Maritime Quarter
Encyclopedia
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
located immediately south of the city centre
Swansea city centre
Swansea city centre in Swansea, Wales, contains the main shopping, leisure and nightlife district in Swansea. The city centre covers much of the Castle ward including the area around Oxford Street, Castle Square, and the Quadrant Shopping Centre; Alexandra Road, High Street, Wind Street and the...
shopping core. It falls within Swansea's Castle ward
Castle, Swansea
Castle is an electoral ward and community in the City and County of Swansea, Wales, UK. Castle covers most of the heart of the City of Swansea...
. The area is bounded by Brynmill to the west, Swansea Bay
Swansea Bay
Swansea Bay is a bay on the Bristol Channel on the South Wales coast. Places on the bay include Mumbles, Swansea and Port Talbot. The River Neath, River Tawe, River Afan and Blackpill stream flow into the bay....
to the South, the River Tawe
River Tawe
The River Tawe is a river in South Wales. It flows in a principally south-westerly direction for some from its source below Moel Feity in the Old Red Sandstone hills of the western Brecon Beacons to the Bristol Channel at Swansea. Its main tributaries are the right bank Upper and Lower Clydach...
to the east and the A4067
A4067 road
The A4067 road is an A road in Wales connecting Swansea with Sennybridge. It runs in a southwest to northeast direction beginning at Oystermouth Square in Mumbles, Swansea, and continuing from there to Swansea city centre, where there is a break in the route...
to the north.
The area comprises a mixture of housing ranging from 1980s low-rise apartment blocks around the old South Dock to town houses arranged in quadrangles in the south eastern part of the area, which were built in the 2000s. The Marina, is unusual in that planning approval was given on condition that a significant proportion of the development be sold to Housing Association
Housing association
Housing associations in the United Kingdom are independent not-for-profit bodies that provide low-cost "social housing" for people in housing need. Any trading surplus is used to maintain existing homes and to help finance new ones...
s for social housing.
History
Formerly the South Dock, during the 1980s it underwent significant brownfield re-development in the early 1980s with the building of many low rise apartment blocks in the area around the South Dock. On the site of the Sainsbury's superstore, once stood the Weaver buildingWeaver building
The Weaver building was a flour mill and corn storage building in the North Dock of Swansea, Wales.The structure was built by French engineer Francois Hennebique in 1897 and was the first reinforced concrete building in Europe...
. Built in 1897 by the French architect François Hennebique
François Hennebique
François Hennebique was a French engineer and self-educated builder who patented his pioneering reinforced-concrete construction system in 1892, integrating separate elements of construction, such as the column and the beam, into a single monolithic element...
It was used for corn storage and it was the first steel reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...
building built in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Originally the city council decided to fill in the South Dock. This was done by a developer whose brother was a councillor at the local council. Later on, the same company was paid to dig out the South Dock again to create the marina. The developer is now imprisoned in Swansea Prison.
The re-excavated South Dock was laid out into the award-winning Maritime Quarter by architect Robin Campbell, then head of Environmental Design at Swansea Council. The brief was to make the area an extension of Swansea City centre, and not a separate suburb, and to work in walk ways through the overall development being created by numerous building companies. Campbell also worked in partnership with the developers to incorporate art designed by local artists into the buildings, and the creation of an observatory.
Marina
Marina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....
, part of the Swansea Marina
Swansea Marina
Swansea Marina is a marina located behind the Swansea barrage at the mouth of the River Tawe in Swansea, south Wales. Swansea Marina was awarded blue flag status in June 2005 and has been awarded five gold anchors by the Yacht Harbour Association...
complex providing berths for privately-owned leisure boats. Sailing and sea angling schools are located in the area.
In addition to the Quay Parade road bridge just to the north, there are two pedestrian bridges linking this area to the main Swansea docks
Swansea docks
Swansea Docks is the collective name for several docks in Swansea, Wales. The Swansea docks are located immediately south east of Swansea city centre. In the mid-19th century the port was exporting 60% of the world's copper from factories situated in the Tawe valley...
area - the Sail bridge and the lock bridge. The Sail bridge as its name suggests is designed to look like a sail shape. The lock bridge is a steel structure built over the Tawe barrage. The western section of the lock bridge is a swing bridge over the lock located on the Tawe barrage.
The water areas are not fully protected by railings. Local residents have often expressed concerns over the safety of the lack of railings and indeed, over the years, the marina has seen a number of people drowning after having fallen into the waters by accident.
Amenities
The headquarters of the local South Wales Evening PostSouth Wales Evening Post
The South Wales Evening Post is a tabloid daily newspaper that distributed in South West Wales. The paper has three daily editions - Swansea, Neath and Port Talbot and Carmarthenshire and is published by South West Wales Publications, part of the Northcliffe Media group. The current editor is...
newspaper is located here. Beside the Evening Post building is the Associated British Ports building
Morgans Hotel, Swansea
The Morgans Hotel is a hotel in Swansea, Wales. Describing itself as Swansea's only boutique hotel, the hotel is the only Welsh Tourist Board five star-rated hotel in Swansea, although it is only rated as four star by international standards....
, now used as a five-star
Star (classification)
Stars are often used as symbols for classification purposes. They are used by reviewers for ranking things such as movies, TV shows, restaurants, and hotels. For example, one to five stars is commonly employed to categorize hotels.-Restaurant ratings:...
hotel. Just west of the marina is a four star Marriott
Marriott International
Marriott International, Inc. is a worldwide operator and franchisor of a broad portfolio of hotels and related lodging facilities. Founded by J. Willard Marriott, the company is now led by son J.W. Marriott, Jr...
hotel. A waterside walkway to the north-east of the marina is home to a few cafes, pubs and arcades. On the far western end of the Maritime quarter is the Civic Centre which houses government offices of the City and County of Swansea council.
Located in the area are:
- National Waterfront MuseumNational Waterfront MuseumThe National Waterfront Museum, Swansea or NWMS is a museum situated in Swansea, Wales, forming part of the National Museum Wales. It is an Anchor Point of ERIH, The European Route of Industrial Heritage....
- Mission GalleryMission GalleryMission Gallery is an independent art gallery in Swansea, Wales.The gallery hosts contemporary art, painting, installation, photography and craft. Formerly St Nicholas Church for seamen, Mission Gallery was designed by Benjamin Bucknall and built in 1886. The building became an art gallery in 1977,...
- Dylan Thomas CentreDylan Thomas CentreThe Dylan Thomas Centre is an arts centre located in the Maritime Quarter in Swansea, Wales, UK.Formerly the city's Guildhall, which was originally built in 1825, the Dylan Thomas Centre was restored and refurbished to host the UK Year of Literature and Writing in 1995.It was opened in 1995 by...
- Dylan Thomas TheatreDylan Thomas TheatreThe Dylan Thomas Theatre is the home of the Swansea Little Theatre Company, an amateur dramatics company that was once patronised by the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas.-External links:*...
- Swansea MuseumSwansea MuseumThe Swansea Museum in Swansea, Wales, UK is the oldest museum in Wales. The building was built for the Royal Institution of South Wales in 1841 in the neo-classical style.-Main museum:...
- Swansea Leisure CentreSwansea Leisure CentreThe LC is a leisure centre located in the city centre of Swansea, Wales, UK. Originally Swansea Leisure Centre, the rebranded facility re-opened to the public on 1 March 2008 after a £32 million makeover...
- Swansea observatorySwansea observatoryThe Marina Towers Observatory is located in the Maritime Quarter of Swansea, on the coast of southern Wales. It is home to Wales's largest optical astronomical telescope. The building was designed by Robin Campbell in 1989 and consists of two towers, it was built with part funding from a European...
- The Environment CentreEnvironment Centre (Swansea)The Environment Centre in Swansea, Wales, is an independent charity organisation for environmental information, education and activity. Environment Centre may also refer to the building the charity is located in....
The square surrounded by the National Waterfront Museum, the old Pump House and shopping area contains a statue of Dylan Thomas
Dylan Thomas
Dylan Marlais Thomas was a Welsh poet and writer, Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 11 January 2008. who wrote exclusively in English. In addition to poetry, he wrote short stories and scripts for film and radio, which he often performed himself...
.
Meridian Quay
Meridian Quay is a £50 million high density commercial and residential development currently under construction. The development will add 291 apartments to the Maritime Quarter area. The most significant part of the development is the 29 storey tower, which will become the tallest building in Wales. There will be four smaller towers of 9/10 storeys and a few 6 storey blocks. The area in the immediate vicinity will be developed into public space, including the new Meridian Square.Swansea Point
Swansea point is a new £80 million seafront residential development, by PersimmonPersimmon plc
Persimmon plc is a British housebuilding company, headquartered in York, England, at a building called Persimmon House. The Company is named after a horse which won the 1896 Derby and St. Leger for the Prince of Wales. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE...
Homes, in the south eastern corner of the area adjacent to the riverside and the seafront. The developments consist of a number of flats and townhouses along with a public car park. The seafront promenade has been extended from the existing residential areas to the west to be connected up with a path beside the River Tawe. The most prominent feature of the Swansea Point development is the 14 storey Aurora tower located adjacent to the Tawe estuary near the Swansea Bay barrage. There are currently proposals by OpCo to construct a 5 storey 164 bedroom hotel in the land adjacent to the Aurora tower.