£4.5m to facilitate December opening

The sum is part of a total of £6m to be allocated to the Londonderry regeneration firm Ilex in 2011/12.

OFMDFM has also allocated £200,000 for conservation works, £850,000 for the restoration of buildings on site and £400,000 in associated fees all of which will be spent by March 2012.

The Department outlined the proposed capital expenditure in response to an Assembly Question.

Ilex recently invited tenders from event management companies to produce and manage the official opening of the landmark public realm site.

The firm expects between 3,000 and 5,000 people and up to 400 dignitaries to attend the pre-Christmas event.

The budget for the project development, management with all necessary procurement is £20,000 and does not include the cost of the event itself (stewards, radios, creative acts, toilets, hospitality etc.) which Ilex says would be supplementary to this.