Minutes

Councillor A Morris asked:

When the Newport Centre was built in the mid 80’s it was built as a “Centre of Excellence” Members and officers visited many locations countrywide to compare various aspects. Great care was taken and no expense spared to select the very best building materials available including the handmade bricks. 

1. Why did the building deteriorate to the point it has to be demolished?

2. Who was responsible for the maintenance of the parts of the structure that declined beyond repair?

3. How long has it been known that the building was beyond repair?

Councillor D Harvey responded:

This information has been provided in the cabinet report issued last December.

The extent of the issues with the roof, relate to a fundamental flaw in the design of the building. This was identified as part of an intrusive inspection carried out in 2020.

As made clear in the report the decision to build a new leisure facility was not solely due to the maintenance requirement, but also due to the design of the building no longer complying with modern accessibility or environmental standards.

Budgets for asset maintenance are set as part of the annual budget process and voted on by full council.