Planning to be lodged for new Maritime Museum

The new museum and Archive Centre will be located at Ebrington and are being created by Derry & Strabane Council, in partnership with the Heritage Lottery Fund, Tourism NI and the Northern Ireland Executive Office.

The proposal will include new galleries and an archival and genealogy section, as well as educational facilities.

Council’s Business & Culture Committee was told at its July meeting in the Guildhall on Tuesday that the planning application was being lodged following public consultation back in May.

The committee was also told that there is now insufficient funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to have someone working full-time in the Maritime Museum Project Co-ordinator post.

“This post is now being carried out on a part time basis,” a report brought before the committee states.

Architectural practice, Todd Architects, has been appointed to complete the Maritime Museum project, alongside design consultancy, Tandem.

The Maritime Museum and Archive Centre will be located across three listed buildings at the former military base.

Derry City and Strabane District Council said earlier this year that the new museum will focus on emigration from Derry Port and the role the city played in the Second World War when it was used as a naval base.

A spokesperson said: “The museum will be a celebration of the city’s maritime heritage and be an important public resource that will help locals and visitors alike to understand, explore and appreciate the enormous influence the River Foyle and its wider connections have had on the region.

“It will bring to life the city’s rich maritime heritage and allow us to provide access to the city’s archive and genealogical collections.”

The Council’s extensive maritime artefacts collection are expected to form a core part of the new facility.