Grangetown Cardiff

COMMUNITY JOURNALISM OF THE YEAR WINNER 2020 - WALES MEDIA AWARDS

This is a community website for Grangetown in Cardiff, highlighting people, business, community activities, local news and things to do in the area and linking other websites and blogs.

This voluntary project - in connection with Grangetown Community Action - is the free, independent, online presence of the long-running Grangetown Newscommunity paper, which has been distributed to 6,500 local homes at least twice a year for 40 years.

E-mail us on grangetowncardiff@yahoo.co.uk If you'd like to help, are local or would like to send any contributions for inclusion, or wish to advertise. Also if you'd like to be included FREE in our DIRECTORY,

You can also follow us on Twitter @grangecardiff and look for Grangetown Community Action on Facebook. We have a growing number of followers and are keen to encourage a social network to promote Grangetown community events, activities, issues, businesses and organisations.

EVENTS

KEEP GRANGETOWN TIDY LITTERPICK DATES

Saturday 12th April - 10am, Homesdale Street
Sat 17 May 10am - 12pm Grangemoor Park (by Cardiff Bay Retail Park)
Sat in June Grangetown Festival, Grange Gardens (details tbc)
Sat 13 July 10am - 12pm Jim Driscoll Way/Channel View Leisure Centre

Add your Grangetown event here, email grangetowncardiff@yahoo.co.uk

Open day for Grangetown art workshops

A Grangetown art studio holds its second open day for the community to showcase its work - a year after its opening.

Jo Hartwig is a Grangetown-based artist and sculptor who has run the successful Artshell community art organisation, working with local groups on art and heritage projects and site-specific installations.

But her focus over three years has been getting her Colomendy/Grangetown Studio artists' workshops off the ground.

Interrupted by Covid, the planning process finally led to seven months building work, renovating a derelict garage. The studios can be found down the back lane, between the Taff Embankment and Blaenclydach Street - close to the Penarth Road junction.

The open day on Sunday 23rd June will include a vegan food offering - and the community will be able to visit the neighbouring Fireworks Studios workshops in Tudor Lane, Riverside, who are hosting an open day on the same day.

There's a wonderful light throughout the building, with sky-lights and windows opening out what had once been a run-down workshop, riddled with pigeons.

It's already hosting spaces for 10 local artists, who range from ceramacists. photographers and video artists to painters and an illustrator. Half of them used to work from home or have moved from other shared spaces, like the Kings Road studios in Canton.

Two of the spaces are free, supported by WCVA Cymru's landfill disposals tax communities fund. This also paid for solar panelling, insulation, a bike rack and bat boxes.

Jo's only stipulation is that the artists are local. All are from the Cardiff area - four from Grangetown itself - and the furthest afield is a painter from Pentyrch on the very outskirts of the city, via Ukraine.

They occupy two floors of the converted garage workshop. In a previous life it was a bakery and a garage for ice cream vans!

"It was derelict for 12 years so we've brought it back into use," says Jo. "There's also a communal space and we've had a life drawing classes and painting sessions for people of all abilities."

Jo saw a gap for affordable, small studio space - as well as providing a community art studio space. A similar venture by a friend is already successful in Riverside's Tudor Lane, so the area could become something of an art quarter.

"Sometimes it's difficult for artists to find a space which is stable. Once they're established and successful, it can lead to landlords charging more or redeveloping," she said. "I'm really committed to this being sustainable so I want the artists to be able to walk or cycle here as much as possible and also to make use of local businesses - to shop, eat and drink their coffee."

"I live here, care about the area and there has been a lot of recent developments but not much in the way of facilities but I feel strongly it was within my capability to do something."

Maybe Jo will also find time to do some artwork herself. A least she's got herself her own quiet corner of the studios to do that just that.

Green light for £65m estate revamp

Work has started on a £65m redevelopment of the Channel View estate.

Initial demolition has started, at the beginning of the phased project which includes 81 new homes in two blocks for the elderly, with future developments including 319 more homes to replace 1970s housing and 14-storey tower block.

Councillors have reassured Channel View residents that all will be offered new homes on the revamped estate, which will see 214 existing properties - 56 houses and 158 flats - demolished and replaced.

The first phase will involve one block rising to 13 storeys, with 57 flats, and a second block with 24 more flats. Both will have communal gardens and roof terraces.

Cardiff Council is behind the regeneration proposals, which will include building over part of The Marl park, although the loss of a strip of land backing onto existing homes on Channel View Road is due to be offset by open space, communal gardens and landscaping within the new larger estate.

Some residents have criticised the communication about the proposals, although consultation started nearly four years ago. Some home-owners also expressed concern whether they would get full value for their homes. A 50-signature petition was submitted and Cardiff Civic Society objected on ecological grounds, including the loss of trees, although the development sets out planting three times as many trees as those due to be felled.

A map showing the area of The Marl needed for the development, close to the all-weather sports pitches and backing onto current housing.

Three houses in South Clive Street will be demolished to make room for a new cycle/pedestrian route, which will also connect the Ely Trail through Grangemoor Park.

The plans have been drawn up over the last three years, including a major consultation exercise with residents, which involve demolishing the 14-storey 1970s tower block due to fire safety concerns, as well as replacing 188 homes.

Properties facing "major structural problems" are among those being replaced as part of a major revamp which will see a virtual doubling in the size of the estate.The whole redevelopment will take eight years to complete but residents affected by the first phase will have to move out while the new homes are built.

The plans also involve:

Community cafe and shop, communal gardens with allotments and picnic areas, as well as a "beach" area.
A river bridge for pedestrians/cyclists linking the estate with Hamadryad Park, a new bus/cycle/pedestrian link between Channel View Road and South Clive Street and also with Ferry Road

Council tenants have been offered new homes in the Clive Street lane development but councillors Ash Lister and Lynda Thorne said they would be guaranteed the chance to move back to Channel View.

"The residents in phase one will have to move out initially so that new homes can be built, but they have the option to come back into a new property or to have a permanent move elsewhere," they said.

Those affected who own their own home are also being given the option to sell their old houses to the council and an offer of buying or shared ownership of a new property.

"The key priority of our project is to keep the existing community together and to rebuild new, sustainable, low carbon homes for the existing residents," said the councillors. "We have always stressed that we want to work with all residents to ensure that we can make this exciting development happen."

I am also surprised and sorry that the residents spoken to have anxiety. We have been consulting for the last 4 years and involved residents at a very early stage drawing up the plans. Every tenants and resident affected to has been written to a number of times. https://t.co/W5Bs31RX6O
— Lynda Thorne (@LyndaT48) June 7, 2021

Friends group for Grange Gardens

A new Friends group is being set up for Grange Gardens

The aim is similar to other friends groups, such as the one for Pentre Gardens, to help treasure the open space and encourage good use of it.

"The group will work alongside the Parks department to represent those who use the park and help make the best of our lovely gardens," said resident Mandy Atwell.

A first meeting to set up the group was held in December to discuss ideas and for people to see what role they'd like to play, large or small. Another will be held in the New Year.

Nursery school opens food box project

Grangetown Nursery School have recently opened a community food box project.

Big Bocs Bwyd, Community Food Box is a "pay as you feel" shop, where members of the community fill their bag with what they need and pay what they can, although a £1 donation is suggested.

It's been promoted with families around other local schools.

People can come along to the school in Avondale Road between 9am and 9.30am or 3.15pm-3.45pm, Monday to Friday.

Grangetown News wins community media award

Grangetown News has won the community journalism of the year award, at the Wales Media Awards.

The judges said: "A very good local publication with lots of community news which tackles issues that concern the community. It is well produced and provides the sort of information and stories that people want to read. We suspect residents look forward to it dropping through their letterbox."

We were shortlisted at the 2019 awards and received news of the 2020 award, at the online ceremony in April 2020.

Unfortunately, we have not been able to restart print editions after the Covid pandemic. In the meantime, we're trying to update this website and social media as often as possible and would welcome any help or contributions.

A very good local publication say the judges…….congratulations Grangetown Community News @grangecardiff, winners of Community Journalism of the Year, sponsored by @ITVWalesPress @JournoCharity #JCWMA20 https://t.co/uboqTthT2g pic.twitter.com/rVGnuY1pZM
— WalesMediaAwards (@W_M_A) April 30, 2021

Grangetown aerial image courtesy: National Police Air Service

Other Cardiff community websites: Cathays Danescourt Lisvane Pobol Caerdydd Radyr Roath Rumney Splott St Mellons Tongwynlais Whitchurch/Llandaff North
Grangetown Community Action and webmaster 2025. Last updated April 8th