Mold: First look at new joint archive for Flintshire and Denbighshire
Plans have revealed how Flintshire’s proposed new £13 million record office and archive will look if approved.
An application has been submitted for the North East Wales Archives (NEWA) joint archive facility for Flintshire and Denbighshire in Mold.
The building will be situated next to the Grade II-listed Theatr Clwyd on Raikes Lane and will replace the separate archives at Hawarden Rectory and Ruthin Gaol.
Now documents submitted with the planning application have given us a first look at what the proposed facility will look like.
“The aim of the new facility is to provide both Flintshire and Denbighshire County Councils with a modern, purpose-built building which addresses the
limitations of the existing buildings,” according to the Design and Access Statement.
“Bringing together the collections and the staff of both authorities into a single building will facilitate a more sustainable and resilient archive
service.
“Particular attention has been given to the new building’s relationship with the Theatr Clwyd building, which occupies the adjacent site. Maintaining the significance and prominence of Theatr Clwyd within the Mold Civic Centre campus context was felt to be critical.”
Describing the new building, the documents explain that it has been drawn up to complement Theatr Clwyd in a design sense, with a similar entrance canopy.
It is also split into two clear areas – the public and staff wing to the front and the enclosed archive store to the rear of the site.
Architects DB3 also intend to incorporate local materials and design elements into the archive.
Dennis Ruabon bricks from nearby Wrexham will be used as will exposed steel design elements which hark back to Brymbo and Shotton Steelworks. Aspects of the Shotton Steelworks clockhouse design will also be included in the outer skin of the building.
Limestone cladding sourced from Halkyn and the Clwydian Hills will also be employed in the design while brickwork will be laid to evoke traditional North Wales blanket weaving patterns.
Around the facility landscaping will encourage biodiversity, with Denbigh Plum trees, Snowdon Pear trees, Bardsey Island Apple trees, a wildflower meadow, crocuses, daffodils and ornamental native plants allowed to thrive.
The building will also feature solar panels to help make it a net carbon zero facility.
Flintshire County Council is expected to make a decision on the application by September 9.
By Alec Doyle – Local Democracy Reporter
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