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While it has submitted its planning application for new headquarters behind Newry Cathedral, Newry, Mourne and Down District Council remarkably, is unable to say how much it estimates it is going to cost ratepayers to build the new council offices.
Asked, since its planning application had been lodged for a ‘Civic Hub’ at Abbey Way in Newry, what was the estimated cost of the project to completion, a council spokesperson said; “Newry, Mourne and Down District Council’s design team is currently updating the estimated costs as part of the stage three design development.
“These updated estimates are due to be received in Quarter 2 of 2023. They will then be presented to the Programme Board and the SP&R (Strategy, Policy and Resources) Committee for consideration. The Council will provide further updates at that stage.”
The costs have kept rising
In September 2019, Council CEO Marie Ward told a media briefing that the estimated cost to build the Council offices was £7m. However, asked what the cost was completed, in other words the building fitted out, Mrs Ward didn’t know.
Just 17 months later however, in February 2021, the Council confirmed to local media a huge jump of £5m in the cost: “The current forecast cost for the Civic and Regional Hub is £12.3m.”
A year later, in January 2022 - the last available figure to build the proposed Council offices - it had risen a further £2.3m to £14.6m.
Since then, the council has had to deal with the cost-of-living crisis and the cost to do business crisis while its own costs skyrocket.
Inflation sits in the region of 10% while construction costs inflation has risen circa 15-20%.
Whatever the new estimated costs, the cost to build the council’s second headquarters will be borne in full by ratepayers - there is no money available from the Belfast City Regional Deal (BRCD)…there are no grants.
Newry is to receive just £5m from the BRCD for public realm works (pavements, lights, street furniture etc) around the council offices and the Theatre/Conference Centre to be built beside the Town Hall.
The estimated cost for that public realm work was £6.1m in January 2022 with ratepayers picking up the extra £1.1m tab and any additional costs since then.
There is another £3m available from the BRCD towards ‘Grade A’ offices (but not the council offices).
In January 2022, the council had spent £1.2m on the Newry City Centre Regeneration projects with the budget at that stage - and this is over a year ago - sitting at £42.8m of which ratepayers were to contribute £33.9m, the BRCD £8m and the Northern Ireland Civil Service committing £874,000 towards their required office space.
However, with the civil service taking offices elsewhere in the city their contribution will undoubtedly be added to the ratepayers’ bill.
