Carrickfergus City Deal Regeneration: residents give their views on ambitious £42million project
Carrick residents have given their thoughts on a series of regeneration proposals for the town following a public consultation.
The latest designs for the £42million Carrickfergus City Deal Regeneration Project were unveiled during the event on September 24 at the Civic Centre.
Key among the proposals is a new visitors’ centre, based at the former Danske Bank premises in High Street.
Designed to be an attraction in its own right with a number of immersive elements, it will act as a ‘gateway’ to the town where visitors can buy tickets for Carrick Castle and learn about other attractions.
Other plans for the heritage-led project include a guided town wall walk with a viewing point at the North East Bastion, public realm works, and the return of the historic tall ship Result to the harbour area.
Hannah Lambe, Project Manager with lead firm McAdam Design, shared how the team drew inspiration from other UK castle towns such as Norwich, along with Harlech and Caernarfon in Wales.
Meanwhile, following feedback after previous consultation events in 2024, a proposal for a bridge over the Marine Highway has been removed.
Instead, a new ramp to the castle aims to improve accessibility around the medieval landmark, with additional landscaping, tiered seating and interactive elements planned.
A video outlining the regeneration plans for Carrickfergus in greater detail can be found here.
Speaking at the consultation, a number of local residents shared their views on the current designs.
“Having the visitors’ centre as the starting point, I think it’s a very good idea to draw people over from the castle,” said Catherine Harper of local community group, Cithrah.
"Maybe another possibility is to pedestrianise North Street – put some sort of a roof over it and turn it into a shopping mall.”
Referring to the public realm elements of the scheme, she added: “I’d like to see some effort to keep the place clean as well; there are parts of the street that become stained with oil and it’s just left there.”
Many attendees commented on the revised plans for the castle area. “I’m glad to see the bridge gone because that was a no-no,” said Beryl Patton. “It would be great to have the Result here as another attraction for people.”
Others hope to see some investment in the local retail offering. “Carrick is a lovely historic place, but it’s become like a ghost town,” said Pamela Cushley. “There needs to be some investment in shops, something to bring in more artisan or gift shops.”
However, Paul Ritchie felt that the waterfront area should play a more central role in the regeneration plans. “It’s very exciting to get the regeneration funds, but in my opinion the focus should be around the harbour,” he said.
"Carrick will never go back to being a market town, so it needs to be a leisure town. There needs to be something for local people, especially for the younger demographic. If there were a few shipping containers around the harbour where you could get your coffee, maybe rent paddleboards or if there was a big screen in the car park area where you could come down and watch a film.”
Alan Beattie agreed that the focus on should be on residents, rather than visitors. “Attracting tourists is all very well, but there needs to be something to attract locals into the town,” he said.