Derry's Foyle Street car park to be closed for 72 weeks during NI Water works

It follows a report, in November last year, that the car park would be closed for up to a year to allow NI Water to upgrade the water infrastructure along Foyle Street.

However, at a Governance and Strategic Planning meeting on Tuesday, April 9, Director of Business and Culture, Stephen Gillespie, warned members that the closure would now be for at least 72 weeks, or around one year and five months.

He said: “The works will be starting shortly with NI Water and, we have to make sure members approve anything in relation to land.

“Foyle Street is actually a Department for Communities (DfC) owned car park that’s licensed to Council.

“NI Water want to take over it for a period of 72 weeks, and to do that we have to enter into a tripartite agreement; DfC have to grant NI Water (permission), but they have to have our approval.

“Previously, we had agreed an annual compensation figure of £108,000 and every week thereafter a pro rata figure of £2,077.

“NI Water has confirmed they need it for a 72-week period but, like all building work, it could run on.

“So we need to terminate our current licence with DfC to run the car park, enter into the tripartite agreement, and agree the additional [weekly] sum of £2,077.

“Once all the work is finished, and all the car park is put back by NI Water, we will then have to enter into a new agreement with DfC to take back the licence and operate it as a car park.

“That will come back to members in due course.

“I’m aware NI Water are very keen to get moving with the actual works, hence the need to bring it to Council today instead of at Full Council.”

It emerged earlier this year that discussions to temporarily relocate Derry’s main Metro bus stops on Foyle Street to the car park to facilitate a major £4m water system upgrade were progressing.

NI Water, which unveiled details of the major works back in October, confirmed to the Journal it was also engaging with local traders to facilitate pedestrian access throughout.

This followed confirmation during a Council meeting back in October that the works would necessitate the closing off of stretches of one Derry’s busiest streets temporarily in four stages from the Peace Park to just past the Orchard Street / Water Street junction. Doing it in this phased way will mean that there will still be access to the main bus station throughout, with extensive partnership work with Translink on this, Derry & Strabane elected representatives were told.

It was said at the time that a number of bus services will temporarily have to be relocated elsewhere during the works, with negotiations ongoing to obtain Foyle Street car park next to the Peace Park for temporary halts. It is understood rural Ulsterbus bus stops will be relocated here.

The work is deemed necessary due to capacity and infrastructure issues with the current waste and storm water infrastructure, and it emerged that the upgrade could bring significant benefits, including removing a major impediment to planning applications, including one for a Whiskey Emporium on Foyle Street.

Addressing Council’s Environment and Regeneration Committee back in October, Robert McLean, NI Water senior project manager in capital delivery said that the sewage system along Foyle Street is around 100 years old, having been installed in the 1920s. It consisted, he said, of one combined foul and storm, egg-shaped sewer system, which was, he said, no longer normal and would have been “built in the Victorian ages”.

Andrew Balfour,

Local Democracy Reporter