Just ahead of The Masterplan exhibition going live, we posed the question, under what name did people know the roundabout at the bottom of Market Street. We asked because we understood one of The Masterplan features would be entitled the "Briec Gateway". We wondered whether this was an appropriate name for the roundabout and area.The Masterplan spelt out that the so-called Briec roundabout separated (or linked) two elements of Rhuthun/Ruthin. It linked ancient and modern. Here, on one side was the town and on the other, its most important asset, either Tesco or the Craft Centre (depending on your point of view); plus, of course, the modernity of the industrial estate. Unattractive, the area did little to assist or attract pedestrians from this important area into the town itself. As such, this was an essential gateway.
How do you enhance a roundabout? Not easy. Students at Caerdydd/Cardiff came up with some features, although the exhibition stressed that these were concepts only designed to whet the appetite.The illustration was of a rather large and avant garde canopy part-circling the roundabout, mirroring the roofline of the Craft Centre. Given the rather futuristic bus on the picture, perhaps it's a giant bus shelter. What it appears to be doing is not only creating a link between the Craft Centre and town but ensure no one can miss it. As such, this is perhaps the single most important feature of The Masterplan after St Peter's Square itself.
Opinions may be divided as to whether the proposal works. Whatever your personal view, there seems to be a need to weld the Craft Centre to the town, to ensure visitors arriving at the Centre realise that there is a world beyond the gallery.
As for the term the so-called Briec roundabout, here is the result of the blog survey. About 40 per cent of respondents called it the Tesco roundabout compared to about 15 per cent referring to it as the so-called Briec roundabout. It's original name was, of course, the Station Yard roundabout.