The council has been approached by a developer who has proposed amalgamating the council owned land at Barbour Park, the land owned by Sloan Street Presbyterian Church, and the former Richard Crowthers Autos site. This is to create a larger development opportunity with frontage onto Young Street, Union Bridge and the River Lagan.
The proposed new development will revitalise a key gateway site on an arterial route into the city and will see:
- the provision of a two-storey church hall
- a riverside apartment block of 43 units with designated car parking.
An improved greenway space with public access to the riverside towpath creating much needed greenspace for residents of the area is also proposed by the development.
Consideration has also been given to the construction of a footbridge over the River Lagan linking the development with the Lagan Towpath providing a safer route for pedestrians walking into the city centre. This element will be dependent on available funding.
The council proposes to sell the council owned site to the developer at market rate.
The council will host an information afternoon on Wednesday 15 January in Sloan Street Presbyterian Church Hall from 12 noon to 8pm.