Ilex Urban Regeneration Company is charged with the development of former army base Ebrington. Dating back to 1841 and measuring 26 acres, the site has 14 listed buildings and a Star Fort. The Ebrington Masterplan (October 2006) proposes mixed use where residential, commercial and retail space will blend with culture, arts, leisure and tourism. Key to the development of Ebrington is the Peace Bridge, the EU-funded foot and cycle bridge which provides new shared space and connects both river banks.
The defining centre piece of the site is the 1841 Star Fort and the listed buildings flanking the Parade Ground on three sides. The Parade Ground will form a major civic space for concerts and outdoor events, with the listed buildings being refurbished to form an arts & culture cluster, interspersed with cafés, bars and restaurants to provide a continental-style piazza, with a panoramic backdrop of the city.
When re-developed, the site will
- Connect Ebrington and St. Columb’s Park with the walled city and city centre via the Peace Bridge.
- Become a vibrant mixed-use sustainable community on a new urban waterfront.
- Allow the Star Fort (Scheduled Ancient Monument) to operate as a major heritage and cultural landmark and tourist attraction in the city.
- Provide for a range of uses and a density of development which will establish balanced living, working and recreational environments creating a lively, safe, and people-friendly area which, particularly to the western and southern sections, operates over an eighteen hour day.
- Allow the opening up of access to the adjacent St. Columb’s Park and integration with its landscape, and play facilities.
- Provide a substantial residential element in vibrant and sustainable mixed-use formats offering a range of housing types including social and affordable.
- Create a pedestrian-friendly area of safe, high amenity public spaces and routes.
- Create a high quality continuous public realm, animated by a range of lively frontage uses, from Craigavon Bridge, through the Ebrington site to St. Columb’s Park.
- Ensure the highest standards of environmental sustainability.
While the Masterplan is a flexible framework and final volumes may vary, Ilex has estimated that the proposed mixed use development will provide approximately 1.1m sq ft/100,000 sq m of space in new and existing buildings.
The proposed mix for the site is estimated to be:
Commercial offices and enterprise: 25% to 50%
Leisure/Culture/Community/Tourism: 10% to 40%
Residential: 25% to 50%
Retail/restaurants, etc: 10% to 20%
Contact: info@ilex-urc.com