Are you one of the negative social media users who don’t notice the ‘many historical features’ of the town centre?

A town centre councillor has called for Wrexham to “promote itself more regularly” and highlight many of the “hidden gems” than go unnoticed.

The comments were made on Monday by Offa councillor Alun Jenkins, who spoke of the importance of the council’s ‘Conservation Area Character Assessment and Management Plan’ in preserving the town’s historical features.

Last week Wrexham.com reported that planning committee members would be asked to consider a draft document which aims to preserve and enhance the town centre Conservation Area.

Wrexham Town Centre Conservation Area was first designated in March 1974 and subsequently extended in August 1975, June 1985 and most recently in April 2007.

The Conservation Area itself covers a large chunk of the town centre including the Butchers and General Markets, St Giles Church and large parts of the High Street, Hope Street and Regent Street.

The plan itself “aims to provide clear guidance for those seeking to undertake works of development and change within the conservation area and provides a framework for decision-makers to ensure that through these works, the special character and appearance of the conservation area is preserved and enhanced.”

Speaking at Monday’s planning meeting, Offa councillor Alun Jenkins said the plan presents a very different picture of the town to the comments that are often seen on social media.

Cllr Jenkins said: “The conservation areas are first class in looking at the appearance and character of an area and enhancing and preserving them as we can.

“I fully support the adoption of this document. It was last updated in 2007 and an update is overdue, but recognise the amount of work that has gone into this.

“I find the background and the account of historic development of Wrexham makes for very interesting reading. It highlights many features in the town centre that go unnoticed by so many residents and visitors to the town.

“It is very different picture presented here to the picture of Wrexham town being an undesirable place if you go by what appears on social media for instance.

“There is a need to promote ourselves much more regularly, and the sections here (in the report) with awareness and appreciation are very important.

“Of specific interest to me is the medieval history around Parish Church and many original features are still there and visible within High Street, Town Hill and Temple Row.

Cllr Jenkins also called for more to be done in terms of preserving and enhancing original features of the town’s buildings and landscape when it comes to future redevelopment and restoration.

He added: “It is all well and good having a document like this that highlights all the tremendous features in the town centre, but if they are going to slip away slowly and if we are going to lose them and we’re not enforce all of this, then we’re going to lose an awful lot in the town.

“Enforcement to me is all important to this, it’s vital we in having got this document that we have more regular inspections of some of the buildings so we are checking on what’s there and what disappears by accident as it were.”

The draft version of Conservation Area Character Assessment and Management Plan will be put to executive board members for approval in March.

You can read the Draft Wrexham Town Centre Conservation Area Character Assessment and Management Plan (and some interesting bits of information about the town’s history) in full here – which also includes a action plan with timescales.

*Pre-empting such negative comments on social media when this article goes live, we hope you will join us in taking a look up when walking through town next and see some of the historic buildings for yourself!