Approval is being sought to rebuild part of the historic wall next to Gosford Castle — ahead of controversial plans to build new houses there.
A section of the wall lies in rubble, and the intention is that it should be reinstated.
Proposals have been drawn up and lodged with Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council by Newtownabbey-based planning consultancy firm Bell Rolston.
The proposed wall lies “adjacent and to the west of Gosford Castle, Markethill”.
Two applications have been made to ABC Council — one seeking full planning permission and the other listed building consent.
According to a design and access statement, it is intended to reinstate the feature to “act as a boundary wall around the approved residential development”.
The wall would be 1.68 metres high, constructed of natural stone, and include a steel pedestrian gate.
Controversial plans to build 11 houses in the shadow of the historic castle were first submitted — as revealed by Armagh I — in May 2021.
Newtownabbey man Sam Marks applied for permission to build a total of 11 properties in a former car park beside the 19th-century castle.
This would comprise 11 one-and-a-half-storey properties — three detached, two semi-detached, and six townhouses.
The proposals included private amenity space, parking, and a landscape scheme.
The move caused great consternation locally and led to a petition being set up to try to block the development. Over 800 people signed, and 65 individual objections were lodged.
Despite the objections, we reported that officers had been poised to advise the work should proceed.
However, in February 2022, councillors unanimously rejected that recommendation of their own planning officials to allow the development to go ahead.
A number of the objectors who were involved in setting up the petition and lobbying support in their campaign to block the development were granted speaking rights at the meeting.
The applicant had been accompanied by his own team, including legal representation.
After it was refused and the dust had settled, Mr Marks appealed ABC Council’s decision to refuse permission.
He was subsequently granted approval in June 2023 after his appeal was successful.
In all, 12 conditions were laid down in granting consent.
This year, an application was made to discharge one of those conditions.
It had stipulated: “No development of any kind shall be undertaken until a remediation and restoration report for the walled garden has been submitted and agreed in writing by the planning authority. Apart from the agreed works to the walled garden, no further works of any kind shall be undertaken until the works to the walled garden have been implemented and a verification report is submitted and agreed in writing by the planning authority in respect of the walled garden restoration and remediation.”
This new application to restore the wall has now come forward.
It involves “one section of wall”, which would be “positioned to the rear of the approved dwellings, connecting to the existing wall”.
A design and access statement indicates the wall would “match the height, scale, massing and materials of the existing boundary wall”. The materials would also match what is already there and “will read as a continuation of the existing wall”.
It states that the proposal “represents sustainable development by using locally sourced natural stone” and, furthermore, that the “proposed boundary wall does not impact on any existing roads and does not inhibit pedestrian access through the provision of a gate”.
The statement concludes: “The proposal provides a boundary that is sympathetic to the castle and walled garden, with no loss of character.”
The application will now be advertised shortly.
