Minister for Social Development David Hanson has welcomed the start of building work on the new £5.5 million Healthcare Centre in Londonderry.

The state-of-the-art building, with its modern glass front and attractively landscaped public space, is expected to attract an extra 1,600 people a day into the Duke Street and Spencer Road area, "supporting local shops and businesses, building up the infrastructure and bringing life back into the neighbourhood".

During a visit to the prominent Distillery Brae site, Mr Hanson said: “Unlocking development opportunities through the release of underused land can help bring about much needed regeneration.

"This impressive multi-million pound scheme will transform the Waterside area of the city physically, economically and socially."

The development consists of 2,385 square metres of floor space allocated to the doctors’ practices. Foyle Health and Social Services said it had confirmed its commitment to let a further 1,012 square metres for a wide variety of services including Community Paediatrics, Speech and Language Therapy, Community Dentistry, Midwifery, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, Podiatry, Family Planning, Tissue Viability, Continence, Stoma Care, and Diabetes.

The Distillery Brae Site consists of underused land fronting onto Spencer Road and Duke Street, a row of vacant single storey shops and a car park.

The Department for Social Development (DSD), through the North West Development Office, acquired the one acre site for development in 1998.

Following a development competition in 2000 no viable proposals were submitted and the Department re-advertised the site again in early 2002, attracting four submissions.

Braehead Developments, a consortium of 12 General Practitioners currently based at the Waterside Health Centre, was chosen as the selected developer.

The three medical practices serve a population of more than 25,000 patients.

(MB/SP)