Ballymena's former town centre landmark is on the move to Kells
Ballymena’s former town centre bandstand is set to be given a new lease of life.
Mid and East Antrim Borough Council has agreed to hand over the previous civic centrepiece to the Kells and Connor Community Improvement Association for a restoration project.
It is anticipated that a community project will see the bandstand cleaned, painted and returned to its former glory and positioned in an open space at Church Road in Kells.
The bandstand was located at the junction of Wellington Street and Church Street in Ballymena but was removed in January 2018 to make way for a new £104,000 canopy structure which was installed as part of a £3.5m town centre public realm regeneration scheme.
The council said at the time: “The previous bandstand covered a small area of the central reservation. It has only been able to accommodate small-scale events, speakers and entertainers broadcasting to a limited audience in that area. As such, it has been under-used in its current location.”
Initially, the council had intended that it would be relocated to the People’s Park in Ballymena.
DUP Alderman William McCaughey said Kells and Connor Community Improvement Association asked if the council would be interested in permitting the community group to utilise it and put it on the village green.
He added:”I am so pleased they approached me to get this resurrected. It has been lying in a corner of a yard. It will keep a local historical artefact from Ballymena in pristine condition for the next 50 to 60 years.”
The decision to hand over the bandstand to the local community group was approved behind closed doors during a discussion at a meeting of the council’s Corporate Resources, Policy and Governance Committee.