A rundown former Powys border shop is set to get a new lease of life as a community building after three years of planning and building work.
Planning permission to convert the former Stars newsagent in Bishop's Castle into two flats and a community shop was lodged in 2021 - and now organisers say renovation work is finally nearing completion on the changes.
The two flats in the building on Church Street are now being advertised at reduced market rates by Bishop's Castle Community Land Trust (BCCLT), with would-be tenants required to demonstrate a strong connection to the town and a genuine housing need.
Meanwhile the former newsagents shop front facing onto Church Street is also set for a grand opening when the BCCLT hosts a yard sale on May 26, where visitors can also make suggestions for events at the venue. The shop will then join 17 other venues in hosting an artists "Open Studios" event between June 14 and 16.
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"The building work at the former Stars newsagent at 68-70 Church Street is finally nearing completion," said a BCCLT spokesperson.
"All of the interior has been totally refurbished, every wall has been re-plastered and painted. The fitted kitchens are being installed, and the rear of the site is being paved and landscaped.
"We expect the builders will be ready to hand the building back to the Trust by the end of June if not before, and our new tenants to be moving in during July."
The building has been a feature of Bishop's Castle for over two hundred years, and appears on historic maps of the area dating back to the early 1800's.
The use of the building as a shop pre-dates the formal planning consent system, but it has since been closed for nearly a decade, after the former newsagents closed to the public during summer 2015, before subsequently being purchased by the Bishop's Castle Community Land Trust, a community co-operative aimed at providing affordable housing in the town.
The trust launched a community appeal to raise £60,000 to complete the renovation work on the building after planning permission for the scheme was awarded in 2022.
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