Town Centre Health Check publication - p8
7.0 Portglenone Commercial Centre
7.1 Maps 31-33 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 the commercial centre of Portglenone as defined in the Ballymena Area Plan 1986-2001.
A small town centre boundary will be designated for Portglenone in the Local Policies Plan.
Figure G below shows the number of units present for the various town centre uses in Portglenone in March 2024 and provides a comparison with the Northern Ireland average.
Figure G Portglenone Commercial Centre Composition
|
Portglenone |
Units # 2024 |
Units % 2024 |
NI % average |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Convenience |
4 |
5.56 |
7.30% |
|
Comparison |
13 |
18.05 |
30.07% |
|
Retail Services |
19 |
26.39 |
13.86% |
|
Leisure Services |
21 |
29.17 |
19.81% |
|
Finance & Business |
1 |
1.39 |
8.84% |
|
Vacant |
14 |
19.44 |
20.12% |
|
TOTAL |
72 |
100.00% |
100.00% |
Source: Mid & East Antrim Borough Council & Experian, 2024
Health Check Assessment for Portglenone Commercial Centre
Description
7.2 Portglenone is located to the west of Ballymena on the western most edge of the boundary adjacent to Mid Ulster District Council, with the boundary between the two councils defined by the River Bann.
At the time of the 2021 census, Portglenone had a population of 1367 within the settlement limits, making it the smallest in population size of the 5 small towns designated in the Borough, however it has by far the most retail units of all 5 small towns within its commercial centre, illustrating that Portglenone serves a large rural hinterland as well as residents living within the settlement.
There is no bus or train station in Portglenone, however several buses stop in the commercial centre going to and from surrounding towns.
Overall Composition
7.3 Portglenone has a total of 72 retail units within the commercial centre at the time of the MEA council survey which is almost double the next closest unit numbers in MEA small towns.
The headline figures are that like other small towns it is dominant with retail and leisure services in comparison to other uses and it has the highest number of comparison shops of all small towns and the widest diversity of type of comparison shop.
Convenience & Comparison
7.4 At the time of the MEA Council survey, there were 4 convenience units, accounting for 5.56 % of the total units.
This is below the NI average of 7.30%.
There is however a very large Eurospar and a fairly large Supervalu which host bakery and butchery departments within the commercial centre along with separate greengrocer and butchers.
The 13 comparison goods units in the commercial centre account for 18.05% of the total units which, while below the Northern Ireland Average of 30.07%, is notably the strongest comparison percentage of all small towns in MEA, offering all the comparison uses offered in the other small towns along with clothing, jewellry and pet supplies also.
Services
7.5 When considering services, Portglenone has a very strong offer of retail services (26.39%) almost double the NI average of 13.86%, and hosts retail services not seen in other small town in the borough such as dentists and podiatrists.
While there is only 1 financial & business service in the commercial centre there are 21 leisure services (29.17%) which is well above the NI average of 19.81%.
While services make up almost 60% of the retail units they don’t appear to dominate the commercial centre.
There is also an element of browsing, window shopping and comparison shopping that isn’t the case in other small towns in the borough.
Vacancies
7.6 At the time of the MEA Council survey, Portglenone had 14 vacant units, resulting in a proportion of 19.44%.
This is slightly lower than the Northern Ireland average of 20.18%.
As Portglenone has only recently been designated a small town in retail hierarchy terms, and therefore not previously monitored in terms of town centre health check criteria, it is not possible to determine if the vacancy rate is increasing or decreasing until a further review is completed in 2 years’ time.
Retailer Representation
7.7 Portglenone commercial centre has no national multiples present.
Average Prime Rents
7.8 Recent Council analysis of commercial centre property rents online, indicated rates of £5-£8 per square foot. (propertypal.com and propertynews.com)
Accessibility
7.9 Buses stop several times daily in the commercial centre of Portglenone on route to and from surrounding towns.
There is no park and ride facilities or train station in Portglenone.
There are 2 council run car parks in Portglenone with a total of 72 spaces (council survey March 2023).
There is a privately owned free carpark associated with Fullan’s Food Hall (Eurospar) that customers can avail of, along with approximately 100 on-street parking spaces along Main Street.
Footfall
7.10 There are no council run footfall counters in Portglenone commercial centre presently.
Physical Structure and Constraints
7.11 The Flood Map (Map 34, Appendix A) shows limited incidences of any types of flooding within the commercial core.
There are several listed buildings, 1 site/monument and 1 industrial heritage asset located in the commercial core which may have some impact upon development in their vicinity (Map 35, Appendix A)
Perception of Crime and Safety
7.12 The ‘Town Centre Database’, published by the Department of Communities does not report crime statistics for Portglenone.
Environmental Quality
7.13 Portglenone has a good standard of environmental quality with good quality footpaths in the commercial centre area.
There are several semi mature trees and planters in the area of Main Street that widens out for additional carpark, which help the townscape however it is dominated with cars and parking spaces.