Oriel Begins 3 Year Nomadic Journey To People’s Market

The Oriel Wrecsam Gallery is to relocate and open in a temporary location in the town centre next month.

The current venue is earmarked as a probable site for a new town centre police station, with the current gallery space due to close at the end of March and move to a new site in the town centre. Work is currently under-way developing a temporary site on Chester Street, which will launch in the Spring.

The relocation of the Oriel Gallery was first mooted last Spring when it was first revealed that North Wales Police were looking to relocate their town centre police station to the gallery space on Rhosddu Road – as pictured below:

Over the past few months work has been taking place on the proposed creation of an Arts and Cultural Hub in the Peoples Market on Chester Street – with proposals to develop a detailed design and plan given the go ahead by Councillors last month.

A spokesperson for Wrexham Council said: “An exciting period in Oriel Wrecsam’s history and Wrexham’s cultural heritage is upon us.

“We are making the move to a new, purpose built arts and culture hub in the heart of Wrexham town centre and we want you to come along with us.

“There will be some rough moments along the way as we undertake nomadic projects for a period of up to three years, but we assure you the end results will be worth waiting for. Pay us a visit at our new temporary home at Chester Street.”

Back last year we live tweeted the council meeting where the nomadic nature of the Oriel was revealed:

Oriel Gallery to become the Town Centre Police Station being discussed. Would be an underlap time wise, so Oriel would become ‘peripatetic’.

— Wrexham.com (@wrexham) August 5, 2014

We had to look that up… basically Oriel moves out & becomes nomadic before new arts centre is created, likely in the People’s Market.

— Wrexham.com (@wrexham) August 5, 2014

Comment from Cllr Mark Pritchard about ‘a market that is not working’ to shouts of PART 2! Would suggest Oriel to People’s Market is er, on.

— Wrexham.com (@wrexham) August 5, 2014

Picture: A view from the library car park towards Waterworld, with added nomads.