2010:173 - 80 Mill Road, Portstewart, Derry

The proposed development is located at No. 80 Mill Road in Portstewart, Co. Derry, and relates to an area measuring approximately 210m north–south by 155m at its widest point. The site is currently occupied by a caravan park, its ancillary buildings and associated access. It is proposed that these features be demolished and replaced by a residential development.
There are several recorded archaeological sites within the immediate vicinity of the proposed development. These include two cropmark sites (LDY003–034 and 035) identified from aerial photography and located approximately 130m to the south-west. Additionally, the Industrial Heritage Record revealed that a disused, covered, high-level reservoir (IHR 01356:000:00) is located within the north-east corner of the proposed development.
Although the site is an active caravan park, there are grassed areas between the caravan pitches which were amenable to archaeological testing. Given this, nine trenches were mechanically opened across the site during the course of the archaeological evaluation, which was carried out on 15–16 February 2010. Nothing of archaeological significance was uncovered within these trenches, which showed that the site had been previously disturbed with building work in the south-east corner, while the original ground levels had been raised by approximately 1.5m in the south-west corner.
The former reservoir was also recorded photographically. Examination of this feature revealed that it had been disused for some time and had since been heavily modernised for use in the caravan park. These modifications include the insertion of doorways and steps around the exterior, while the interior had been adapted into a room.
Warren Bailie and David Kilner, Archaeological