PLANS have been announced to open a new cafe in one of Cardiff’s most popular parks and now the city council is looking for someone to run it.
Cardiff Council said on Wednesday, June 4 that it is advertising for someone to convert the former caretaker’s bungalow at Cefn Onn Park in Lisvane into a cafe and enter into a lease agreement to operate it.
Cardiff Council’s cabinet member for culture, parks and events, Cllr Jennifer Burke, said the move is the next step in a wider ambition to improve facilities at the Grade II listed park.
Cllr Burke said: “Parc Cefn Onn is such a beautiful space, and a lot of work has been done over the years to attract more visitors including improving access, upgrading toilet facilities, and restoring its historic features.
“Finding an operator to establish and run a park café is the next step in improving facilities and encouraging even more people to get outdoors and explore one Cardiff’s slightly less well-known green spaces.”
The two-bedroom bungalow is located close to the main park entrance and the space includes a small outdoor area which could be used for seating.
Full details of the opportunity will be available towards the beginning of July on Cardiff Council’s property website and on Fletcher Morgan’s website.
As a consequence of the proposal, legal notices have been published advertising the ‘disposal’ of 172.5 square metres of land at Parc Cefn Onn.
‘Disposal’ is a legal term which, in this case, refers to the granting of a lease.
All facilities will remain in the ownership of Cardiff Council.
Cefn Onn Park is also designated as a country park and provides access to the footpath network of Caerphilly Mountain.
The upper section of the park, also known as the Dingle, was originally laid out 100 years ago by former owner, Ernest Prosser, who was the director of Rhymney Valley Railway.
The park’s website states that the site is a “rich haven for wildlife” and contains a collection of native and exotic trees.
The Dingle contains a summerhouse and pond, which were constructed to alleviate the symptoms of the tuberculosis suffered by Prosser’s son, Cecil.
A woodland garden was also laid at the southern end of the park after 1944.
One of the last major upgrades made to the park came as a result of £454,000 of National Lottery funding that was awarded in 2014.
The money was used to improve access at Cefn Onn by adding a new boardwalk, upgrading toilet facilities and creating more car parking spaces for disabled visitors.
A scheme which allowed less able bodied visitors to access all-terrain mobility scooters was also launched as a result of the funding.
