In January 2020, Wrexham Council's Executive Board voted behind closed doors to demolish Rhosddu's old Vicarage.
This was the only option on the table, despite previous offers to purchase the building being rejected by the council. No consultation about the options have taken place within the community and, until now, all discussions had been held in private.
The old Vicarage sits in the heart of the community between St James' Church and Rhosddu Spar. It's been empty for 15 years after the council declared it surplus to requirements.
The local councillor Marc Jones is calling for all options to be explored to bring the building back into use for the good of the community before any demolition takes place.
Those options include:
1. Sell it to an interested party to bring it back into use for employment or accommodation (with a clause forbidding demolition)
2. Develop it for community use (a local community group could access funds for renovation)
3. Incorporate it into any council housing development planned for the wider site.
4. If none of the above options work, demolition.
Keeping it empty for even longer is not an option, especially as the old Printworks on the other side of St James' Church has been lying idle under private ownership for a similar amount of time.
Cllr Jones said: "The executive board tried to keep this behind closed doors but have failed. Now that this matter is out in the open, I'd like the community to have their say.
"The threat of demolition still hangs over the building because the Executive Board decision still stands but assurances have been given that nothing imminent is planned. It's up to us as a community to make the case for an alternative or to find a better use for what is a very solid building with a new roof."
https://wrecsamplaid.blogspot.com/2020/02/a-future-for-rhosddu-vicarage.html
We, the undersigned, support all efforts to put Rhosddu's old Vicarage back into use for the benefit of the community.
Rydym ni, yr isod, yn cefnogi pob ymdrech i sicrhau dyfodol i hen Ficerdy Rhosddu er lles y gymuned.
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