CONWY councillors have heard how ‘there is hardly anybody in’ the council’s flagship £58m Coed Pella building in Colwyn Bay. The authority could now look at ways of selling its grade-two listed Conwy-based Bodlondeb HQ.
A survey of staff working from Coed Pella in 2023 found that only 176 desks of the 520 available were occupied by council staff. The highest number of staff present at the site at any given time was 215 – way below the figure required for the building to be considered half full.
Bodlondeb’s statistics were even worse in terms of occupancy. Of the 219 desks available, the average number of staff present was 57 – just over a quarter full.
Bodlondeb’s figures were even worse. Of 219 desks available, the average number of staff present was 57, just over a quarter full.
When Coed Pella opened in 2018, Conwy closed its offices at Colwyn Bay’s Civic Centre and moved staff into the new building as well as from offices at Rhos-on-Sea’s Dinarth Road and Mochdre.
But then COVID hit, and the council’s flexible ‘Workwise’ policy was tweaked to allow most staff to work from home, the council adopting a ‘hybrid’ working approach.
The shocking numbers were discussed by councillors at today’s (Monday’s) finance and resources overview scrutiny committee.
Cllr Andrew Wood spoke on behalf of the council’s asset management task and finish group, which was challenged with updating councillors on Conwy’s potential disposable assets.
After updating councillors with the latest figures, Cllr Wood said Conwy must look at potentially disposing of assets.
“That (the figures) tells us we have plenty of capacity and we need to look at the democratic process of disposing of, possibly, a building we all love but maybe is costing us half a million pounds a year,” he said.
Cllr Paul Luckock then said the council needed to act and close Bodlondeb as quickly as possible.
“Our residents are way ahead of us on this, way ahead of officers and councillors in wanting to get these buildings shut and staff in Coed Pella,” he said.
“I was in Coed Pella on Friday, and there was hardly anyone in there. That is the reality.”
But Conwy councillor Sian Grady said the council needed to think carefully before shutting Bodlondeb.
“It can’t be a knee-jerk reaction. It has to be looked at over a long space of time. It can’t be decided in the short term,” she said.
“Bit of a history lesson, if the council needed money, going back many years, they were going to take down the Telford Bridge (to save finances), and it was only for the fact a few people fought it and the public raised the money that it is still here today.
“Because Conwy is important to the county as a whole, I believe Bodlondeb is part of that.”
She added: “If Bodlondeb is to go, we need to think carefully about what it is going to be.”
A debate then ensued as to whether the current task and finish group was politically balanced, and the council voted to meet urgently to discuss how the group would be taken forward.
A report on the council’s assets will come before the scrutiny committee on May 22.
