Town Centre Health Check publication - p2
1.0 Ballymena Town Centre
1.1 Maps 1-3 in Appendix A illustrate the land use surveys which were carried out by the Plan team in March 2024.
They show the ground, first and second floor uses for all units within Ballymena town centre boundary as defined in the Ballymena Area Plan 1986-2001.
Figure A below shows the number of units present for the various town centre uses in Ballymena in March 2024 and provides a comparison with the Northern Ireland average (Experian GOAD).
Figure A Ballymena Town Centre Composition
|
Ballymena |
Units # 2018 |
Units % 2018 |
Units # 2021 |
Units % 2021 |
Units # 2024 |
Units % 2024 |
NI % average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Convenience |
29 |
4.79% |
36 |
5.99% |
38 |
6.81% |
7.30% |
|
Comparison |
184 |
30.41% |
168 |
27.95% |
176 |
31.54% |
30.07% |
|
Retail Services |
110 |
18.18% |
91 |
15.14% |
93 |
16.67% |
13.86% |
|
Leisure Services |
88 |
14.55% |
99 |
16.47% |
93 |
16.67% |
19.81% |
|
Finance & Business |
69 |
11.40% |
58 |
9.65% |
51 |
9.14% |
8.84% |
|
Vacant |
125 |
20.66% |
149 |
24.79% |
107 |
19.18% |
20.12% |
|
TOTAL |
605 |
100.00% |
601 |
100.00% |
558 |
100.00% |
100.00% |
Source: Mid & East Antrim Borough Council & Experian, 2024
Health Check Assessment for Ballymena Town Centre
Description
1.2 Ballymena is the main town and largest settlement within MEA Borough with a population of 31,205.
Ballymena town centre is broadly defined by Parkway to the north, the A26 to the west, Braid River in the south and Broughshane Street/Church Street to the east.Ballymena is identified as being a Sub Regional Town and Main Hub in the Regional Development Strategy.
The town has an excellent location on the edge of BMUA with easy access to ports and airports.
The town is located on the main route between Belfast and the important tourism attractions of the north coast.
Overall Composition
1.3 Ballymena town centre is the largest in MEA borough and had 558 retail units within the town centre at the time of the town centre health checks in March 2024.
Ballymena has the most comprehensive and diverse offer of retail and services, of the three main towns in the borough and as a result, is the most popular of the three.
There are two main shopping centres within the town centre boundary: the Fairhill Centre and the Tower Centre.
They are both very popular and have both manged to fill most of the vacancies that existed over the last few years, especially given the high number of vacancies that were recorded in the Fairhill Centre in 2021.
Braidwater Retail Park is also located on the edge of the town centre boundary, partially in, and partially out.
Convenience & Comparison
1.4 Convenience goods retail units in the town centre make up 6.81 % of retail units which is marginally below the NI average of 7.3%.
This slightly low proportion of convenience goods in the town centre is a general trend across the Borough.
This is partly due to the prominence of large format convenience retail in the Borough, and the dominance of mostly out of centre supermarkets.
In Ballymena for example, Tesco, located out of the town centre at Larne Road Link dominates the convenience goods market.
Historical composition data for Ballymena (Experian 2018) indicated that the proportion of convenience goods stores was 30.41%, falling to 27.95% in 2021 (Council Survey), however it has surpassed the pre covid figure in 2024 and is now 31.54 % which is above the NI Average of 30.07%.
Services
1.5 Ballymena town centre has a higher than average proportion of retail services and a lower than average proportion of leisure services.
The proportion of financial and business services is marginally higher than the NI average. In terms of retail services, Ballymena town centre has a proportion of 16.67% retail services units.
This is higher than the NI average of 13.86%.
This is a trend present in all three MEA town centres.
Turning to leisure services, Ballymena has a lower proportion of leisure services in the town centre (16.7%) compared with the NI average of 19.81%.
Vacancies
1.6 Ballymena’s proportion of vacant units within the town centre is 19.18% in March 2024.
This is below the NI average of 20.12%.
Ballymena had the lowest vacancy rate of the three main town centres in MEA and it is positive that this figure has recovered well, post covid, from the 2021 vacancy rate of 24.79%.
Retailer Representation
1.7 Ballymena Town Centre includes an extensive list of national multiples and major retailers, testimony to Ballymena being the largest centre within the Borough.
81 national multiples and major retailers were identified at the time of Mid & East Antrim Borough Council centre survey, including H&M, Superdrug, EE, New Look, Next, Primark, River Island andMarks and Spencer.
Experian’s Goad Category Reports historically listed 30 national multiples that had been identified as retailers most likely to improve consumer appeal of a town centres, however Experian have advised that some retailers on the list are no longer trading on the high street or are no longer as prevalent so their list needs updating.
Of the 25 shops on their list still trading or prevalent on the High Street, Ballymena Town has 16 of them with 14 inside the existing town centre boundary.
Average Prime Rents
1.8 Recent Council analysis of town centre commercial property rents revealed that most are between £6 and £10 per square foot with some units on the periphery of the town centre around £3 per square foot and some the area between the two shopping centres around £14 per square foot. (Propertypal.com and Propertynews.com)
Accessibility
1.9 Ballymena is reasonably well serviced by public transport, and Ballymena railway station is located a 3-7 minute walk from the Town centre.
Hourly train services link Ballymena with Belfast and Londonderry and operate daily.
There are four main bus routes into the Town Centre, with 34 services operating each weekday, and 33 services on Saturdays.
These bus routes do not operate on Sundays.
There are also Ulsterbus Services servicing 19 destinations, and Goldline services to Belfast several times daily.
Park and Ride Facilities are located at the Bus/Train Station off Princes Street and Ballee Park and Ride on Antrim Road off A26/ Ballee Roundabout.
The Town Centre is well catered for in terms of parking, with c. 3341 spaces.
The January 2018 Parking Study Baseline Report completed by Systra, identified 1244 private and the council survey in March 2023 identified 2007 Council run car parks.
Footfall
1.10 Footfall counters in Ballymena are positioned at Church Street, Broughshane Street and Ballymoney Street and figures are monitored and supplied to council by Footfall Analytics (EMEA).Footfall figures in Ballymena town centre have fallen by 4.4% from April 2018 to April 2024.
This fall is the smallest of the 3 main towns with Larne at 6% and Carrickfergus at 37.9%
Physical Structure and Constraints
1.11 The Ballymena Flood Map (Map 4, Appendix A) shows potential for some minor river and surface water flooding throughout the town centre.
The majority of river flooding (Q100cc) is located on the western edge of the town centre.Surface water flooding (I200cc) is seen at isolated locations throughout the centre.
The Ballymena constraints map (Map 5, Appendix A) prepared by the Council, identifies defence and industrial heritage assets, sites and monuments and listed buildings.
These assets are located throughout the centre, constraining development in some parts of this area.
A Tree Preservation Order exists along the stretch of the Ballymoney Road which falls within the town centre boundary.
Perception of Crime and Safety
1.12 The most recent data available in the ‘Town Centre Database’, published by the Department of Communities reports that in 2022 there were 1263 incidences of crime within Ballymena Town Centre.
Of the total crimes, 34% were listed as anti-social behaviour, 23% were violence and sexual offences, and 14% were shoplifting.
Environmental Quality
1.13 Public Realm works have recently been completed on Greenvale Street, Pat’s Brae, Castle Street, and the remaining section of Church Street, including widening and re-surfacing of footpaths, soft landscaping, and installation of street furniture.
There are a few core streets that have not yet undergone public realm improvements including Bryan Street, Linenhall Street and Hill Street.
Most central parts of the town centre were found to be a good standard.
The addition of public art and two parklets has added to the vibrancy of the town centre whilst there are several redevelopment schemes on former derelict sites that have improved the town centre as a whole.