From the pages of the Down Recorder, December 12, 2001

From the pages of the Down Recorder, December 12, 2001

8 December 2021

SAINTFIELD – Saintfield is in line for a new multi-million pound hotel development which is set to create up to 40 jobs. The Planning Service has formally approved the plan which will see the Rowallane Inn transformed into a new 25-bedroom complex.

Confirmation that approval has finally been given comes over a year after plans to develop a new hotel in Saintfield were made public and initially rejected by local planners.

Politicians were also split over the plan, but amended drawings for the multi-million pound scheme have now been approved and Down councillors will be asked for their views on the scheme during their monthly meeting next Monday night.

The plans also include the provision of a new function room, dining area and a lounge bar and the businessman behind the hotel project is delighted the scheme has finally been given the green light.

Mr Frank Kearney said he hoped there will be no further obstacles placed int he way of a scheme he says has major benefits both for Saintfield and Down District.

“I believe Saintfield is an ideal town for a major hotel and the location of the Rowallane Inn at one of the busiest road junctions in Northern Ireland lends itself to such a development,” he added.

DOWNPATRICK – Shots were fired during the attempted robbery of a Securicor van in Downpatrick on Monday morning. Police officers lying in wait at the Safeway complex on the Ballydugan Road fired several shots when a cash delivery man was threatened with a replica firearm.

Two men were arrested at the scene and appeared at a special court yesterday morning on a series of charges.

The drama began at 6.30am as the van arrived to deliver money to the Safeway store. A firearm, balaclava and mobile phone were left lying in the car park which remained closed for several hours after the incident.

A sliver Peugeot car, stolen in Richill, ended up in a lane way between Safeway and Rathkeltair House, and a second car was taken away for examination from the Ballydugan Industrial Estate.

CASTLEWELLAN – Castlewellan Library has been closed following the discovery of asbestos in the building last week.

The asbestos was discovered in the roof space of the building at the town’s square when a contractor was investigating an electrical fault.

Tests revealed a slight rise in asbestos levels after a hole was drilled in the ceiling during routine electrical maintenance.

South Eastern Education and Library Board officials immediately closed the building and contractors were called in to remove the substance.

The upper floor of the building, which is used by a local playgroup, was unaffected by the substance but has now also been closed.

Officials have now announced the introduction of a mobile library service while the building remains closed.

Chief librarian Beth Porter said the library service had been left with no option but to close the library. “We must give priority to maintaining a safe environment,” she added.

SHRIGLEY – A number of workers at Shrigley tannery, who were laid off last month, have received a massive pre-Christmas boost.

The Tannery has confirmed that staff laid off in November are now back at work, taking the number of employees at the plant to over 50.

The lay-offs were blamed on a downturn in orders and while company officials said they were disappointed, they remained optimistic about the future.

Shrigley Tannery, which is the largest primate employer in the Killyleagh area, is currently enjoying a busy spell and the company’s managing director, Mr William McCullough, said the marketplace is in better shape than it was a number of weeks ago.

He said the market situation in Hong Kong and China has improved and also revealed International Leathers is also working on contracts in the United Kingdom, Italy, Canada or Spain.

“Workers who were laid off in November are now back with us to help complete a number of orders and while we are cautiously optimistic about the future, some of the contract work we are completing is due to run out in January, Mr McCullough explained.

RAILWAY – A TEAM of professional consultants is to be appointed in a bid to safeguard the future of the Downpatrick Steam Railway.

The move is one of a series local politicians have come up with to help address a number of problems at the unique tourist attraction which is currently in the grip of a major cash crisis.

In a bid to ease the company’s current financial difficulties, a Down Council committee is recommending the local authority provides £51,000 in funding, but has warned additional finance will only be provided when the company comes up with a detailed business plan plotting its plans over the next five years.

Councillors say while they recognise the importance of the railway, they believe much more needs to be done in terms of marketing the attraction.

They have called for the railway company to liaise with senior council staff in a bid to line the attraction with other tourist amenities in the area to safeguard its future viability.

KILLYLEAGH – The firm behind the multi-million pound plan to redevelop the Gocean area in Killyleagh has this week claimed the scheme has the overwhelming support of local people.

The claim by Ravenblack Developments comes after the National Trust voiced a huber of concerns about the scale and potential impact the £35m project could have on Strangford Lough

Local politicians are supporting the plan and have called on the Planning Service to decide if they are also prepared to back the scheme and approve an application to build up to 350 new homes, a new 142-berth marina and a nursing home.

In the wake of the National Trust criticisms, which include claims the scheme is “visually intrusive and damaging to the environment”, a spokesman for the developers said it was important to set the record straight.

Mr Roy Redmond, the company’s development manager, said Ravenblack hopes it will not be “needlessly prevented from delivering something that can only be good for the town and its surrounding areas”.

CLOUGH – Education chiefs have agreed to issue a vesting order to acquire a plot of land for a new Clough Primary School.

At last week’s meeting of the South Eastern Education and Library Board, members agreed that they should use their powers to acquire a plot adjacent to the school.

The land is owned by Clough Presbyterians Church Trustees, who are supportive of the proposal but are unable to hand over the land because of legal restrictions.

The site will be used for construction of a new school which will cater for the amalgamation of Clough Primary School with nearby Dundrum Primary School.

The decision to merge the schools was taken following a in numbers in Dundrum and increasing pressure on resources in Clough.

Meanwhile, the Board has also proposed a special unit for children with special and language difficulties should also be established at the Clough school.

BALLYNAHINCH – The doors to one of the district’s newest nursery schools were officially opened during a ceremony in Ballynahinch last week.

Staff and children at Magheradroll Nursery School in Main Street have been working quietly behind the scenes since the cross-community nursery first opened last September.

But 16 months later they have launched the school in a pre-Christmas celebration.

Local education officials, including South Eastern Education and Library Board chief executive Jackie Fitzsimons, were among the guests invited to the opening along with Down Council chairwoman Anne McAleenan.