Community centre in Ballykinlar edges closer

Community centre in Ballykinlar edges closer

19 September 2018

PLANS to provide a new community centre in Ballykinlar have taken a significant step forward.

Planners are recommending ambitious plans by Newry, Mourne and Down Council to relocate a building formerly used by the Fire and Rescue Service in Downpatrick to the site of the former Kindle Primary School in the village should proceed.

The approval recommendation will be discussed at next week’s meeting of the local authority’s Planning Committee in Newry.

Council officials are pleased the plan to relocate a single storey, prefabricated building from the former Down Council’s Strangford Road base to the Commons Road in Ballykinlar, will soon be given the green light.

There has been a major community campaign for a new centre in the village which has missed out on significant local authority investment over many years.

A grass area at the former primary school site is to be retained for community use with planners confirming no one has objected to the local authority plan.

Council officials have taken over the Commons Road site from the Education Authority and it is hoped that once formal planning approval is in place, work will start to dismantle the building in Downpatrick and transport it to Ballykinlar.

It’s understood the sectional building at the Strangford Road, which the local authority sold to the Fire and Rescue Service when it vacated the site several years ago to move to the Downshire Civic Centre, was bought back for just one pound.

The Ballykinlar and Tyrella Community Association has been working alongside the County Down Rural Community Network on developing a range of new activities in the village and will be pleased the new community building could soon be in place.

The prefabricated structure, which is reported to be in good condition, contains toilets, a kitchen and large meeting spaces, but some internal modifications will be required to make the building suitable for the community group.

It has also been confirmed that relocating the structure will involve some dismantling and reassembly work with the reuse of the building helping provide a new community facility at a cost “significantly lower” than the provision of a new-build.

Downpatrick councillor Dermot Curran, who has been working with community officials in Ballykinlar to secure new facilities, described the planners’ approval recommendation as “brilliant news for the village.” He said the much-needed new facility was at last within touching distance.

“It has been a long journey to reach this point and I have no doubt many people will be delighted the new centre they have been campaigning for over many years will soon be in place,” he said.

“This development is good news for people like Nial Addis who has worked tremendously hard to raise the profile of the village and secure much-needed facilities for local people. While the new facility is not a new-build, its relocation from Downpatrick will allow a number of local community activities to take place.”

Cllr Curran said it had long been recognised that there was a need for a new community facility in Ballykinlar to help revitalise the village and provide a much-needed venue capable of hosting a range of activities.

He added: “The new building will provide an eagerly-awaited community hub and while it is a temporary structure, it will meet a pressing need and allow the campaign for a permanent building at some point in the future to continue.”