New name for the Tourist Information Centre

Welshpool Town Council have decided to rename the Tourist Information Centre, but they are going to need a bigger sign with a bit of a mouthful chosen as the new name instead.

With the building at the exit of the Spar Car Park now housing the Town Council headquarters as well as the various tourism and town services, the Operations & Development Committee decided at last night’s meeting to rename it the ‘Welshpool Town Council & Information Centre’.

Previous bids to rename the building, which was recently the subject of a controversial £300,000 refit, have ran into trouble with councillors unable to decide on a name that best reflected all of the services offered.

Town Clerk, Richard Williams, explained that new signage was needed so it was best “once and for all” to decide what it should be called.

He said that it was felt the word ‘tourist’ should be dropped for fear of putting off local people from visiting and shopping there.

Even a public consultation last August saw 111 people vote to keep it as the Visitor Information Centre and the same number, 111, opted for Welshpool Information Centre.

The committee’s Chair, Cllr Phil Pritchard, led the call for ‘Welshpool Town Council’ to be added to the sign so that people are aware it is the new headquarters for the local authority.

Following lengthy debate last night with several more options discussed, a vote of 4-2 was held and one abstention saw the name, ‘Welshpool Town Council & Information Centre’, passed.