Ballyhornan – A community that has been failed by Regional and National Government is now fighting back

At the request of community leaders in Ballyhornan, I pushed Down Council to revive the Ballyhornan Regeneration Task Force in 2009 after it had been moribund for some years. I have since worked with local residents and other local representatives of a wide range of community safety issues in addressing community safety issues in this area.

Ballyhornan is a sea-side village in Down DPP. The old RAF base in Ballyhornan had been closed 15 years before in a very unplanned manner, leaving roads and pavements unadopted and falling into a very bad state of repair, no pavements linking different parts of the village, derelict buildings, poverty and a shortage of social housing. The village also was dogged by other issues like a miss-application of planning rules in the area that were stymieing natural development and a non-existent sewerage system, and so forth.

There is now a strong drive behind the Regeneration Task Force with real resources being brought to bear and results are beginning to be delivered with all local representatives now engaged in assisting the local community in this area. All government agencies are or have been approached to create a multi-agency approach to this area.

At  my suggestion, the ‘Task Force’ was renamed in 2011 as the “Ballyhornan Realm Interagency Group” inorder to overcome bureaucratic resistance to participating in this group on the part of the Roads Service and other agencies.

This group meets regularly, and (in March 2012) I am assisting the residents representatives to bring out their first newsletter to high-light some of the achievements so far to date.

A few links to parts of this campaign here;

I am putting story on 3-G pitch here (March 2012)

Planning Victory For Local Community here , this was important, as the Planning Service had made an error in the Area Plan for Ballyhornan, and left no provision for the development of a village centre – the planning service has now conceded – uniquely in Down District, that the green belt area at the centre of Ballyhornan is erroneous and needs development to create a centre for the community. This followed a motion I put in council on this issue that was supported by all other parties – such a motion on errors in the Area Plan has not happened before

Link to other Ballyhornan-related stories here

Leave a Reply