CARMARTHENSHIRE could have a new, purpose-built building to house the archive in Carmarthen town centre if the Executive Board follows the recommendations of a report when it meets on Monday (Apr 25).
The county council has already earmarked £2m to rehome the archives, after the existing provision in Parc Myrddin had to be closed in 2014 following an outbreak of mould.
The archive is currently in the process of being professionally cleaned, and will be housed temporarily at Glamorgan Archives and the Richard Burton Archive in Swansea University.
At present, the Welsh Government’s Museums, Libraries and Archives division, and The National Archives are satisfied with the progress being made.
After members indicated a preference to retain the archive within the county, as near as possible to its former home, a list of potential sites was drawn up. The report states: “it is our firm recommendation that an extension onto the rear of Carmarthen Library is the most obvious location for the new CAS.
“With members’ endorsement, officers will progress with detailed plans and costings for the site. Initial investigations indicate that the site has sufficient capacity to accommodate all that is required, and the scheme should be deliverable within the allocated capital budget.
“The site at the rear of the Library allows for a shared front of house services, multi-purpose (and again shared use) rooms in the middle of the building, with new strong-rooms and a new library stack built at the rear.
“The sharing of facilities allows for potential savings on running costs across a few service areas and provides a joined up, high footfall, and easily accessible location for the public to use.
“The location also adds to the King Street ‘Cultural Quarter’ ethos and provides additional footfall to traders at this end of the town.”
Carmarthen Town and County Councillor Alun Lenny told the Herald that he was ‘over the moon’ when he learned about the report’s recommendations: “I’m truly excited by the preferred option for the new archives. It could hardly be more central – in the very heart of Carmarthen town,” he added.
“The plan to extend the library to house the collections in a new and secure 21st century archive is a masterstroke. Having the reference library morphing into an archive on a single site would create a fantastic research centre.
“It would make the invaluable collection of documents and books that record Carmarthenshire’s rich history and heritage available under one roof. It may also make sense to provide for the courses and other services now provided by the adjoining Further Education Centre in the new facility.
“While it was appalling that the collection was allowed to get into this state in the first place, I’m delighted that the new Plaid-led administration made building a new archive a priority and found £2m to press ahead with the scheme.”
The deterioration and temporary closure of the archive attracted strong criticism, from amateur and professional historians both local and international, and a strong campaign to save the archive was set up. Cllr Lenny acknowledged this, saying that ‘tribute must also be paid to the Friends of the Archives for their passionate concern.’
“The fact that the Save Carmarthenshire Archives Facebook page has almost 1,400 members is a clear indication of the scale of public concern and support for an archive service based in our county,” he pointed out.
In terms of benefits for the town, Cllr Lenny suggested that the preferred: “fits perfectly with the Town Forum’s plans to develop the area around St Peter’s Church as a Heritage Quarter. It would raise footfall in the vicinity, which would be good news for traders in King Street at a difficult time for independent shop owners. All in all, this sounds like a win-win.”
Dr JD Davies, the founder of the Save Carmarthenshire Archives group, was also optimistic for the archive’s future: “In many ways, this is excellent news – in particular, the location is ideal, and actually a great improvement on the old site,” he told The Herald. “Housing library and archive services in one building makes a lot of sense.
“There are still some important questions, such as staffing levels and the size of the new facility, notably its ability to cope with new material over a period of time. But on the whole, this is real and very encouraging progress.
“I congratulate Carmarthenshire County Council on making such a sensible decision, and on finally engaging positively with many of the stakeholders in the county’s archives and heritage.”
Add Comment