Demolition and redevelopment of the former New Quay library is the “most economical solution”, a council report has outlined, following a consultation on the building’s future, but the council will look to an outside group to build something new at the site as it does not have the cash.

Ceredigion County Council has been the trustee of the charitable trust ‘New Quay Library and Reading Room’ since 1958, and the trust owns the site of the former library on Uplands Square, for ‘the benefit of New Quay residents.’

The property became vacant on 1 November 2021 when the New Quay Community Library group of volunteers running the library re-located to New Quay Memorial Hall.

A consultation asking for views on the future of the building, and asking specifically whether the trust changes its purpose to ‘the advancement of education of the inhabitants of New Quay’, was launched in February.

Ceredigion County Council’s charity trust committee received a report into the consultation last Thursday.

The consultation report found that two thirds of respondents agreed with the planned change of purpose - with a museum, art gallery, meeting space and community garden among the suggestions for the site’s future use from the 32 responses received.

The report suggested “the most economical solution would be demolition and development from bare land,” as “the building is no longer suitable for use and would require significant investment to bring it up to the required condition.”

The council report said that the Trust had just over £1,000 on hand, which “would not be enough money to demolish and/or redevelop this site and therefore to move forward it is suggested to Committee that they consider asking the community of New Quay whether there is a group of individuals or an organisation who would be interested in taking on the site for an educational purpose and seeking grant funding to fund that use where necessary.”

If a group does not take the project on, the land could be sold.

The report added: “If there is no appetite in the community to take on that role then, similar to what happened when this Committee dealt with the former Tregaron School trust where the community wished to use the site but there was no group willing to take it on, the trust may have to consider whether seeking Charity Commission consent to sell the site and utilise the sale proceeds for charitable purposes is the best option.”

The report said that “it is important as a first step to ascertain whether there is interest in the community to take on the site as the trust does not have funds to demolish or redevelop.”