Armagh I can exclusively reveal that a six-year-old, disused BMX bike track in Armagh city centre will welcome cyclists – for the first time – in the new academic year.
The bike track – situated in the Lisanally Lane area behind the Epicentre Youth Club – recently attracted negative attention on July 21, when police made an appeal for young people to avoid the area after receiving an increase in anti-social behaviour reports at the site.
Related: Police appeal to parents over anti-social behaviour at Armagh bike track
It begged the question, why is the site not operational to begin with?
The state-of-the-art track was built at a cost close to £500,00 after planning permission was granted back in 2018 – despite several local objections.
Since then the wheels of progress have remained largely unturned.
In 2020 – over a year after its development – Armagh I revealed that its future was “in limbo” and the track remained out of action as the Education Authority – the body responsible for the site – struggled to source “specially trained” staff to facilitate its use.
In response to a written question tabled by Newry and Armagh SDLP MLA Justin McNulty back in 2020, Education Minister Peter Weir explained the issue: “The Epicentre BMX track is an advanced track and, due to the associated risks with BMX biking, requires specialised qualified staff.
“The EA has advertised for specialist staff three times over the past 14 months but has been unable to successfully recruit to these posts.
Related: New £500,000 Armagh BMX track never used because Education Authority cannot get staff
“The centre therefore has not opened to date.”
There had been no further developments on the status of the track… until now.
In response to the increasing anti-social behaviour, Armagh I contacted the EA for clarity on the track’s future and the response received was the first official concrete line in over five years.
A spokesperson for the Education Authority (EA) said: “The BMX bike track at the Epicentre will be available from September for children and young people accessing EA Youth Services throughout the academic year.”
However, their statement does stipulate that an ongoing problem surrounding open community use of the track persists. They are, nonetheless, exploring ways to ensure that the public – beyond Epicentre Youth Club users – can access the track in the long term.
They added: “Whilst planning regulations currently restrict the use of the track to EA Youth Services only, we continue to actively explore options to diversify the use of the facilities.”
Updates will be made available in due course.
