£150k Antrim and Newtownabbey street art project paused

In August 2023, members approved a £150k street art initiative across the borough’s seven district electoral areas (DEA) as part of an ‘Award-Winning Botanical Borough’ concept.

They were told 21 pieces of street art have now been completed with at least one large-scale painting in each DEA.

A report presented to the Community Development Committee at last month’s meeting indicated that initially, it had been anticipated that 35 pieces would be delivered by October 2024 with one “large-scale signature art work created in each DEA based upon the area’s chosen botanical emblem” as well as smaller pieces.

The initiative was first agreed in October 2021 as part of “a means to animate towns and villages” when it was decided street art would be “reflective of the local area including potentially history and heritage”.

The committee report said: “To date, £130,772 of the £150,000 budget has been spent and this includes fees of £9,224 paid in recent months to artists for designs that did not achieve approval, or which required significant amendments in order to proceed.

“The pace of delivery of this programme has slowed markedly in 2024 due to the increasing difficulty of identifying suitable walls to paint, securing the agreement of wall owners and achieving agreement on proposed locations and designs.”

It was recommended in the “interests of ensuring that the project delivers good value for money overall”, the project be paused further to a proposed part of a ‘Peace Plus Our Historic Borough’ project.

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It was proposed by Ballyclare Ulster Unionist Councillor Vera McWilliam and seconded by Threemilewater Alliance Cllr Julie Gilmour to approve the recommendation.

It was agreed delivery of the street art project be paused with a revised proposal to create additional public art developed as part of the Peace Plus Our Historic Borough project.

The districts’ botanical emblems are: Airport, rose; Antrim, bluebell; Ballyclare, flax flower; Dunsilly, flax flower; Glengormley, forget-me-not; Macedon, cherry blossom; Threemilewater, flax flower.

The concept of an “award-winning Botanical Borough” was the brainchild of celebrity garden designer Diarmuid Gavin to boost Antrim and Newtownabbey’s recovery from the Covid pandemic.

Diarmuid is the creator of the Coronation Garden at Hazelbank Park in Newtownabbey and the Clockwork Garden at Antrim Castle Gardens to mark Her late Majesty the Queen’s platinum jubilee, the 10th anniversary of the location’s refurbishment as well as the 100th anniversary of the Antrim Castle fire and the return of Garden Show Ireland after the pandemic in 2022.

Michelle Weir, Local Democracy Reporter

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