Carmarthen Guildhall to be converted to restaurant

Carmarthen Guildhall closed in May 2016

Planning permission has been granted to convert part of Carmarthen's historic Guildhall into a restaurant.

The ground and part of the first floor of the Grade I listed building will be used, although the crown court chamber will be preserved.

The Guildhall closed as a magistrates' court in 2016 and was bought by Carmarthenshire County Council.

Permission was granted despite concerns from some councillors, the Carmarthen Civic Society and the Georgian Society.

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Swansea-based developer Nextcolour Ltd will now modify the building for restaurant use, but any changes will have to be approved by the Welsh Government's historical organisation Cadw.

Chair of the planning committee, Alun Lenny, told the meeting "everything within our power should be done to retain the Guildhall" but also added there was a "need to be pragmatic".

The civic society expressed concerns because of a "paucity of detail" and councillors said there were issues over disabled access to the crown court chamber.