Listed Building Consent granted for temporary roof on fire damaged building

Listed building consent has been granted to put a temporary roof on a fire damaged building at Merchants Quay in Newry.

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The application for the property at 47 Merchants Quay is in the name of Kerr Property Holdings and was granted 14 April.

The warehouse building was extensively damaged on 30 June 2025 and while the frontage and rear of the building remains intact the roof was completely destroyed.

The warehouse was built between 1840 - 1859 and has been derelict for quite a few years. Planning permission was granted for the 'Pearces Gate' development of apartments, retail and office space in November 2022 with the listed building retained and repurposed. To date no development has taken place. On the building there is a plaque which reads: "James McMahon 1843". McMahon was a ship owner and shipping agent who owned and chartered emigrant ships which sailed between Warrenpoint and North America during the 1840s’ famine.

In their reply to the application the Historic Environment Division stated "The applicant has had extensive engagement with HED. We consider the proposals are justified and acceptable only on a temporary basis to allow for protection and review of remaining fabric, prior to a permanent replacement roof being put in place."

Two conditions were listed, The remaining structure including roof trusses and floor/tie structure shall be retained in place and the winch shall be retained in a secure place on site and explicitly labelled to avoid removal from site. A photographic record of the winch shall be provided to HED.