A community group set up to purchase a Pwllheli landmark has launched a scheme to buy shares in the building.

The Menter Y Tŵr Share Scheme launched on Sunday, 1 October to reopen Y Tŵr as a hotel, pub, restaurant and functional hub for the community.

The aim of the share scheme is to raise £450,000 by mid-November to buy the iconic Gwesty Y Tŵr Hotel for the benefit of the community and the regeneration of the High Street and town centre.­

Gwesty Y Tŵr building stands in the centre of Stryd Fawr Pwllheli. The building has been empty for a number of years, and the impact of the building’s deterioration has a tangible  impact on the economy and community, campaigner say. It is a substantial building which includes a pub, dining room, conference room, cocktail bar, bedrooms, and rear yard with outbuildings.

Liz Saville Roberts, Elin Hywel and Mabon ap Gwynfor
Liz Saville Roberts, Elin Hywel and Mabon ap Gwynfor (Picture supplied)

Chairperson of Menter y Tŵr, Carys Owen said: “Our intention is to develop the building and the business within as a platform to regenerate our fantastic town and the local economy, for the sake of the community.

“The positive effects of the purchase of the building by Menter Y Tŵr  are already being felt where other substantial nearby properties have been purchased by private owners for redevelopment.”

Menter y Tŵr treasurer Elin Hywel added: “We believe that the development of Menter Y Tŵr will open doors to more community activity and greater cooperation between groups, businesses and residents within the town. 

“We are already collaborating and receiving support from Cymunedoli Cyf, the Gwynedd social enterprise network, Clwb Pêl-droed Pwllheli FC, the Pen Llŷn Ecomuseum project, and Ffrindiau Pwllheli, to name just a few.

“Menter y Tŵr will be a hub and platform for small businesses and a training centre to equip people to work in the local economy raising the quality of all hospitality sectors and traditional skills in the construction sector.

“Menter y Tŵr will also encourage regenerative and environmental tourism for the benefit of this community, our visitors and surrounding communities.”­

Local MP Liz Saville Roberts said: “Within a matter of hours of establishing Menter Y Tŵr, the Pwllheli community rallied together and raised £60,000 for the deposit. People are passionate about safeguarding this historic building as a centrepiece on the high street.

“Menter Y Tŵr have a positive and ambitious vision to develop the building into a thriving community hub, owned by the community, for the community. If you’d like to be part of this exciting project and have a say in how the venture is run then you have until the middle of November to apply to become a shareholder.”

Dwyfor Meirionnydd MS Mabon ap Gwynfor added: “By investing in Y Tŵr, you’ll be supporting the creation of local jobs, promoting tourism and boosting the local economy, ensuring money generated is spent locally. I hope local people in particular consider becoming shareholders and therefore play a key role in securing this historic building and bring it back into the heart of the community once again.”

A share can be purchased at www.YTwr.Cymru