Minister gives maritime museum the go-ahead

The museum is planned to open in 2026

A new multimillion-pound museum at Londonderry’s Ebrington Square that will explore the city’s maritime heritage has been given the final go-ahead.

Stormont’s Infrastructure Minister John O’Dowd approved a planning application for the Derry-Londonderry North Atlantic (DNA) Museum on Thursday.

“This is great news for the city and wider region,” O’Dowd said.

In February, Derry City and Strabane District Council said it had secured the £13m of funding needed for the project to proceed.

People at the city's maritme festival this summer got a sneak peek at the museum

Construction on the museum is due to start in the coming weeks in the city's Ebrington site - making it the first City Deal project in Northern Ireland to reach this stage.

It is hoped that it will open by autumn 2026.

The museum will feature six galleries and archive from the city's rich maritime history, including the surrender of German U-boots at the end of World War Two.

That happened in May 1945 when crews from about 60 German submarines surrendered at Lisahally, on outskirts of Derry.

The US Navy also had a base in the city during WW2.

O’Dowd said the planning approval “is an important scheme which will continue the physical, economic and social regeneration of Ebrington Square, a key development site within the city”.

He added: “It will also create a new tourist attraction that will tell the story of Derry’s maritime history and be a welcome addition alongside the other recent developments in the Square."

The planning approval also "secures the viable and long-term beneficial reuse of a number of listed buildings", he said.

In June, the public had its first look at the planned museum during the Foyle Maritime Festival.

Plans for the museum had stalled back in 2018 because of Northern Ireland's political stalemate.