From the pages of the Down Recorder, June 7, 1995

From the pages of the Down Recorder, June 7, 1995

4 June 2025

DOWNPATRICK – Downpatrick’s controversial link road project has been given the go-ahead by senior Roads Service chiefs at the Department of the Environment.

Work on the £1.9m scheme to link Church Street to Scotch Street, which has caused a storm of protest in the town, is expecting to begin in the New Year.

The official confirmation came yesterday from the DoE’s Roads Service Belfast head-quarters at Clarence Court and is sure to please supporters of the scheme, who view it a the best solution to the country town’s traffic chaos and feel it will play a key role in Downpatrick’s regeneration.

But opponents of the development, which was the subject of a four-day public inquiry in December of last year, claim that it will lead to increased traffic congestion in the upper Scotch Street, Fountain Street, John Street and Edward Street areas. 

They have also argued that it will be alien in character to other streets in the area and destroy the town’s historic quarter.

Details of the major development include the construction of the new road from the Church Street and Meadowlands junctions to the Scotch Street and Saul Street junction. It is estimated that the 200m road will be 9m wide, with 2.5m footpaths either side.

The scheme was the subject of a five-day public inquiry last December and had been originally programmed to begin in the 1997/98 financial year.

NEWCASTLE –  Plans by one of the province’s leading supermarkets chains to develop a site on the outskirts of Newcastle will “sound the death knell” for small businesses, local traders have claimed.

Last month Stewarts lodged an application to develop a store and car parking facilities on the site of the former Albion clothing factory, which closed last year.

Planning chiefs have been examining the proposals for the Castlewellan Road site, which are expected to redevelop the former factory plant and improve access.

But business people in the town believe that if planners give the application the green light, it will devastate the commercial community, lead to job losses and the closure of many family-fun shops.

Furious shopkeepers have agreed to put their objections in writing to planning chiefs in Downpatrick before a final decision is made.

During Monday night’s meeting of Newcastle Chamber of Commerce, traders said they did not wish to hamper development in the town centre, but they were against out-of-town developments which would prevent shoppers from venturing into the town.

One trader said the proposed store will attract customers from the Castlewellan side of town, as well as caravaners and holiday makers who use the caravan parks, but it will kill business in the heart of Newcastle. 

STRANGFORD  – Housing Executive officials in Downpatrick were taken aback on Monday afternoon when a group of angry parents stormed their way into the housing body’s John Street headquarters to demand action against local drug dealers.

Members of the United Against Drugs organisation made their point during an hour-long sessions with senior official, Mr Robin Have and are to hold further talks with the Executive over the coming weeks. 

Housing Executive officials have also been told there is a growing problem in the Strangford area. 

One of the parents from the village says drugs are being brought into the Bishopscourt area before being distributed to children in the Kilclief, Ballyhornan and Strangford areas.

He said people in the village can see the problem on the ground, with Ecstasy the main drug available for sale.

“These kids are being told they are being sold Ecstasy tablets, but they really have no idea what they could be taking,” he added.

DOWNPATRICK – The rising number of pupils at Downpatrick Knockevin Special School has forced the local education authority to erect two mobile classrooms – only 18 months after the purpose-built complex opened its doors.

The £2m Racecourse Hill campus, opened in 1993, contains state-of-the-art equipment for pupils with special needs. The school has been based at English Street, but moved to its new premises because of cramped conditions.

But the demand on places have grown steadily with a total of 78 pupils, from a wide catchment area stretching from Ballygowan to Kilkeel, currently on the register.

Pressure on accommodation was discussed by members of the South Eastern Education and Library Board last month, who agreed to install mobile classrooms over the summer break to help alleviate the problem.

Principal, Mrs Anne Blakely, who has been at the helm since January, said there had been an increase in the number of pupils and extra accommodation was needed for those seeking a place at the school.

Describing the facilities at Knockevin as “second to none”, she said the school had an excellent reputation and the new facilities, including the refurbished hydro-therapy pool, had been a bonus.

BALLYNAHINCH – A six-strong delegation from Ballynahinch is to meet the Education Minister face-to-face to spell out their fears for the future of the South Eastern Education and Library Board, currently under threat of abolition.

Around 150 people from the town united during a public meeting in the town’s community centre on Thursday night to condemn government proposals to axe the Board, which is the second largest in the Province.

Local councillors were joined by Board officers, teachers, youth workers, traders and young people, adamant that the greater part of the Board should not be allowed to merge with the Belfast board, forcing the remainder, covered by Down Council, to be incorporated into the Southern board.

If the plans go-ahead, the Board’s library headquarters and music centre, both based in the market town, could be lost forever, the meeting was told.

Organised by local councillor Mrs Anne McAleenan, after she was lobbied by a number of people in the area, the meeting chose six people to present a petition to the Education  Minister, Mr Michael Ancram. 

ARDGLASS – Around 50 yachts from Howth will be converging on Ardglass harbour later this month as part of a special anniversary event.

Members of the Howth Yacht Club, which is celebrating its centenary this year, will be staying in Ardglass on Friday, June 16, before making their way to Campbeltown in Scotland.

The visitors will be entertained in Ardglass Golf Club by Macken’s Fancy and get the chance to see the proposed new boat park during a guided tour by members of Phennick Cove Developments.

The club, voted club of the year, will also receive a memento from their Ardglass hosts to mark their 100th year.

DOWNPATRICK – The Downshire Hospital’s extensive grounds are to undergo a major facelift thanks to the Northern Ireland Chapter of the Landscape Institute.

A group of professionals have pledged to “dig in” to help the hospital’s regeneration programme and Institute members have agreed to provide advice over the summer on a outline plan for the entire site, focusing initially on the redesign of the former Medical Superintendent’s Garden. 

Jackie Harte, Paul Boyce and Susanna Schmitz will be considering what the garden was like over the past 100 years from the recollections of staff, patients, photographs and documents and adapting it to the requirements of today’s users and the likely level of maintenance.