Council committee to discuss Mournes plan

Council committee to discuss Mournes plan

14 February 2024

MEMBERS of Newry, Mourne and Down Council’s most powerful committee will tomorrow night be asked to approve a key component of the £44m Mournes Gateway flagship tourism proposal.

The local authority’s Strategy, Policy and Resources Committee will be asked to rubber-stamp a ‘memorandum of understanding’, which is effectively an agreement between the local authority and National Trust on how they will work together moving forward.

Running to six pages, the document lays out their respective expectations and responsibilities and commits them to communicate and engage with each other in relation to the multi-million pound project which has split public and political opinion.

Both the Trust and local authority are also committed to establishing a joint working group which will also have key input from Tourism NI and the Environment Agency, while the council committee is also being asked to sign off on procuring a consultancy team to develop the tourism project to the full business case stage.

Tomorrow night’s meeting takes place just over a week after the local authority rejected Alliance claims that the cost of the controversial investment proposal —which features a gondola ride into the heart of the Mournes to a new visitor centre — had increased by £6m.

Finance is being provided by the Belfast City Region Deal (£30m) and the local authority (£14m) with a report on updated project costs and budgets due shortly.

Council chief executive, Mrs Marie Ward, insists the cost estimates for the Mournes Gateway project have not increased, but confirmed at last week’s rates meeting that discussions are ongoing about the allowance being built into the £44m project to cover possible future construction, inflation and other risks and that have not been agreed at this point.

She also confirmed she met recently with the Permanent Secretary at the Department for Economy and that discussions are ongoing, with a report on project costs and budgets due to be presented by council consultants shortly.

Meanwhile, the detail of the proposed memorandum of understanding has been made public ahead of tomorrow night’s council committee meeting.

The National Trust owns Thomas’s quarry where the new visitor centre is proposed and part of the surrounding Mournes area.

The Trust and the council both agree that the Mournes are a natural asset and deserve to be protected and appreciated by everyone who visits them and recognise the area is already under considerable pressure from recreation, grazing, wildfires and traffic and parking demands.

The parties have been involved in preliminary discussions about the possibility of entering into a lease agreement for the use of part or all of the property for the proposed visitor centre.

In addition, they have agreed that before entering formal discussions regarding a lease requested by the council, they need to establish a clear, mutually beneficial framework for their communication and co-operation going forward.

Both parties acknowledge they share a common interest in protecting and enhancing the natural  heritage and habitat of the region for the benefit of the public and agree to regular communication to keep each other informed of any developments or issues that may affect their potential relationship or respective interests.

Members of the Strategy, Policy and Resources Committee will be told tomorrow night that the National Trust and local authority will notify each other within 48 hours of making any material decision which may impact the viability of the project.

In addition, both parties agree to seek constructive solutions to any problems or disputes that may arise between them and to resolve them amicably and promptly.

The National Trust expects the local authority to provide it with commissioned reports on the forecasted or anticipated performance and impact in relation to the proposed visitor centre and the Mournes and consult it on any major changes, developments or amendments which would constitute a change to planning approval or require other statutory permissions.

The conservation charity is also seeking full access to reports and surveys commissioned by the council, except those where information is of a financial or commercially sensitive nature.

For its part, the local authority expects the National Trust to respect its objective to deliver a world class tourist attraction that will support the sustainable regional growth of tourism in Northern Ireland and help position the area as one of Ireland’s premier tourist destinations.

The council also expects the charity to respect its desire to provide major enhancements to the visitor experience in and around the Mournes, whilst protecting and enhancing the natural heritage and habitat of the region.