Cardiff Council has taken the next important step to bringing a new International Conference and Convention Centre to the city, which it is estimated will bring in around £46m a year to the Welsh economy.
In the latest budget proposals the Council has allocated £18m to progress the delivery of the project which will be a key part of the Central Business District (CBD).
This major commitment from the Council will be enhanced by money released from the successful completion of phase one of the CBD. The Council will work closely with Welsh Government and the private sector to secure the full project costs of around £50m.
The news also comes after Cardiff was recently announced as an Enterprise Zone following months of lobbying by senior politicians and officers at the Council and this could open further opportunities to release funding for the project through tax increment financing and other infrastructure funding.
The Enterprise Zone will be based around the Central Business District and bring thousands of new jobs into the city.
The budget decision follows a recent report by Right Solutions Ltd, experts in the European conference market, which confirms that a strong market exists for a Conference and Convention Centre in Cardiff, which will attract significant amounts of inward investment.
A team from Cardiff Council will now prepare an options study to ensure that the correct location for the International Conference and Convention Centre is chosen and that Cardiff secures a facility which will help drive regeneration of the city centre and secure investment for the city region and for Wales.
Cardiff Council Leader Rodney Berman said: “This commitment from Cardiff Council to deliver an International Conference and Convention Centre is a major step forward for the CBD.
“This is going to be a much welcomed facility because at present we have venues to cater for small and large scale events but there is nothing in the middle. As a result we are currently losing out on hosting major conferences to other cities.
“The new International Conference and Convention Centre will address that and be an integral part of the CBD, which in the current economic climate is going to be a massive boost for the city region, attracting new businesses to the area and safeguarding jobs.”
