Plans to permanently replace a flood-damaged Asda store in Downpatrick will involve a £22 million investment, the owner of the retail park has said.
Comer Group Ireland is proposing “a multimillion-pound engineering solution” for Ballydugan Retail Park, which was hit by severe flooding on November 1 2023.
The Irish property group said it wants to build three new retail units and a new petrol station alongside a new Asda supermarket at the Co Down retail site.
Asda’s Downpatrick store was effectively condemned in the wake of the flooding after engineers determined catastrophic structural damage left it too dangerous to re-open.
The grocer subsequently erected a temporary store in the car park next to the building.
Celpark Limited, a subsidiary of the Comer Group, said its engineering solution to the flood problem will involve reinforced concrete foundations and slabs supported on new piles and pile caps.
“This type of piled foundation solution is not a stone load transfer platform (as per the original foundations), and is a tried and tested engineering solution used in areas where the ground conditions are poor,” it said in a statement.
The property group is currently engaged in a 12-week public consultation, which will see its plans go on display in the St Patrick’s Centre from 1pm to 7pm on Wednesday (March 27).
A full planning application is expected to be submitted in the coming weeks.
Subject to planning approval, construction works could start in October 2024, with the new Asda potentially ready for the public in early 2026.
The Comer Group was built by Galway brothers Luke and Brian, largely in London during the 1980s.
Its multimillion pound portfolio of interests is now spread across dozens of sites in Ireland, Britain and mainland Europe.
