By Ryan Sands
A PROPOSAL to convert a vacant Rostrevor convent hall into a multipurpose hall and apartments has been made.
In recent weeks, a planning application seeking consent to carry out works at the listed Church Street building was submitted to council planners by Rostrevor and District Community Limited.
A design, access and heritage statement notes that permission is being ‘sought to retrofit and refurbish the hall building, including its existing rear extension, to provide a multipurpose hall at ground-floor level and two apartments at first-floor level’.
‘The proposals include the careful refurbishment of both the interior and exterior, with a strong emphasis on the retention and preservation of original architectural features and historic fabric within the building and its curtilage,’ it reads.
‘External works are intended to reinstate the hall, as far as practicable, to its original form and character.’ It is highlighted that the building has been vacant since the completion of the new St Bronagh’s Primary School it neighbours.
‘This prolonged vacancy has left the building without adequate maintenance, ventilation or occupation, accelerating its deterioration,’ the document continues. ‘As a result, defects associated with moisture ingress, material incompatibility and general neglect have intensified, placing the building’s historic fabric at increasing risk.’
The statement stresses that ‘the current condition of the hall is a direct consequence of both inappropriate past interventions and sustained disuse’.
‘The continued vacancy of the building represents a significant threat to its long-term survival,’ it says.
‘There is now an urgent and compelling need to secure an optimum viable use that will not only safeguard the significance of the heritage asset but also ensure its ongoing maintenance and stewardship.
‘Without such intervention, further deterioration and loss of historic fabric will be inevitable. ‘In fact, in 2023, owing to its deteriorating condition, the building was placed on the Buildings at Risk Register for Northern Ireland.’
