From the pages of the Down Recorder, October 24, 2001

From the pages of the Down Recorder, October 24, 2001

20 October 2021

BISHOPSCOURT – The sale of Bishopscourt Motor Racing Circuit should be clinched later today.

It has also been confirmed that the sprawling track, which was put on the market at the start of the month, will remain a race circuit.

Yesterday afternoon the circuit’s current owners, David Beattie and John Giffin, were locked in crucial talks with potential owner, Jim O’Brien from Newry, in a bid to finalise the deal.

Although the going price for the circuit has not yet been confirmed it is believed the final bid may be in the region of half a million pounds.

Last month the Northern Bank changed the locks on the gates of the major complex after months of intense speculation surround its future. At the same time, planning officials announced they were considering taking legal action because the owners had exceeded the number of race meetings they were allowed to run.

Mr Beattie was reluctant to make any public statement before the deal was wrapped up but said he and Mr Giffin are both hopeful they will remain on at the circuit.

STRANGFORD – Strangford Lough’s long awaited ferry, the MV Portaferry II, sailed into local waters yesterday morning.

The new ship, which will replace the smaller MV Strangford as the main vessel on the busy crossing, will carry its first passengers within the next six weeks.

After a number of delays, ranging from the typical Irish weather to technical hitches, the £2.7m ferry was finally handed over to Road Service by shipbuilders McTay Marine of Merseyside.

The new ferry has the capacity to carry 28 cars, compared to the present 20. During peak traffic periods in the summer months the old MV Strangford will operate alongside the new ship and will also assume a standby and support role when the new vessel is being serviced.

Strangford councillor, Peter Craig, said the local community is delighted that the new vessel has finally docked on local waters adding that everyone is pleased to welcome the MV Portaferry II at long last.

“It is great to have the new ferry at last and after quite few delays it will be good when passengers finally get to travel on the ship. Although the MV Strangford has served the community well over the past number of years recently there have been a few problems with the ferry.”

KILLYLEAGH – Down Council is under pressure to make a decision about the creation of a reptile house at Delamont Country Park in Killyleagh.

Councillors have been warned that they may lose the £600,000 Reptile Zone project if they do not soon enter into formal negotiations with the project manager, Mr Billy Kohner.

The announcement came one week after it was announced that a World of Owls project, also earmarked for Delamont, had been lost to Ballymoney amid claims of council foot-dragging.

It is predicted that the reptile project could draw up to 58,000 visitors to Delamont Park each year and would create up to 10 jobs once it is established.

But confirmation Mr Kohner is considering an alternative location for the project, has led the council’s Recreation and Technical Services director, Mr Frank Cunningham, to warn councillors that urgent action must be taken.

At a meeting of the council’s Recreation and Technical Services committee on Monday evening, Mr Cunningham revealed that Mr Kohner was considering another option and had therefore requested a decision about whether or not Down Council wants to go ahead with the scheme.

“We have to give the project’s promoters a commitment that we are serious and that we will do business with them following a full council meeting, otherwise we will be accused of dithering,” said Mr Cunningham.

CROSSGAR – Those responsible for an anthrax scare in Crossgar last week could face up to six months in prison.

Police are continuing to investigate the origin of a package which was posted to a Crossgar family at the centre of the scare last week.

The family, from Raleigh Road, outside the village, contacted fire and ambulance crew when they discovered white powder in a letter which was posted to their house on Wednesday.

Three people, understood to be one man, his daughter and grandchild, were taken to Downe Hospital after they were decontaminated by experts at their own home.

Although a forensic team has since confirmed that the substance in the envelope was not anthrax, police are continuing to treat the incident as a crime.

A police spokesman said they were investigating the wasteful employment of police time which could incur a six month prison sentence. 

Earlier this week, the RUC confirmed that anthrax hoaxes were similar to bomb scares.

ARDGLASS – Council street cleaners have become the latest target for a gang of thugs in Ardglass.

The men were working in the village on Saturday morning when they came under attack from a number of youths who started throwing beer bottles at them. This is just one of a number of similar incidents against council staff which have taken place in the area over the past few months.

It is believed the people responsible for the recent attacks are members of a teen gang that has been running havoc in the village since before the summer.

The same gang has been blamed for the brutal killing of a cat, which was burnt alive in the village last month. Its burnt carcass was left on display with a beer can between its paws and a cigarette in its mouth.

One local resident recently claimed that people in the village are living in fear of the gang that continues to vandalise and destroy property in the village. The man said he also believes some of the teens may even be trying drugs after a number of used needles were found at the dock.

KIRCUBBIN – Strangford Assemblyman, Kieran McCarthy, has reacted angrily to the weekend break-in and vandalism at the civic amenity site in Kircubbin.

The politician said he has received numerous calls from residents in the area including Portaferry, Cloughey and Ballyhalbert about when he described as “wanton destruction” of public property at various locations around the Peninsula.

“Our constituents are extremely annoyed that good facilities provided out of public funds are being systematically destroyed by people who should know better. They are demanding that something be done to halt this behaviour.

DOWNPATRICK – Health officials have once again been urged to do everything in their power to protect the future of Downpatrick’s maternity services.

The call came from three local health campaigners at a meeting of Down Lisburn Trust at the Quoile Conference Centre in Downpatrick on Thursday morning.

During the session, the board was addressed by Fiona Connolly, who is an active campaigner for local maternity services and local councillor Raymond Blaney.

Mrs Connolly claimed that the Hayes Report had disregarded women’s needs during pregnancy.

In particular she rejected proposals made within the Review suggesting that full prenatal maternity services could be provided in Downpatrick while mothers could then travel to Belfast for the birth of their child.

SPA – Police divers were yesterday searching a lake near Spa after a gun and cartridges were discovered by a fisherman.

The double barrel sawn-off shotgun and eight spent cartridges, which were wrapped in plastic, were hooked by a fisherman in water around ten feet deep at McAuley’s Lake on Monday afternoon.

On Tuesday morning, specialist divers began a search of the lake to see if any other weapons or cartridges had been thrown in. Nothing was found.

Police investigating the discovery have said that the gun was probably thrown in to the lake from the water’s edge and one theory is that they believe it was related to criminal activities rather than terrorism in Down. 

The gun, which as taken away for forensic examination, is believed to have been in the water for some time.