Aberavon Seafront on course for another attraction

An Adventure Golf course will soon be the latest addition to Aberavon Seafront attractions thanks to the Coastal Communities Fund.

Neath Port Talbot Council has been successful in the funding bid for £205k to build a 12 hole adventure family golf course.

The course will be designed around a seaside theme and will be built on land next to the popular Aquasplash.

Construction work is expected to start early next year and the new attraction should be open for the 2016 holiday season.

The Council will be looking for an operator to manage the facility as a year round attraction, creating local jobs.

The Council’s aspiration for Aberavon Seafront is to further enhance the area as a visitor destination and as a vibrant and attractive place to live, work, play and invest in.

The adventure golf course will enhance the visitor offer at Aberavon Seafront and complement existing businesses and attractions. It will continue to contribute to the Seafront’s increased popularity for residents and visitors alike.

Following the publication of the Council’s Aberavon Seafront Strategy some years ago, the seafront has seen a big boost in investment. Considerable progress has been made in regenerating the seafront and the levels of private investment show a renewed commercial confidence in the area.

Recent commercial investments include Remo’s Ice Cream Parlour and Restaurant, Cinnamon Kitchen and Gelato Gatti.

The owners of Reel Cinema are planning to extend and redevelop their existing site at Hollywood Park, creating a number of new jobs. The plans include a new cafe and restaurant, a leisure unit, such as laser quest/family entertainment centre, and a restaurant.

Over the last couple years more than £5m invested in the seafront promenade have seen more and more families visiting the beach. They include new seating and signage, children’s play areas, a new skateboard park and the sunken gardens, with some funded through the European funded Green Sea Programme.

Improvements in parking provision with new car parks at Ocean Way, Bay View and Scarlet Avenue including on-street and commercially available car parks, means there are now around 1000 spaces.

Other developments underway include a new seafront restaurant with outdoor dining area, due to open this autumn, creating 40 new jobs.

The new £13.5m Aberavon Fitness and Leisure Centre is also on track for completion by the end of this year and the former Afan Lido and overflow car park sites will now be marketed as a key Seafront development opportunity.

The Council will be looking for practical but imaginative proposals for high quality residential-led developments that incorporate retail, leisure and tourism elements.

With good progress being made at Aberavon Seafront, together with a £30m housing led regeneration programme underway in Port Talbot and the new Harbour Way providing direct access to the seafront from the M4,  the attraction of the seafront as a year round destination for visitors and residents is set to grow even further.

Councillor Ali Thomas OBE, Leader of Neath Port Talbot Council said: “We are extremely proud of the work undertaken by both the Council and our private sector partners in regenerating the Seafront”.

“It has once again become a great place to visit with quality, year round attractions”.