New apartments at former Wellington YMCA building completed
The upper floors of the historic former YMCA building at 1 Walker Street in Wellington have been handed over to Telford & Wrekin Council following a major refurbishment programme.
The building, which once hosted a World Championship snooker match, has been fully restored to create nine upper floor apartments and maisonettes.
A ground floor retail space at 1 Walker Street is still under construction and will be handed over once fit out works have completed.
Demand for the apartments has been extremely high with nearly all of them being snapped up by tenants who are set to move into their new homes next week.
Restoration of this landmark building, which started last October, is part of Telford & Wrekin Council’s ongoing commitment and investment into the regeneration of Wellington.
The apartments on the upper floors have been developed for Nuplace, Telford & Wrekin Council’s wholly owned housing company.
The Council successfully secured funding from central government to deliver 1 Walker Street and a series of other projects in the Wellington conservation area to boost the retail, leisure and hospitality offering in the town.
These include the acquisition and restoration of Wellington’s historic market and the further refurbishment of Wellington Orbit to enhance these assets as key community and cultural hubs.
Contractor Pave Aways has led on the project at 1 Walker Street and the creation of the apartments has helped to breathe new life into this historic building in the heart of Wellington town centre.
This Wellington project is part of a wider Investing in Telford and Wrekin programme which is seeing significant investment and transformation in other areas of the borough including Station Quarter in Telford Town Centre and the Theatre Quarter development and remodelling of Telford Theatre in Oakengates.
Councillor Richard Overton, Telford & Wrekin Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Highways, Housing and Enforcement, said: “We’re delighted that after a year- long project to redevelop this historic building, new living space has now been handed over by the contractor for residents to move into.
“The upper floors of this historic building have been empty for more than 15 years but after we successfully received government funding to redevelop them it’s fantastic to see the apartments and maisonettes which have been created.
“They each provide modern, stylish Nuplace living spaces for people in the heart of Wellington but the building’s original features and windows have been retained as we recognise the importance of its history.”
Graham Wynn, Chair of Telford Towns Fund Board, said: “Given the historic importance of this proud building which is at the heart of Wellington town centre, this has been a creative and inspiring project to create town centre living and modern retail space, which will breathe new life into the centre of Wellington.”
Steven Owen, Managing Director at Pave Aways, said: “The handover of the new apartments marks a milestone in bringing this much-loved Wellington landmark back into meaningful use.
“Work on the ground floor fit-out is progressing well and the finished result will help showcase the former YMCA building as a standout feature on Wellington’s historic high street.
“Alongside this scheme, we’re proud to have launched our Pave Aways Community Support Fund to help boost employability in Wellington, supporting community-led projects that help people build skills, confidence, and sustainable routes into employment.”
