Business case to transform Downpatrick’s shopping core

Business case to transform Downpatrick’s shopping core

11 June 2025

WORK on a business case paving the way for an exciting multi-million pound investment in the heart of Downpatrick – which includes a 54-bed boutique hotel – is expected to be completed within the next few months.

The hotel is at the centre of an ambitious plan to redevelop Downpatrick’s former police base in Irish Street with the development proposal also including 10,000 square feet of retail space and a private apartment block.

It has been revealed that contractors could be on site in 2029.

Stormont Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins was provided with a project update when she met with representatives from the Downpatrick Regeneration Working Group last week.

Concept designs for the multi-million pound development of a huge site, which includes the police base and a number of adjacent, empty buildings and the Irish Street car park, were made public last month.

Draft designs — which have been drawn up by specialist consultants — form part of a development brief with developers due to be asked to submit bids to carry out the work within the next few months.

A similar exercise towards the end of 2022 failed to ignite developer interest but there is a renewed optimism that a fresh bid to secure a contractor, paving the way for what has been described as a “transformational” town centre project, will be successful.

It is hoped that the NI Executive will provide financial assistance to a preferred bidder by way of grant support.

Details of the Irish Street scheme were outlined by the Downpatrick Regeneration Working Group to Ms Liz Kimmins during her visit.

The scheme is being delivered in partnership by the Department for Communities and Newry, Mourne and Down Council.

Damian Mulholland, from the Department for Communities, said his department purchased the former police base a number of years ago.

He explained to Ms Kimmins that when the project was put out to market initially, it generated no interest as developers could not make a return on it.

“We dusted ourselves down and designed a masterplan with a nice boutique hotel at the top of the town and brought in more housing, shops and commercial premises and plans to create more public realm, areas where people can enjoy space that can be used throughout the year,” he said.

Mr Mulholland said work on the flagship Irish Street proposal is continuing and will be presented to Stormont communities minister Gordon Lyons within the next few months.

He said financial support was needed to make the Irish Street scheme happen.

Mr Mulholland added: “We hope to take the project to market in September with a view to having contractors on site in 2029. We are very confident about this project and this will transform Downpatrick and expand the shopping core. This is a big one.”

He also praised the work and professionalism of the Downpatrick Regeneration Working Group.

The group’s chairman, Mal McGrady, provided Ms Kimmins with an overview of the regeneration plans for the town and outlined the great commitment of everyone involved since its launch in September 2022, just 13 months before the town centre was submerged by the worst flood in a generation.

“We have a small commercial core and our Living High Streets initiative is designed to try and rejuvenate areas that had been dying for a number of reasons, including online shopping and out of town shopping,” he said.

“We have engaged with community representatives who live in the town and held series of workshops to formulate our framework document which is the basis of our agenda going forward.”

Mr McGrady said a so-called ‘tracker’ document set out the targets the group was trying to achieve in relation to five and 10-year plans “to get Downpatrick to where we feel it needs to be”.

Wonderful

He said the aim was to ensure the town was a good place and a “wonderful destination”.

“We are trying to reimagine Downpatrick’s High Street and we have a big flagship project which is the redevelopment of the former police base and surrounding area and have a number of others ongoing projects,” he said.

“It hasn’t been easy and we are obviously battling against funding pressures as everyone else is, battling against red tape and things in the public sector, but we have a number of good projects on the ground at this stage which are up and running.

“These are designed to try and boost the retail core and bring more people into the town.”

In addition to he Irish Street scheme, work is already underway on a £3m environmental improvement scheme in Church Street and De Courcy Place, with plans to upgrade St Patrick’s Avenue also in the pipeline.

Work is also underway to transform the Grove, while a new £500,000 urban sports park at Dunleath Park featuring facilities for skateboarders and cyclists is due to open shortly.

Last month, work on a major town centre resurfacing scheme was completed and engineers are examining ways to help address town centre congestion and a possible pedestrianisation scheme.

Improving town centre links is another key strand of the regeneration blueprint to encourage people to sample the many facilities the town has to offer including its historical sites, heritage railway and racecourse.