Morfa is a district ofSwansea,Wales. It straddles theBon-y-maen andLandore wards and generally covers the eastern part of the district ofLandore.
Morfa is originally an oldWelsh word for "marsh", not so much used in current parlance but found in Welsh placenames. The area is named after the Morfa copperworks which once existed in the area.
The Morfa Copperworks was started in 1835 and operated until the site closed in 1980. Several of the copperworks buildings still remain on the site.[1]
Morfa was mainly an area of light industry in the late 20th century. Until the development of the Morfa retail park and theSwansea.com Stadium in the new millennium, the area was a post industrialbrownfield site with a local sports and leisure complex.
On the west bank were large grass playing fields which were also used for outdoor concerts. The west bank was re-developed into the Liberty Stadium, now theSwansea.com Stadium, complex.
On the east bank of theRiver Tawe stood the Morfa stadium, indoor and outdoor tennis courts and rubber surfaced football fields. The area now consists of a new town centre comprising the Morfa Shopping Park shopping centre and the Copper Quarter residential area to the south of the retail park. About 700 new homes are being built by the developerBarratt.
Nearby isPluck Lake known for a sighting of an unusual animal in April 2008.[2]
The Morfa Shopping Park was developed on the site of theMorfa Stadium. It is anout-of-town shopping centre accessible from theA4067. It has 265,000 sq ft (24,600 m2) of retail space. Retail units include aB&Q store (the largest B&Q store in Wales at 105,000 sq ft[3][4][5]).
51°38′33.00″N3°56′20.00″W / 51.6425000°N 3.9388889°W /51.6425000; -3.9388889