Portrush Harbour scheme to progress to Stage 2

The public realm works at Portrush Kerr Street and Harbour has been described as the final piece of the jigsaw which began in the town in 2012.

The 2007 Masterplan refers to the harbour area as the ‘honeypot’ given its high footfall and close proximity to a number of very popular restaurants and there is a consensus that the overall look of Kerr Street side of the harbour is poor, reflecting badly on Portrush as a destination.

The design involves environmental improvements largely to the harbour walkway on Kerr Street. It will extend from Station Square to the Harbour and onto Lower Main Street to link with previous improvements carried out during the Portrush Regeneration Project.

Improvements will include the widening of pathways, resurfacing, improved lighting, additional seating and the installation of railings to certain areas.

Proposing the recommendation to progress was accepted, UUP Alderman Norman Hillis declared it was ‘great to see DfC is giving even more money to the borough.’

He added: “It’s the last piece of the jigsaw because there have been major improvements to the whole infrastructure of the town and certainly the harbour area is very, very important. I do think it is marvellous.

“People sometimes talk about the money that’s spent in the borough and sometimes Portrush in particular but I think they fail to grasp that the bulk of this money is coming from central government and mainly from DfC and I for one am very grateful for all the support to our borough.

“People maybe shouldn’t get it confused with the ratepayers money, it is 100 per cent funding from DfC.”

Members unanimously agreed to approve the scope of the project including final concept design for Portrush Kerr Street and Harbour EIS in order to progress the project from Stage 1 of the Capital Project Management Process to Stage 2.