Proposals to enhance City Hall’s status as a cherished public building will go before the city council’s cabinet next week (Wednesday, 12 November) for approval.
The plans have already been discussed by the Council’s Scrutiny Committee who urged the council to be ‘ambitious’ and explore how the building can be more energy efficient while encouraging a high level of engagement with residents on the future use of the Grade II listed building.
Councillor Carli Harper, cabinet member for finance and major projects, said: “I would like to thank members of the Scrutiny Committee for their valuable input. We are looking at ways to make City Hall more energy efficient, in fact one of the major reasons for us to push ahead with our plans to make City Hall fit for the future is to address its running costs which are costing the council around a £1 million a year.”
The plans include:
- Creating flexible workspaces
- New public areas on the ground floor, and civic spaces on the first floor
- A new ‘Civic Living Room’ will provide a public space for meetings, events, talks, and exhibitions
- Better accessibility for people with disabilities
- Enhancing and making better use of the building’s lightwells to enable more exhibitions and events
- Workspace Modernisation – which will support agile working, improve space efficiency, enhance wellbeing, and encourage collaboration
The report said its plans would also increase footfall in the city centre boosting the economy by at least £53mil. Council officers are seeking a further £1mil to take the project forward to the next stage to obtain listed building consent.
As part of the detailed plans for the refurbishment of City Hall the Council will develop the heating and cooling strategy for the building to improve its energy performance while preserving its heritage.
Cllr Carli Harper added: “We believe these proposals will preserve City Hall’s heritage, boost the city centre economy, make it a more modern, flexible and accessible place for the public, while providing a shovel ready scheme for any outcome of the Local Government Review.
“Doing nothing is not an option. It’s vital we move now to secure City Hall’s iconic status for the rest of the century.”
If cabinet gives the go-ahead, the next stage will be funded from council reserves and will pay for a professional team to take forward the submission of listed building consent which will include architectural fees and the practical development of proposals.
