About THI

RESTORING A VICTORIAN GEM

When D. R. Thomas visited the site in 1857, the only buildings he saw were one cottage and a toll bar. Colwyn Bay was built using the best nineteenth century materials and workmanship to establish an exciting resort venture in a splendid coastal setting. Broad streets of tall elegant buildings with magnificent shop fronts with spacious busy offices and apartments above and ornate cast iron canopies and street furniture, the best Victorian style

The Colwyn Bay Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI) is a five year programme of heritage led regeneration funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), Welsh Government, Conwy County Borough Council, and Cadw. The aim of the HLF programme is to conserve, enhance and regenerate conservation areas suffering from economic decline. The project will run from 2012-2017 and is part of the wider Bay Life suite of regeneration initiatives for the Colwyn Bay area and waterfront.

The main aim of the scheme is to make possible the continued viable use of the buildings which make up the special architectural character of Colwyn Bay. Priority will be given to the repair of historic buildings and to bringing derelict and under used historic buildings back into use. The scheme will have a total “common fund” of £2.7m from which grants will be made available towards the costs of repair, conservation and enhancement works to eligible buildings. All historic buildings within the THI area are eligible for grant however priority will be given to those buildings identified as ‘critical’ or ‘priority’

The 4 Critical projects that are to be targeted as part of the THI are:

The Judge and Jury Pub on Station Road
The Central Pub
A&A Cash and Carry
Matthews and Sons Hardware store

Eligible grant works include:

Structural and external repairs to historic buildings in use
Repair and conversion for new uses of vacant or partly vacant historic buildings
Authentic restoration of architectural features, including historic shop fronts

Additional supporting initiatives include:

The THI programme also adopts a strong element of community engagement which seeks to establish and support active heritage groups in the town, and broaden the appeal of heritage within a community. This is addressed through a series of additional initiatives

Heritage skills awareness aimed at improving traditional building expertise and raising awareness of conservation specific issues and techniques
Community initiatives to help encourage an interest in heritage and its value including events designed to instl a sense of pride in the town and improve footfall in the commercial centre.