Development plans from Greenmount campus and The Rabbit Hotel
The council has received a number of new planning applications
The College of Agriculture & Rural Enterprise at Greenmount is proposing the demolition of the existing horticultural centre and development of a new Amenity Horticultural Centre at Tirgracy Road.
The plans have been lodged with Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council.
A Planning Statement said that the new development is proposed to replace the existing teaching and training facility with a new state-of-the-art facility comprising two classrooms, an informal gathering and exhibition space with tearoom for hospitality events, along with cloakrooms and WCs for students accessed from outside and workshops and tool stores to replace the existing spaces.
The report said: “The existing outdated teaching building with workshops and storage sheds will be demolished to release sufficient site area for the construction of the new AHC. It has been determined that the site can be vacated to enable demolition of the entire site and construction of the new building without phasing requirements.
“The new Amenity Horticultural Centre (AHC) is designed to be a bright welcoming space, open to both front and rear aspects to address the front and rear outside spaces used by the students in their training. The central space is designed to enable Industry and Hospitality events to promote the activities of the AHC.”
Meanwhile, the Rabbit Hotel in Templepatrick has applied for retrospective change of use to the Lake House: a detached, three-storey property, set within the wider grounds, which now operates as short term let accommodation rather than a residential property.
A report said that the property is let as a whole unit on a short-term, self-catering basis, to guests of the Rabbit Hotel & Retreat.
The report says that the long-term intention of the applicant is to convert the property into a gym, adding: “The property was previously in residential use and now operates as short term let accommodation, managed by the Rabbit Hotel & Retreat. Temporary permission is sought for a change of use from residential to short-term let accommodation. Bookings are managed centrally by the hotel, on standard hotel terms and conditions and the Lake House is operated to the same standard as the hotel.”
Elsewhere, there are plans to transform a rural guesthouse into a residential support facility for up to 24 people struggling with drug and alcohol dependency.
The proposal, submitted to Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council on behalf of registered charity Teen Challenge UK, seeks permission to change the use of the property at 26 Killead Road, Aldergrove, near Crumlin.
If approved, the development would establish the charity’s first residential centre in Northern Ireland, with applicants highlighting growing demand for addiction recovery services.
And Infrastructure firm Greentown has re-advertised plans for a major operations and maintenance depot on Moira Road in Crumlin.