Butetown community cafe to be demolished despite petition

People have said they want to save "this precious community space" which has been closed for months

A community cafe in Cardiff is set to be demolished to make way for flats despite a petition against the plan.

Opponents say the Paddle Steamer in Butetown is an important meeting place for Yemeni and Somali communities.

However, Cardiff councillors have voted in favour of replacing it with 28 flats and turned down a request to include a new cafe in the block.

Saeed Ebrahim, the councillor for Butetown, said more social housing was needed to regenerate a deprived area.

The former pub and cafe - which has been closed for several months - was built during the 1960s redevelopment of Loudoun Square, which saw Victorian streets replaced by tower blocks and a new shopping centre.

Loudoun Square was redeveloped in the 1960s and again in the last decade

However, some of those buildings have themselves been replaced in a fresh redevelopment costing £13m launched in 2010, which has included new cafes and community centres.

During public consultation on the Paddle Steamer demolition plan, opponents pointed to Cardiff council's support for the Black Lives Matter movement in its decision to remove a statue of slave owner Sir Thomas Picton from City Hall.

Councillor Ebrahim said: "While I fully appreciate some residents of Butetown view the Paddle Steamer as an institution in the local community, the proposed development will provide a range of homes and will support the regeneration of a deprived community."

An architect's plan for the new block

He said there were more than 2,000 applications on the housing waiting list for Butetown.

"Many of these individuals have been on the waiting list for a number of years because they only want to live in Butetown," he added.

Daoud Salaman, chairman of South Wales Islamic Centre, said he was disappointed by the decision.

"The Paddle Steamer cafe is a remarkable place that has a strong connection to our community," he said, pointing to its use as a hub providing families with food parcels during Ramadan and the pandemic.

The decision split the planning committee with five votes for and five votes against, with approval for demolition given on the casting vote of the chairman, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.