Public to get first look at proposed four-storey i4C innovation centre in Ballymena
- Love Ballymena
- 4 minutes ago
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CGI artist’s impression of the proposed new i4C CleanTech Centre in Ballymena
People in Ballymena will get their first opportunity this week to examine plans for a new four-storey Innovation and CleanTech Centre proposed for the former St Patrick’s Barracks site.
Mid and East Antrim Borough Council is beginning a statutory public consultation on its proposed i4C development, with an in-person event taking place at the ECOS Hub on Wednesday, 12 August.
The project would create a purpose-built centre close to Ballymena town centre containing specialist laboratories, workshops, offices, flexible workspaces and facilities intended to support businesses and entrepreneurs developing new products and technologies.
However, the proposals remain at the pre-application stage and the consultation comes before the submission of a formal planning application.
What is the proposed i4C centre?
The Innovation and CleanTech Centre — known as i4C — is being developed by Mid and East Antrim Borough Council as part of the wider regeneration of the former St Patrick’s Barracks.
Plans envisage a four-storey building bringing together event and collaboration space, specialist laboratories, workshops, flexible workspaces and office accommodation.
The council says the facility would provide businesses, entrepreneurs and innovators with access to specialist equipment, facilities and support, with a particular emphasis on CleanTech.
That includes technologies associated with sustainability, reducing carbon emissions and the transition towards net zero.
Part of the wider St Patrick’s regeneration
The proposed centre would be located within the St Patrick’s Regeneration site at Demesne Avenue, a short distance from Ballymena town centre.
The former barracks occupies a strategically important 15-hectare site, where a much wider regeneration programme is being led by the Department for Communities.
Long-term plans are intended to transform the former military site through mixed-use development, with i4C forming one element of those wider ambitions.
The i4C project is being funded through the Belfast Region City Deal, the wider investment programme backed by the UK Government, Northern Ireland Executive and regional partners.
More than £1 billion of investment is associated with the overall City Deal programme across the Belfast region, covering projects involving innovation, regeneration, tourism, infrastructure and skills.
Public consultation begins Wednesday
The council is now undertaking a Pre-Application Community Consultation (PACC), giving residents, businesses and other interested parties an opportunity to examine the emerging i4C proposals before a planning application is submitted.
A public consultation event will take place:
Date: Wednesday, 12 August 2026
Time: 4.30pm–8.00pm
Venue: ECOS Hub, Kernohans Lane, Ballymena, BT43 7QA
Visitors will be able to view the proposals, speak to members of the project team and provide feedback on the emerging design.
The plans will also be available online at:
The statutory 28-day consultation will run from Wednesday, 12 August until Wednesday, 9 September 2026, with comments accepted through the project website during that period.
Consultation is not the planning application
The current exercise is an important preliminary stage rather than the formal planning consultation.
Any comments submitted during the Pre-Application Community Consultation will not count as formal representations to the planning authority.
If a planning application for i4C is subsequently lodged, members of the public will have another opportunity to examine the detailed proposals and submit formal representations through the planning process.
For now, Wednesday’s event marks the beginning of public scrutiny of what could become a significant new development within the St Patrick’s site, giving residents their first opportunity to examine the emerging plans and question the project team before the proposal progresses further.
