Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council’s Planning and Regulatory Services committee has approved bilingual Irish-English street signs for Corcrain Gardens and Ballyoran Hill in Portadown.

The decision was taken at a meeting on 1 July, with seven councillors voting in favour, two against, and one abstention. The same voting pattern occurred for both roads. Those in favour included councillors from Sinn Féin and Alliance, while DUP members opposed and a UUP representative abstained.

The applications had proved contentious, with members of Royal Black Preceptory 1517 and other users of the nearby Corcrain Orange Hall registering strong objections. Despite this, more than two-thirds of householders on the two streets indicated support for dual-language signage, meeting the council’s required threshold for consideration.

However, the threshold is advisory and councillors retain discretionary powers. At a meeting on 26 May, the full council deferred a decision and arranged a legal workshop, which took place on 23 June, to clarify the legal framework.

Following the workshop, Sinn Féin councillor Paul Duffy said he had gained clarity and did not believe street signs would create tensions. He urged the committee to use its discretion to approve the applications.

DUP councillor Kyle Moutray said the workshop confirmed that the two-thirds majority was not the final assessment. He pointed to objections from two Black Preceptories, an Orange Lodge, and a cultural and developmental association. These objectors cited decades of division and violence in the area and argued the signs would contribute to a sense of instability and intimidation in what they described as a shared space.

Alliance councillor Peter Lavery supported approval, saying the high threshold required substantial counter-balancing weight to refuse. He argued shared space did not have to be neutral and that a dual-language sign near an Orange hall could reflect genuine sharing. He said the views of objectors did not outweigh the strong majority of residents.

The recorded votes saw councillors Fergal Donnelly, Paul Duffy, Sarah Duffy, Chris McCartan, Kevin Savage, and John Óg O’Kane of Sinn Féin, along with Peter Lavery of Alliance, voting in favour. Kyle Moutray and Stephen Moutray of the DUP voted against, while Gordon Kennedy of the UUP abstained on both applications.

The decisions could still be challenged when the full council meets on 27 July.