Derry City and Strabane District Council has approved plans to restore the historic Boomhall House, a derelict 18th-century estate on Culmore Road.

The planning committee unanimously granted outline permission to the Boomhall Trust for a project that includes a day nursery, cafe, cultural and community floorspace, and residential accommodation.

A planning officer told the committee that Boomhall House was built in the 1770s but has been vacant for more than 50 years. The roof and internal floors have deteriorated, but the external and internal walls remain generally intact.

The approved works include access improvements on Culmore Road, passing bays on the private site road, 104 car parking spaces, site lighting and historic landscape restoration.

The day nursery will be located on the lower ground floor with direct access to an enclosed play area and will have capacity for about 50 children. The ground floor will house conference, meeting and event space, a reinstated library or reading room, a cafe and office space. The first floor and attic will contain serviced guest accommodation with 13 bedrooms.

The building will be restored within its existing footprint to its original height and scale, keeping existing door and window openings, with a new roof and rebuilt chimneys proposed.

Mark McIvor of MCI Planning, acting for the Boomhall Trust, said the trust is committed to remaining custodian of the estate after the project is delivered. He said they want to reinstate its original character using appropriate materials and techniques, sensitively restore its historic gardens and landscape, and enhance the ecological value of the wider estate.

McIvor added that the building will be given a new lease of life as a community hub, open to everyone, with valuable employment, training and educational opportunities, including for local tradespeople and young people interested in traditional building and conservation skills.