A string of occupiers for a major public sector hub, providing a swathe of new office buildings for thousands of staff in the centre of Swansea, are expected to be confirmed shortly.
In a major boost to the city's wider Copr Bay £1bn regeneration plans, the hub would see the construction of new grade A office buildings providing hundreds of thousands of sq ft of new flexible working space.
Swansea Council has already confirmed its commitment to the ambitious project, with plans to relocate out of its current seafront civic centre offices, which employ several thousand staff, into the hub.
However, in another boost to the scheme, it is understood that both existing Welsh and 海角视频 governments departments operating in Wales will also commit to new office space in the hub.
It is also understood that the 海角视频 Government will relocate some current Whitehall-based jobs and functions out of London to the Swansea hub, as part of Boris Johnson's 'levelling up agenda.'
New government departments, following Brexit and the new trading arrangement with the European Union, could also be located in the Swansea hub.
There is also expected to be a presence for the higher education sector, with Swansea home to two universities in Swansea and Trinity St David
However, one of the biggest public sector employers in the region, the DVLA, is not expected form part of the hub.
Most Read
The planned hub will form part of the Copr Bay phase two mixed-use development scheme due to be developed on the city centre side of Oystermouth Road alongside half of Copr Bay phase one.
The other half of phase one, over the road on the former LC car park, includes the under construction indoor arena. Copr Bay’s two phases will be linked by a new pedestrian bridge over the road.
The scheme, which would take a number of years to develop, could be on a scale to that of Cardiff's Central Square development, where a million sq ft of mainly new office space has been developed over the last few years.
The success of Central Square, boosted by being next to Cardiff Central Train Station, has been underpinned by significant public sector investment with new headquarters for both BBC Cymru Wales and HMRC.
The strong covenants provided by public sector tenants, committing to long term leases, should ensure there is significant investor appetite to fund the construction of the office buildings at Swansea's planned public sector hub.
And in a positive sign that the Swansea Council driven project is moving from concept to a delivery phase, an unnamed government department has put into the commercial property marketplace a requirement for a new 72,000 sq ft grade A office building in the city centre.
Leader of Swansea Council Rob Stewart declined to comment when asked if any announcements on Welsh and 海角视频 governments departments committing to taking space at the public sector hub were imminent.
Don’t miss
However, he said: "As part of the new public sector hub we have already confirmed that our civic centre offices will be relocating into it."
The hub, and other commercial development in the city, will only strengthen the case for the proposed Swansea Bay Metro rail project with new stations and rail lines to create an effective 'turn-up-and-go' service for people travelling in and out the city centre and across the wider region.
Having a high concentration of thousands of public sector staff and new private sector firms based in the centre of Swansea should also provide a huge boost to hospitality and retail businesses. With a Metro designed for commuting in a post pandemic environment, it should also result in a significant reduction in car journeys and emissions.
The model could be replicated by towns within the Swansea Bay City Region with new office developments close to integrated transport hubs in places like Carmarthen, Neath and Port Talbot.
As well as its public sector hub Copr Bay phase two will see a leisure destination on the Hafod-Morfa Copperworks site as well as a mixed-use development on the civic centre offices - which will be released for redevelopment after the council relocates to the hub.
Swansea Council has this week reported strong investor and developer interest in the new phases of Copr Bay.
Following a worldwide search it has shortlisted a number of property developers and investors. They are mainly 海角视频 and mainland Europe-based.
The preferred investor or property developer, with development funding, will be revealed in September this year.
As well as the £135m phase one of Copr Bay, with a 3,500-capacity indoor arena, other projects include the £12m Kingsway overhaul and 71/72 Kingsway and a £30m city centre hub for tech and creative business.
Mr Stewart said: “Swansea has a compelling once-in-a-generation chance for a top class partner to help us deliver major regeneration and I’m glad that a number of high-quality potential partners have come forward.
“We’ll analyse and discuss proposals in great detail over the coming months to ensure that our selected partner shares our vision and is the right fit for Swansea, its citizens and its organisations."
To have your say on this story please use our comments section at the top of this article