Sinn Féin Councillor, and representative on the Newry Park Stakeholder Group, Aidan Mathers, has welcomed the securing of planning approval for the Newry City Centre Park as a major milestone.
Speaking after planning approval was granted by Council, Cllr. Mathers said;
“I’m delighted that our city centre park secured unanimous support at planning today. This is a major milestone in the delivery of a city centre park for the people of Newry.
“Our park will be a game-changer for Newry; a green lung in our city centre and a place of recreation for families, communities and workers. It will be a facility that people will come to visit, increasing footfall in our city centre.
“The campaign to secure a city centre park for Newry has been long running and widely supported. It has taken a lot of effort to get to this point, with the historic site being made ready for the park, funding secured, a design team appointed and with construction contractors lined up. I’d like to thank all those who campaigned for this park and supported it’s development.”
Cllr. Mathers continued;
“Our team has worked at every level to deliver this project. Conor Murphy’s investment of £16.2 million in 2021 has been added to with a direct contribution from the council of £2.4 million, totalling an £18.6 million flagship project that has the potential to help transform our city centre.
“This is on top of massive investment in our new theatre and arts complex, our greenway, new civic centre, improvements to rail, bus and road connectivity, investment in our water network, the development of sports facilities, improvements to local roads and several other developments across Newry.
“Whilst we continue to face considerable challenges, principally the underfunding of the north’s Executive by the British government and the enduring impact of partition, we are determined to make progress. We will continue to work hard to make Newry the best place possible to live in, work in, visit and invest in. Our city centre park will be a huge contributor to this. We look forward to work starting on site in the coming months, with completion in 2028.”
ENDS