New hub in former department store set for green light

Plans to create a new hub facility within a prominent building in Carmarthen are set to move forward after being recommended for approval.The Carmarthen Hwb is to be a centre which will bring together health, wellbeing and cultural services. It is lined up for the former Debenhams store in the town.The building was designed as the flagship store for the wider development and as such is the largest site within the wider complex with a corner glazed feature.Among the works needed is the construction of new internal partitions and finishes to create subdivided tenant spaces, the removal and creation of new internal staircases and the removal of existing internal escalators to make way for a new internal circulation space.Externally, the existing masonry walls will be largely retained albeit with some new openings to form new windows and a ventilation louvre area.The internal works do not require planning permission and therefore the application relates to the external works proposed.Acting on behalf of the county council, Asbri Planning is behind the application which has been recommended for approval.Bouygues UK is the preferred bidder for the Hwb project, which is a collaborative scheme between Carmarthenshire County Council, Hywel Dda University Health Board and the University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD). The project has been funded by the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund.The Debenhams store in St Catherine’s Walk closed in May 2021 and has remained closed ever since.