Following Armagh I‘s report on the declining trade along Gilford’s main street with the closure of Maginn’s Centra, one local resident contacted this publication to say simply, “let this be a lesson”.
And, he is now also calling for those he sees as responsible to be held to account.
The resident – who wished to remain anonymous – has lived in the area for approximately two decades and reports that he has seen the town failing for at least 10 of those years.
Understandably, in watching his home town decline to a state – that he now feels is “unfixable” – the conversation was fraught with emotion.
He said: “When I walk up the town I might not see anyone – not a sinner, not a person.
“It’s clear now that it’s too late. The writing’s on the wall. Those in power have washed their hands completely of the place.”
As a town, Gilford is essentially a nucleus where roads to and from Banbridge, Portadown, Lurgan, Tandragee and Scarva all convene – making it a constant thoroughfare for traffic.
As such, there is no shortage of passing trade and the town has additionally benefitted from the introduction of several new apartments and new build homes in the last five years.
It once also played host to one of Northern Ireland’s largest Game Fairs, the National Countrysports Fair at Gilford Castle, which attracted thousands of visitors from across the country to the quaint County Down village.
It begs the question – why is it failing?
And, when the question was put to him, the resident shared the sentiments of the business owners Armagh I spoke with when visiting the town on April 28.
That being, that local councillors had “failed to act years ago when appeals were put in for support”, he said.
“It has just been the same failed approach. Decisions weren’t working but they continued making these decisions and continued on a path that was leading to nowhere.
“No one gives a damn about the place and they have made that clear. Has any of our local councillors even set foot in the town to see it for themselves?
“Gilford isn’t even on their agenda.”
A business owner we spoke with agreed, putting it bluntly, “You only see the councillors around here when they are looking something”.
Today, the resident believes nothing can be done to save the town from ruin. Instead, he spoke only to raise awareness of what he deems to be a burgeoning “mental health epidemic” in the town and to say to council, “let this be a lesson”.
He added: “The concern would be now that the whole thing has become a recipe for disaster. With the amount of vacant buildings – which will attract anti-social behaviour – this generally creates a depressive environment for residents. That’s when the real rot will set in.
“The people here are defeated, broken and generally just devastated.
“There is nothing for the youth. People are turning to drink and drugs and when I say the mental health issues here are terrible, I mean it. You might be able to look around and see the state of the main street but what you can’t see are the people who won’t set foot outside their front doors.
“The town in this general state of disrepair is a mirror reflection of the current living conditions of the people who have totally given up hope.”
He spoke resolutely about his belief that there is ill-feeling and a pervasive melancholy bubbling under the surface of the town, saying, “You can even see it on the faces on people driving through. They must be thinking, ‘What is this dump?’.
“We are entering into the end game now as far as I can see,” he said.
Something which could stand to be a massive boost for the area is the green-lighted redevelopment of Gilford’s landmark Mill.
The £6 million scheme that would see the introduction of a development consisting of a garden centre, restaurant, residential apartments, roof top garden and children’s activity area was given the seal of approval by ABC Council in July 2023.
However, two years on the Mill still stands in a dilapidated condition with no visible works taking place.
Commenting on the Mill development, DUP Councillor Ian Wilson said: “A lot of people blame the council but if a private developer purchases a property and wants to develop it, it’s really up to their time frame and that falls into the parameters of the planning application and it’s going to take a massive development in the mill.”
In 2021, the councillor was part of a push to gain approval for a new petrol station on the Banbridge Road and this is something he speaks positively of, saying of its development: “I’m glad we did. It’s a nice, modern shop and provides great facilities for Gilford. It was a big step forward.
“For the other businesses, it’s difficult. People need to be shopping in them to make them sustainable. At the end of the day, they are all businesses. They need that footfall to make them sustainable.”
Armagh I have contacted Gravis Planning – the company responsible for the application’s submission – for an update on the development.
The councillor adds that he would “love to see a massive investment”, not only for the Mill, but for the town as a whole, and this is something he has committed to taking forward.
Continued the councillor: “I would love to see the town starting to turn a corner and a bit of a vibrancy in it.
“In a small town like that you need to be offering something different with a bit of a niche where people can’t get it in a big shopping centre or town. It’s hard to get that going but I am going to raise that in the next council meeting and say we need to be looking at a way we can assist in some way to regenerate Gilford, or is there any schemes or funding or anything we can look at to try and get vibrancy and interest for investment?”
He adds: “I have been fighting – and it has come to fruition now – with the UrbanABC platform that were just promoting the bigger towns like Portadown, Lurgan, Banbridge and now from March past that has incorporated the smaller rural businesses and I am encouraging people in the smaller, rural towns to get involved with that.”
Speaking to the mental health issue in the town, the councillor – who has suffered the loss of a family member from Gilford – said: “Gilford would be classed as an area of deprivation and it needs help and investment.
“I’m acutely aware of the mental health issues and there is a charity [Changing Lives NI] now set up in Gilford that I have been in with and spoken to to help alleviate.”
Changing Lives NI is a Mental Health & Associated addictions registered charity, based at Unit 4, Riverside Shopping Mall on Mill Street, Gilford.
It was set up in 2024 by members of the local community who have, tragically, lost loved ones to suicide.
The team at Changing Lives NI seek to provide hope to young people between the ages of 16 and 25 who suffer from, or who have been affected by, mental health, drugs or associated addictions.
You can find more information about Changing Lives NI here.
