The Secretary of State for Wales, Nicholas Edwards set out the CBDC's mission statement as: To put Cardiff on the international map as a superlative maritime city which will stand comparison with any such city in the world, thereby enhancing the image and economic well-being of Cardiff and Wales as a whole.

[2]The five main aims and objectives were:[3] The CBDC was chiefly responsible for building the Cardiff Bay Barrage, the new shopping and housing developments across the old docks in the 1990s and the Roald Dahl Plass development.

During the CBDC's lifetime 14,000,000 square feet (1,300,000 m2) of non-housing development and 5,780 housing units were built.

The Cardiff Harbour Authority took over the CBDC's management of the barrage, the Inland Bay and the Rivers Taff and Ely on 1 April 2000.

The evaluation concluded that "the overall outcome, while representing a major achievement and massive step forward, falls short of the original vision.