Pop Factory in Porth to highlight a 'good news' story about young people getting training and employment. Easy points. He made some decent points about the need for greater integration and I think that he's right that if the valleys didn't exist Welsh identity would be changed. But his answer to the economic problems facing the valleys was to stop globalisation. He didn't say how long that would take and what happens to people in the meantime. Many people will diasgree but Dai Smith came across as deeply conservative with a small c and redolent of a peculiar Welsh cultural establishment that earns a living looking at the past.

An interesting programme but slightly depressing in a way. JA was brave sticking his head above the parapet and challenging the orthodox view. I didn't agree with everything he said but the way that he was shot down as if he was a heretic was quite informative about the current mindset.

I agree that Dai Smith was shooting fish in a barrel when he chose people to interview. I'm sure there are many people who love their lives in the Valleys but equally there will be many who don't. I don't think clearing the upper valleys is the answer but a massively improved rail system is a good way to bring those areas closer to jobs and leisure.

JA's proposal was to effectively depopulate the heads of the valleys and return the land to nature, leaving smaller and higher density settlements akin to market towns. He also proposed that larger valleys towns like Merthyr, Aberdare, Ponty be centres for growth but only on the basis of greater connectivity with Cardiff, Newport etc.

It was an interesting programme if a bit one extreme to the other

I don't agree with depopulating or effectively bulldozing the valleys, but definately see the key as having improved access to where the jobs are. The valley towns and villages are important as they do provide relatively affordable housing compared to the bigger cities.

It's the problem when you have a huge amount of housing stock in challenging locations, when the primary reason for it being there has now gone. In years gone by the population would have had no choice but to relocate, but nowadays there always seems to be a frantic struggle to bring new opportunities to hard up communities, and not always with the desired results.
I think this is why it is so vital that the "Metro" and public transport in general is made as good and affordable as possible in linking the valleys with the bigger towns and cities, as they have a wealth of affordable housing stock and it makes more sustainable sense to utilise this resource rather than to over expand cities like Cardiff.