Ards Council's £2m economic development drive

In a bid to further increase economic development Ards Borough Council has set aside £2.1 million to boost business and jobs creation in the area over the next four years.

With five key strands the council hopes to create up to 20 projects by promoting: business development by encouraging inward investment; tourism development with continuing support for local tourism; urban and rural development in the borough’s town centres and villages; vocational training by the formation of partnerships with educational institutions and training providers; and the development of a knowledge bank to maintain a current source of information for prospective investors.

Under the renewed economic development strategy the council hopes to foster new tourism, boost hospitality, and bolster the town centres. The plan also aims to increase both retail training and promote enterprise awareness.

The Chairman of the Council’s Economic Retail Development Committee, Councillor Alan McDowell said: “This strategy is a practical document which sets out clearly how the Council will be working to bring diversity to our economy, to encourage inward investment and to provide the kind of support which our established and up-and-coming businesses need to survive and thrive in increasingly competitive market places, at home and abroad.

”It will entail substantial investment and we aim to achieve tangible results. To that end how we perform against our targets will be reported on an annual basis.”

Derek McCallan, Director of Development, said that the Council would be working in partnership with other agencies to optimise the benefits of the strategy.

In the three years to 2000 the Council’s previous action plan was credited with the creation of around 130 jobs and channelling a million pounds into the local economy. (SP