Plans unveiled for a £45m redevelopment in Caerphilly Town Centre have been slammed by Councillor Charlotte Bishop, leader of the Plaid Cymru group.
Councillor Charlotte Bishop, who represents Abertridwr, has called for a rethink from the Labour-run Caerphilly County Borough Council, saying its scheme ignores the character and heritage of the town.
The 1.27 acre council scheme includes an 80–100 bed hotel, 48 residential apartments, a flexible event space for conferences & weddings and eight new food & retail units.
But Councillor Charlotte Bishop said: “Caerphilly deserves better than this. What’s being proposed opposite the castle isn’t thoughtful regeneration — it’s a generic, out-of-place development that ignores the character and heritage of our town.
“Public money is already being spent on buying up property and producing designs without even having a developer on board. That’s not strategic planning — that’s gambling. It feels like playing Monopoly with taxpayers’ money.
“At a time when residents and local businesses are under real pressure, how can this be justified? This is one of the most important locations. It should enhance the setting of the castle, respect the existing aesthetics of the town, and create something people are proud of — not something that could be dropped into any high street anywhere in the UK.
“We should be aiming for:
- High-quality, heritage-sensitive design
- Independent businesses and meaningful local use
- A development that complements, not competes with, the identity of Caerphilly
Regeneration should lift a place up — not dilute what makes it special.
“Pause. Rethink. Deliver something worthy of Caerphilly — not a roll of the dice with public funds,” urged Councillor Charlotte Bishop.