Waterways Ireland new Headquarters in Enniskillen

Culture Arts and Leisure Minister, Gregory Campbell, MP MLA, has opened Waterways Ireland’s new £11million headquarters building in Enniskillen.

The Minister cut a ribbon with Irish Government Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Éamon Ó Cuív to mark the official opening of the building.

He said: “The building sits on an impressive site on the waterfront, overlooking Lough Erne, arguably the jewel in the crown of Northern Ireland’s waterways. It is a perfect location for your business and a far cry from the two buildings which Waterways Ireland occupied on a temporary basis for the first few years of its existence.

“The views from the building are spectacular, looking across the water towards the castle and the town centre on the one side and out into the Lough and open countryside on the other.

“Many local people were employed during the construction of this magnificent building and I hope that Enniskillen will continue to benefit economically and socially from having the headquarters building located here.”

Welcoming Minister Ó Cuív and guests, Mr Campbell said: “I am pleased that visitors from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland are here today to celebrate the opening of this magnificent building. I wish to pay tribute to the Chief Executive, John Martin and his staff, to the developer RET Estates Ltd and Mullarkey Pedersen architects for their achievements and the successful completion of the project on time and on budget.”

The Minister also congratulated Waterways Ireland on winning one of Northern Ireland's first Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment (BREEAM) Excellence awards, received from the Building Research Establishment in February 2008.

He said: “It is good to see Waterways Ireland leading the way in delivering environmental sustainability design. Well done to all concerned.”

Notes to Editors:

1. Waterways Ireland is one of the six North/South Implementation Bodies established under the British Irish Agreement in 1999.
2. The organisation has the responsibility for the management, maintenance, development and restoration of inland navigable waterways principally for recreation purposes. Waterways Ireland has regional offices in Carrick-on-Shannon, Dublin and Scarriff.
3. The new headquarters accommodates 70 staff and is a state-of-the-art three story building, constructed within budget. It has its own exhibition space, car park and jetties, and is located on the shores of Lough Erne.
4. The project has complied with the Government’s ’Achieving Excellence in Construction for Northern Ireland’ initiative which promotes design quality and sustainability in construction, whilst achieving best value for money. The building design complies with the Low Carbon Design Initiative and has achieved the highest Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment (BREEAM) score of any building in Northern Ireland. The building’s heating is fuelled by bio fuels & solar panels and was designed and constructed to be accessible to all.
5. Media enquiries should be addressed to the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure Press Office: tel 028 9025 8901 or email: press.office@dcalni.gov.uk. Out of office hours please contact the Duty Press Officer via pager number 07699 715 440 and your call will be returned.