Snippets of news from the local area. If you have more — please let me know!
16/05/2013: Bontnewydd-Caernarfon bypass route U-turn by minister
Economy and Transport Minister Edwina Hart said the new Bontnewydd and Caernarfon bypass will make use of existing road infrastructure between Felinheli and Bethel. It will join at an existing roundabout near the Plas Menai centre. more>>
Easter 2013: Improvements at Newborough beach, Anglesey
A lot of work has been carried out recently to improve facilities at Newborough beach. The car park has been resurfaced and marked out, and a number of new wooden walkways and picnic areas have been built. Some information can be found here. The access road is still as congested as ever, unfortunately.
2012 “a bad year for Britain’s bathing beaches”
According to the latest edition of the Marine Conservation Society’s “Good Beach Guide”, last year’s relentless rain and flooding led to an increase in the amount of sewage ending up in the sea. Only 403 of the 754 UK bathing beaches tested had excellent bathing water quality (based on samples taken in summer 2012), 113 fewer than were recommended the previous year. The good news is that Dinas Dinlle and several other local North Wales beaches are still officially “Recommended”! more>>
3/1/2013: Catherine Zeta Jones helps Gwynedd ‘lost palace’ appeal
Hollywood star Catherine Zeta Jones has made a “substantial” donation to an appeal by a trust which is bidding to buy the site of a “lost palace” of medieval Welsh princes. The Garth Celyn Trust says it is about half way to raising the £180,000 market value the land at Abergwyngregyn in Gwynedd. Llywelyn the Great and Llywelyn the Last are thought to have lived there. more>>
20/11/2012: New Porthdinllaen lifeboat station
Work is underway at the Porthdinllaen site, as the RNLI announces its plans to invest £42.5M across Wales. The Porthdinllaen project is inclusive of a new boathouse and slipway and is scheduled to be complete in approximately 18 months. Contractors have moved into the Porthdinllaen site to begin stripping the inside of the old boathouse in preparation for work to begin on the new build. [This means that access to the adjacent beach is currently blocked, and temporary steps redirect walkers across the top of the headland.] more>>
05/07/2012: Caernarfon bypass
A £100m Caernarfon Bypass is finally to be built in 2015. The new 10.5km route will bypass the communities of Llanwnda, Dinas, Bontnewydd and Caernarfon, staying close to the edge of the town’s quarry and Cibyn industrial estate, before connecting with the current bypass of Y Felinheli.
05/07/2012: Waunfawr pub award
The Tafarn Snowdonia Parc pub and hotel in Waunfawr scooped the CAMRA award for best pub in Gwynedd and Môn this month.
04/05/2012: Wales’ world-first coastal path network to open
Finishing touches are being made to the world’s first coastal path network to cover an entire country. Stretching from the mouth of the River Dee in Flintshire all the way to Chepstow, the Wales Coast Path covers 870 miles (1400km). The network also links into the Offa’s Dyke Path – creating a 1030 mile (1660km) route around the whole of Wales. The coastal network is officially opened on Saturday 5 May.
26/04/2012: Candidate sites for Welsh MCZs published
Last week the Welsh Government published its first list of potential Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs) for consultation. The Welsh Government are trying to gather as much information as possible to help them make fully informed decisions on the 3 or 4 sites that are finally designated. An RYA web page has a useful map of the areas selected, and includes a link to more detailed interactive maps. Concerns have been expressed that plans may lead to substantial job losses in the area.
22/3/2012: Welsh Highland/Ffestiniog Railway
Second platform to be built at Porthmadog, serving the Welsh Highland and Ffestiniog Railways and allowing easier transfers between trains. more>>
15/3/2012: Dorothea Quarry
Penygroes group buy Dorothea Quarry, with plans for “a top class tourism and leisure resort which could include a diving and outward bound centre and even a hotel”. Locals are sceptical however, having heard this many times before. more>>