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Plans to turn Bargate into cafe and bar unveiled

2:00pm Friday 13th November 2009 in


THIS is the first look at plans to transform the 800-year-old Bargate into a café and late night bar.

The historic monument will undergo a £75,000 refurbishment next year if funding can be secured.

The Daily Echo first revealed that council bosses were considering the plan back in June.

Under plans created by the local arts organisation A Space, the ancient gateway will once again become a focal point for Southampton.

The main chamber above the archway would be split between an art gallery and a new Heritage Café that serves hot drinks from 10am to 6pm.

On Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, the Bargate will remain open until 10pm as a bar licensed to sell beer, wine and spirits.

Daniel Crow, director of A Space, said the unique venue could host performances by acoustic musicians and theatre groups.

“This is going to help diversify the culture of the city away from the high street pubs. The Bargate is a source of civic pride and it could be tourist’s dream,” he said.

The plans also include displaying artefacts from the city’s archives, providing additional outdoor seating and reopening the roof to guided tours.

The ground floor chambers would also be redeveloped, with one possible use being a new tourist information centre.

A Space, which already leases the building as a gallery to showcase local talent, is working in partnership with Southampton City Council on the project.

Cllr John Hannides, cabinet member for leisure, culture and heritage, said it was vital that any development respected the building’s rich heritage.

For centuries the Bargate was the main gateway to the city and was used to collect taxes, hold prisoners and even carry out executions.

Mr Crow said the organisation was in talks with English Heritage and said any changes would be reversible.

A bid for funding will be submitted to the City Council and the landfill communities fund, SITA, later this month.

The grants will be announced in March and, if successful, the Bargate refurbishment could be completed as early as next summer.

Mr Crow is also in talks with Southampton-based fair trade coffee merchants Mozzo about the Bargate becoming the firm’s first branded café.

It will create three new jobs and all profits from the café will be reinvested back into A Space to fund new cultural activities.

Since reopening the Bargate in 2006, A Space has welcomed more than 70,000 visitors and it’s anticipated the Heritage Café could attract 10,000 extra visitors each year.

“We want to build on the success we have had to date and to create a sustainable monument for the future,” Mr Crow said.

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Comments(28)

Jammy Donut says...
2:09pm Fri 13 Nov 09

800 years of history about to be desecrated by yobs just for a quick buck

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soton1980 says...
2:17pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Not sure if a bar is a suitable application for the bargate. If it is done tastefully and it is an upmarket bar, which isn't trashed by chavs then maybe...

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Rocker268 says...
2:28pm Fri 13 Nov 09

In order for the city to compete with Liverpool's plans to become a new leading cruise port big changes need to be made to the city to keep tourists and cruise ships here. If done properly and coupled with other new developments this could be a great move for the city. A redevelopment of the water front either at Mayflower or next to the cruise terminal is also desperately needed.

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Huffybear says...
3:04pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Agree Jammy, I thought this was a listed building? Aren't there enough bars and clubs in Southampton as it is? Can't they leave it alone? They've ruined the rest of this town with clubs, bars and the wonderful West Quays. Might as well rename this city Chavampton because that's exactly what it is now.

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Sgt Bargate says...
3:35pm Fri 13 Nov 09

I agree with the comment "Aren't there enough bars and clubs in Southampton as it is?" but the proposed works at the Bargate are looking to create an alternative to the High Street drinking culture.

The Bargate has been visited by over 70,000 people since it reopened, this project will give even more people, local and tourists alike, the opportunity to realise Southampton should NOT be branded 'Chavampton'. Large sections of the local community do not prescribe to this stereotype and actually want to engage with the cities heritage and be a part of it's exciting cultural future!

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rjfmusic says...
4:08pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Perhaps Burger King would like to take over Tudor House?

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King Mush says...
4:11pm Fri 13 Nov 09

The Bargate is a Southampton icon and one of the finest gateways in the UK. Surrounding area should be looked at very carefully but one cannot deal with the boozing bozos that stagger through this ancient portal as well as depositing puke, urine and faeces in the dark alleyway.

Same goes all over the country - I'd love to see the old stocks and pillory brought back to deal with this human flotsam and jetsam

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Northamboy says...
4:12pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Leave the Bargate exactly how it is. Its 800 years old and should be one thing and one thing only and thats a museum for the people of Southampton. Turning it into a cafe and bar will detract from its history.

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stickymcglue says...
4:39pm Fri 13 Nov 09

presumably knife carrying chavs wont be a problem , however I fear mounted upper class yobs in full chain mail having spur-of-the-moment jousts in town could be a real concern !

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Iw61 says...
4:49pm Fri 13 Nov 09

They can call it the winebargate

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Rudd Gillett says...
4:55pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Great idea will be good to see it be some sort of focus again, perhaps tours of the city walls can start with a nice coffee and end with a well deserved pint or glass of wine.
You obviously will get some whiners and moaners but lets get Southampton up and running!

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Jammy Donut says...
5:25pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Why doesn't this dumb council administration just concentrate on getting just one thing right before flitting onto another whim.

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Polygonia says...
5:40pm Fri 13 Nov 09

We have heard the old " diversify the culture away from high street pubs " before "?
How can it compete with a 10 p.m.closing hour, we know that the bar owner will just keep on getting extensions to the hours, and the city are defenceceless against such applications.
If we want to preserve the history of the old town how about some stocks
for drunken idiots so people can go and throw things at them ?
It could save the police giving out so many cautions in the night life areas.

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damien thorn says...
5:40pm Fri 13 Nov 09

chavtowns describes southampton as the pimple on englands behind,quite.

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Baybrit says...
6:27pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Its difficult enough to get up and down those steps when you're sober. Turn the Bargate into a bar/club and you'll have drunken chavs spilling down those stairs like rain.

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ameliaS says...
7:58pm Fri 13 Nov 09

soton1980 wrote:
Not sure if a bar is a suitable application for the bargate. If it is done tastefully and it is an upmarket bar, which isn't trashed by chavs then maybe...
I agree but would go further. Can't we have a bit of class in Southampton? Tourists in, say Bath, can go to a beautiful restaurant at the Pump Room with civilized lunches, afternoon teas and dinners, there is nowhere in Southampton for the more discerning members of the public. Let's raise the tone for a change.

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King Mush says...
7:58pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Baybrit wrote:
Its difficult enough to get up and down those steps when you're sober. Turn the Bargate into a bar/club and you'll have drunken chavs spilling down those stairs like rain.
I can just imagine the bouncers chucking the chavs down those hard steep steps!


Better still- why not have a 15th C trebuchet (with powerboosters) on the top ramparts and send the drunks flying down the road and into the water at Town Quay!

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Swalk says...
8:11pm Fri 13 Nov 09

ameliaS - you haven't been to Dock Gate 4 then?

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degsiecat says...
8:44pm Fri 13 Nov 09

It's a brilliant idea.... I'll looking forward to sipping cappuccinos and watching the world go by. As far as the evening bar is concerned, I think with a 10pm close it'll be pretty safe from the local chavs. Most are heading into town at that time.
Hopefully someone will take on the old McDonnalds site on the corner at the same time.

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ameliaS says...
9:17pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Swalk wrote:
ameliaS - you haven't been to Dock Gate 4 then?
A city aspiring to better things needs more than Dock Gate 4! It's a start but not enough.

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flower49 says...
11:53pm Fri 13 Nov 09

Who are these morons on our council, do we really vote these people in? They must sit round all day thinking what they can ruin next? Leave the Bargate alone, you have ball*ed up everything you do, is this why they are selling off our art from the gallery, I agree with huffy bear, we have enough bars.

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bravebeth says...
7:07am Sat 14 Nov 09

The councillors have no idea of class. They have no idea of preserving heritage in this city. There is no culture here at all. It is abhorrent. Hopefully Englsih Heritage will stop this dreadful project.

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freemantlegirl2 says...
8:11am Sat 14 Nov 09

I think the Bargate should be a turned into Tourist Information Centre if the LA are so keen on promoting the city, with a cafe which is open until later as suggested. It is well situated for that, better than the current TIC which is difficult for visitors to find. We don't really need another bar in town and in spite of people saying it's Chav city, there are places to have a civilised meal, drinks (i.e. Oxford Street) in the city already. And before you all start saying people don't visit Soton etc, TIC has a lot of roles and promotes things like the New Forest, and attractions in the surrounding areas too, as well as city life etc for people new to the city etc. If the cruise terminals grow then it would also be a good place to have it and an attractive feature rather than the ugly soulless building that houses the present one. I wish they'd use a bit of imagination, rather than just going down the 'bar' route....

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normsted says...
8:17am Sat 14 Nov 09

This is the only city probably in the world that cant realise its own heritage. Has it really got to be turned into a bar before its any use ?
Will this put southampton on the map Nooooo.
Back to the drawing board boys and girls.
Another madcap idea put in the local press to gauge public reaction.
We have had every building imaginable turned into bars even banks and now an 800 year old monument-pathetic.

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Treas says...
2:48pm Sat 14 Nov 09

I do not think that English Heritage have been substatively consulted on this. I think someone should make sure that it is fully supported before they "go public".

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BrixtonSaint says...
2:48pm Sat 14 Nov 09

I have long been decrying how successive SCC's have desecrated the city's heritage from the fifties onwards. This however is, I believe, a step in the right direction. Done properly this could be a welcome addition to the Southampton experience, of what there is. The early closing sets it apart from the kind of drinking hole favoured by the 'chav'. I can just see the hubble and bubble next summer as staff busy themselves waiting tables outside, if a)we get the weather b)enough ungrudging, smiling staff can be recruited. I like the fact a local company rather than one of the chains is being encouraged to run the cafe/bar. Keeping it local, that's the way. Now how about allowing the Juniper Berry, sorry the Bosun's Locker, allow a few tables and chairs out on the walls as well? I never went there growing up due to it's reputation, not that anyone worries about that sort of thing nowadays, but on a recent visit to town with my Dad, we popped in (served a great pint of Ringwood FortyNiner by the way) but were told neighbours had put pay to outside drinking. What the... if you buy a house next to a pub what the hell do you expect. OK, the publican is responsible for the level of revelry, but this place is on the city's historical walks and though the view isn't a great one now, it's pathetic bureaucracy like this that has this country as poorly set up for visitor experiences as you'll find anywhere in the world.

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bigronthestaff says...
3:37pm Sat 14 Nov 09

YEAH!!! Let's all go to Jongleurs and talk about the implications of a bar in that area.....oh.....hang on.......no, sorry, that's being CLOSED DOWN. Let's go the whole hog and put a Woolworths on the precinct!!! It's just what we need, Council leaders agreeing to more things that patently are NOT going to work. Is there anybody that works for Southampton Council who has even a smattering of brain cells? WAKE THE HELL UP!!!!! We don't need yet another theme bar in town and we certainly don't need another place for thugs, morons and idiots to go to get out of their faces and start smashing the place up. The Bargate is part of our city's cultural heritage and to turn it into a bar is tantamount to desecration. GROW UP SOUTHAMPTON CITY COUNCIL AND GROW A PAIR. You don't have to pander to the youngsters in this town. They already have enough places to go. A classy restaurant, as has already been suggested, is a far better use of this building. Let people who are going to respect it for what it is use it rather than louts who are going to cover it in graffiti and use it as a toilet once they have finished trashing and ruining the inside. It's a completely pathetic idea and I, for one, certainly do not agree to it.

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mr_lee_white@hotmail.com says...
2:46pm Thu 19 Nov 09

Bloody ridiculous plan, typical of Southampton City and it's now notorious apparent lack of common sense and joined up thinking when it comes to planning.

We need URGENTLY to get a handle on the managers and officials in the Planning Offices before Southampton is ruined?

What's next turn Catchcold Tower and Arundel Tower into public toilets?

If there are any Councillors on here, then get and do your job! Your inaction brings shame on Southampton even considering such a insane plan.

I thought the Titianic museum was MORONIC enough but this... JEEEZZZ!!

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