Victorian listed-building to be bulldozed to make way for A5

A LISTED-BUILDING dating from the mid-Victorian era will be bull-dozed to make way for the new A5 Londonderry to Aughnacloy road.

Castletown House, (built 1865) was listed by the Department of the Environment (DoE) twenty years ago due to its status as "one of the more interesting and important houses on the outskirts of Strabane."

But Roads Minister Conor Murphy confirmed the privately-owned house is to be flattened to make room for the multi-million pound A5 Western Transport Corridor (WTC), which is due for completion in 2015.

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An assessment by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) describes Castletown as a detached five-bay one-and-a-half-storey house, built c.1865 on the site of an earlier house, located to the west side of Urney Road.

"This house, little changed in appearance externally and simply detailed, has an interesting form consisting of a series of projecting bays and dormers and it constitutes one of the more interesting and important houses on the outskirts of Strabane," the NIEA states.

The NIEA advise the internal value of the house had been diminshed by the subdivision of four principal rooms at each floor into smaller flats.

"Despite these internal alterations, there remains some good quality original features internally, including fireplaces and stairs," according to the NIEA evaluation.

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"Castletown house grounds are entered over a good quality mid-Victorian stone railway bridge and it enjoys an extensive setting with open fields stretching down to the river on one side.

"This setting has been partially affected by the loss of land once belonging to the house on the Urney Road side and construction of late twentieth century houses ," the agency states.

Now it emerges this setting is going to be razed to make way for the new Dublin road.

The Roads Minister revealed in response to an Assembly Question from UUP leader Tom Elliot that the house is to be demolished.

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He stated: "There are a number of additional areas across the scheme where impacts would occur on other environmental features, for example, the scheme would involve the demolition of Castletown House, a Grade B1 listed building, and landtake from agricultural land and woodland."

The sacrifice of Castletown to make way for the A5 follows the Sentinel's revelation this summer that a proposed new crossing of the River Foyle suggested in a strategic report on the Londonderry road network was set on collision course with Mullenan House.

Mullenan House is built on the site of a historic demesne where King James is said to have watered his horses and rested his men before the Siege of Derry.

The bridge proposal was contained in Improved Roads Linking Around Londonderry - Review of the Strategic Roads Network, a Department of Regional Development (DRD) commissioned report published in February, which was produced by consultancy firm Scott Wilson.

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It suggests a new crossing of the River Foyle south of Newbuildings and Londonderry to provide an effective alternative route for strategic traffic, particularly during periods when the Foyle Bridge is closed due to severe weather.

The point of crossing earmarked would require major road construction directly where Mullennan House - a privately-owned listed building - is situated.

Mullennan House is situated five miles south-west of Londonderry and was listed in 1979. It appears on a Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) register of parks and demesnes of historic interest that includes Boom Hall, Brooke Park, St Columb's Park and further afield Stormont Castle and Parliament Buildings.

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