Michelle O’Neill says £77m invested in Ebrington since 2016 with talks for transfer ‘in train’
First Minister Michelle O’Neill says £77m in public and private finance has been invested in Ebrington since The Executive Office took control of the former military barracks almost ten years ago.
Mrs. O’Neill has also indicated that plans to transfer the site to Derry City & Strabane District Council are ‘in train’ although she acknowledged that the process was complex.
"Since taking on the Ebrington site in 2016, the Executive Office has invested over £37 million to develop and regenerate it. The investment, along with £40 million of private finance, has been transformative for the site, attracting a variety of new businesses and creating more than 360 jobs.
"In March, we officially opened the new headquarters of software consultancy firm Alchemy Technology Services at the state-of-the-art Ebrington Plaza. A few months later, that was followed by Ernst & Young (EY) opening its new north-west regional office at the plaza.
"Even in the past week, there has been the Seagate announcement. The site has become a vibrant hub for creative, cultural, sporting, charitable and other community-led events.
"The Executive Office has also committed £3.3 million of funding towards the Derry North Atlantic Museum, which is a key part of the overall redevelopment of the square,” she stated.
The First Minister was questioned on progress at Ebrington at the Stormont Assembly.
On the process of transferring the site to DC&SDC, she stated: "That process has been ongoing for a considerable period. Realising the Ebrington site's full potential for the whole city and the north-west generally is a shared priority across multiple stakeholders in the north-west.
"We are focused on delivering on those shared ambitions and on improving processes and partnerships to achieve them. Discussions are ongoing with the council to progress the site's transfer. We are told that the full transfer is complex and is taking time to complete, but I can tell you that it is all in train and is being actively worked on.”
During the summer the Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly confirmed talks were under way with the council around the transfer of the site to local authority control.