Bangor's council was created in 1883 by royal charter. In 1974 it became City of Bangor Council, after Bangor had been granted city status, though many of its previous powers were passed to Arfon Borough Council and the new Gwynedd County Council, based in Caernarfon. The city council's roles include consultation on all planning applications within the city boundaries, as well as applications for alcohol licenses. Its current responsibilities extend to maintaining footpaths and bus shelters, as well as managing a number of woodland areas and open public spaces. The city council is most notably responsible for the maintenance of Wales' second longest pier, the Garth Pier. After Arfon Borough Council had decided to demolish it in 1974, Bangor City Council bought the pier for a nominal one pence. However, in 2012 the council only had £1 million of the estimated £2 million needed to repair it. The council-financed £1 million restoration began in 2017, phased over three to four years. In addition the city council owns a number of important buildings, including the Town Clock, the City Council Offices and Penhryn Hall in Ffordd Gwynedd. It owns Nantporth Football Stadium, which it leases to Bangor City Football Club. It also owns Hafan Drop-in Centre and Coed Mawr Community Centre. In June 2012 a curfew keeping young people out of Bangor city centre made the UK national news. Bangor City Council had to call an emergency meeting to raise their concerns, because Gwynedd Council and the local police had imposed the curfew without consulting city councillors.
Representation
Twenty councillors are elected from the eight electoral wards in the city, namely: Deiniol, Dewi, Garth, Glyder, Hendre, Hirael, Marchog and Menai. In 2017 half of the seats were won by Plaid Cymru. The eight wards also elect ten county councillors to Gwynedd Council.
Mayor
The council elects a city mayor and deputy mayor annually. The Mayor making for 2020 was delayed by a year due to COVID-19 and both the Deputy Mayor and Mayor will remain in their posts for another year until 2021.
Council composition
Following the election on 4 May 2017 Plaid Cymru were the largest party, holding half of the seats. Following a by-election on 29 November 2019 for the Hirael ward, Welsh Labour won another seat. In June 2018 a vacancy arose in the Deiniol ward after one of the councillors moved away from the city.
