DOWNPATRICK Community Collective has outlined its vision for a social enterprise hotel in the town.
The Collective — a non-profit body which represents a number of community groups in the town — first earmarked the old PSNI station on Irish Street as a hotel location back in the autumn of 2016.
Highlighting the thousands of tourists who pass through Downpatrick in coach tours every year, the Collective believes a lack of overnight accommodation and imaginative tourist offering means tour companies book their clients overnight accommodation elsewhere.
Recently the Irish Street site was bought by the Department for Communities and plans are being drawn up to develop it along with Newry Mourne and Down Council.
It is thought the site and a number of adjacent empty properties could provide a new retail and commercial centre, which could become home to a number of leading High Street retailers.
Downpatrick Community Collective say they are not against retail development on the land but believe the old listed police station building itself is unsuitable for this and should instead have a social enterprise element.
At a recent meeting, the group outlined a concept business proposal for a hotel bar and restaurant in the old PSNI station.
The plan is for a 30-bedroom three-star hotel to include two family sized apartments and eight cell-themed hostel-style rooms. It is believed 25 jobs could be created.
“The group seek the support of Newry Mourne and Down District Council to preserve the building for such purpose and along with others to secure the necessary capital to undertake the development work,” the proposal reads.
“In keeping with the strong social ethos of the vision and concept it is proposed that a ‘social hub’ be centred within the complex, including a range of rooms for office/meeting places for community and other groups in the town.
“The project concept fits with the Downpatrick Masterplan 2010, which concluded: ‘Tourism should represent the core area for economic development in Downpatrick - the whole town has the potential to be a tourist attraction and this should be embraced in a holistic way’.”
The Collective’s proposal also stresses that the shortfall in accommodation in Downpatrick has already been highlighted in reports to the council, and that their plan links in with the council’s tourism strategy — which is to increase overnight stays by international visitors.
It reads: “It is the vision of the group to establish a financially successful hotel business by way of a social enterprise business model. Their key aims are to operate the hotel on a profitable basis with occupancy rates rising from the end of year one at 45 per cent, to 55 per cent by the end of year three, with a mixture of full-time and part-time jobs rising from 20 in year one to 25 by the end of year three.
“Through this job creation and retained earnings over the first three years the proposed hotel offers a potential GVA to Downpatrick in the order of £1.4M as well as third party expenditure and multipliers from staying visitors.
“As a destination, Downpatrick‘s core challenges are a relatively low dwell time and visitor spend – it has the assets to attract visitors but is not maximising their potential impact once they have arrived.”
Speaking after the presentation, Downpatrick Community Collective Dan McEvoy, stressed that while the hotel may be community-owned, it would have professional staff on board.
“There are other examples where the social enterprise model has worked,” he said. “For example, Manor House on Rathlin Island and Clare Lodge, Newcastle.
“There are good examples out there, different scales and qualities but all fabulous.
“The reality is the PSNI station is a listed building with no commercial viability, it is not open plan, it is not suitable for shops.
“We have also been working with Development Trust NI, who are leaders in community asset transfers.”
He added that the project was currently at an ideas stage and welcomed input from anyone wanting to come forward.
Mr McEvoy also pointed to the success of the inaugural Downpatrick Artisan Market last weekend, which attracted 1200 people to Down Museum.
“The Collective sit on the market management committee and with assistance and support from council we delivered the market,” he said. “Without a doubt, it was judged by all to be a great success.
“The market will run every third Saturday with the next outing on May 19. It an another superb example of what can be achieved through partnership working with Downpatrick Community Collective.”