Walled city planning policy is blasted

IF the planners do not adopt a more realistic approach to the conservation area then Londonderry's Walls will become a noose around the city centre, according to Martin McCrossan, Chair of the Derry Traders and Business Forum.
By The Newsroom
Published 17th Jun 2010, 12:42 BST

Mr. McCrossan was speaking after organising a meeting with the Divisional Manager of the Planning Service to attempt to address some of the concerns city centre traders have about planning.

He said: "It is with some disappointment that I notice the remarks of the Divisional Planning Manager following our meeting when she went on the radio and more or less said that developers should not attempt to re-develop buildings within the conservation area that would require demolition because they will not get permission.

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"These remarks fly in the face of the fact that many buildings within Derry City Centre are not fit for purpose and in order to be a realistic business propositions they would need to be demolished and rebuilt.

"If it is the Planning Service's contention that simply because a building is inside the conservation area that permission to demolish it will not be granted then Derry City Centre will slowly be strangled and become a wasteland."

Mr McCrossan continued: "We are all in favour of a conservation area which preserves all that is good within the city centre but this cannot and should not be interpreted rigidly to mean that nothing can be knocked down.

"Of course there are buildings within the city centre that are worth preserving for their architecture and the like. But there are other buildings that offer nothing to the overall enhancement of the city centre and these buildings could easily be demolished and something new and better built.

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"However, it seems that the planners are adopting the inflexible approach and stating that if a building is inside that area, regardless if it is a modern day building or an old one, then it cannot be touched.

"Let's remember that many of the buildings in question date back to the 1970s and were only built after the streets within the walls were destroyed by countless bombs."

Martin McCrossan concluded: "We have a choice in the city centre. We can view the Walls as a necklace that will enhance and attract visitors to the area or they can be used as a noose to prevent any sort of real development within that area.

"If they become a noose they will slowly but surely strangle the life out of the city centre.

"It is time the planners started spelling out what a building offers to the city centre and stop hiding behind regulations."