SDLP Councillor Brian Tierney has welcomed a council commitment to progress the proposed new Galliagh and Shantallow community centres to design stage.

Councillor Tierney said: “This is a very significant stage in the process to develop two new community centres in the Ballyarrnett area. A planning application has already been submitted for the Galliagh centre and planners are working through this at the moment.

“Galliagh is a large residential estate which currently has no community centre. We in the SDLP understand the value that a fully functioning community centre can bring to a large area like this and we look forward to working with council and all partners, including residents, to develop this very exciting plan for the area”.

“Shantallow community centre is already a valuable asset within the community for over 40 years. Council officers are currently preparing a Planning Application for temporary accommodation required to facilitate the Decant request from user groups of the existing centre which is currently underway to ensure that the valuable services they provide will continue to be available for local residents”.

“As a local councillor for the area I welcome the commitment from council which will see a further £70K spent in this area. I am also a member of both steering groups for these projects and have been doing a lot of work with the community and voluntary sector in both the Shantallow and Galliagh areas to ensure these projects are delivered for local people.”