Approximately £9 million has been awarded from the Levelling Up fund to support economic growth and drive regeneration in Maghera.
The anticipated public realm scheme will transform the look of the town centre with new paving, street lighting, planting and street furniture, and address substandard footpath widths, poor pedestrian access and traffic flow issues. It extends the length of Main Street, taking in parts of Coleraine Road, Station Road, Meeting House Avenue, Tirkane Road, Church Street, Glen Road, Hall Street, Bank Square and St Lurach's Road.
Other elements in the project will go towards boosting outdoor recreation and biodiversity through the creation of a new wetlands park, and the revitalisation of local business through the proposed creation of a new business park at the former High School site, which remains earmarked by the Council to address a gap in the availability of land locally for light industrial use and to meet an identified demand from local businesses.
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Welcoming the investment, Chair of Mid Ulster District Council, Councillor Córa Corry said: "This is fantastic news for Maghera and its surrounding area. Public realm schemes deliver significant physical and intrinsic benefits to our town and city centres, making them more accessible, vibrant and welcoming places to be for residents and visitors alike. As well as providing new green space and outdoor recreational opportunities for the local population, this investment in what has been a historically overlooked area will create jobs and economic growth. Even before the current cost of living crisis, there has been a significant need and demand from local businesses to invest in Maghera, to improve the average wage profile to help deliver higher paid jobs for its growing younger population.
"The completion of the public realm and wider regeneration project will be a vital factor in attracting new inward investment into the area, as well as retaining existing firms who will have the opportunity to increase their scale of production and compete in new markets."
The project is one of a total of 10 projects across the 11 council areas here that will share £71 million of funding from round two of the flagship Levelling Up Fund, allocated by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
