How can a council quickly spend £116k?

The town centre of Dromore in County Down. There is a red brick building on a corner site in the foreground - it has a black door and looks boarded up. There is a red car in front of it turning the corner. The building next to it is white and the black shutters are down — Image caption,
Dromore town centre in need of revitalisation

Helen Jones

BBC News NI

27 September 2024

Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council (ABC) has missed a deadline to spend £250,000 to enhance Dromore town centre.

The post-Covid injection of funds was meant to, amongst other things, spruce up shopfronts and encourage pavement culture.

However, all the money was supposed to be allocated by 27 September, and there is currently an underspend of more than £100,000.

The council has said it was working with the Department for Communities on a new deadline.

One business owner who did avail of the Dromore Revitalisation Scheme said he hoped local traders would have another opportunity to get involved.

A man in a grey suit jacket looks into the camera. He is wearing a pink striped shirt, a purple patterned tie and dark rimmed glasses. There are wreathes in red, green and orange hanging behind him and two black statues of dogs. In the distance you can see cars travelling on a small road.

Solicitor Lewis Singleton's workplace received funding from the initial scheme

Lewis Singleton's solicitor firm had its building redecorated and new signage put up as part of the initial scheme.

He said it had made a "visible difference to the town" with a number of shopfronts painted.

"If I were the council, I would give the local traders and the business community another opportunity to buy into it," he added.

A man with white hair and dark rimmed glasses smiles into the camera. He is wearing navy jumper and light blue polo shirt. In the background a man in a black jacket is sitting on a bench. There is a red brick building in the background with black railings.

Tom Fairley would like a new walkway across the River Lagan

Tom Fairley said he would like to see the River Lagan, which runs through the town, turned into a focal point by building a walkway across it.

He said: "Anybody else in any other country in the world would utilise their natural resources. Here we just bury it."

Eleanor Shields, a retired council worker who has lived in Dromore her whole life, said she was cross that the funding had not yet been spent on improving the look of the town centre.

She added she hoped it was not “spent on something trivial” to meet the new deadline.

"Even if they painted it, it would improve it," she said, pointing to a derelict building in the town centre.

An 'overgrown weed' of a Christmas tree

A man wearing a bright blue waterproof jacket and navy blue top is looking into the camera. He has white hair and is smiling. Behind him is a large red brick building with a clock tower. You can also see a grey paved road with a white vehicle travelling toward the camera.

Mark Orr said new Christmas decorations would enhance the town centre

Mark Orr said the town had changed a lot since he moved there 30 years ago.

He is saddened to see businesses closing, with some shoppers opting to travel to nearby Banbridge and Lisburn.

He told BBC News NI he would like the council to invest in a "decent Christmas tree, but not £116k worth", after he described last year's tree as an overgrown weed.

New festive decorations have also been proposed by the council, who say the money could be used to "update the current seasonal lighting" as well as for "repairs and maintenance issues" in the town centre.

A row of derelict buildings with a butcher shop at the top of the row closed

Residents said there were a number of derelict buildings in Dromore town centre

The council said it was "fully committed to securing this investment for Dromore".

A spokesperson said it is currently working with DfC to "secure funding for new revitalisation initiatives within the town centre, subject to a successful application and positive appraisal".

The council said the money spent so far was invested in a number of private sector projects, including shopfront improvement grants, three café culture grants to fund improvements to promote outside dining, and one spruce-up grant to address a derelict site so that it is ready for any future development.

The scheme has 'brightened the town'

The owners of a purple shop front building with autumnal flowers outside which did not apply for funding

Kim Watson said there is a problem with litter in the town

Kim Watson, who owns a giftware and homeware shop, said she did not "buy into the project", but that the changes had brightened the town.

Asked what the underspend should be spent on, Ms Watson said litter had become a serious problem, adding that bins in the town are often full.

They previously had a full-time council worker, she added, who picked up litter and kept the public toilets clean.

Now she said there is litter "strewn all over the place" when she arrives at work on a Monday morning.

A bar and off-sales in Dromore which has been painted a nice russet colour as part of the town's revitalisation project

One of the buildings to receive a shop improvement grant

A report by the ABC Economic Development & Regeneration Committee found the initial delivery of the scheme as a council-managed, one-contractor delivery model was unsuccessful as the contractor withdrew at a late stage and the scheme had to revert back to a grant-based scheme.

“Inevitably, time passed and circumstances changed within the business community, with some withdrawing due to financial reasons, as applicants are required to make a 20% contribution themselves towards the costs of their works," a spokesperson said.

An 'overgrown weed' of a Christmas tree

The scheme has 'brightened the town'

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