BARRY'S: owners to re-market as "development opportunity"
One of Northern Ireland's best-known entertainment landmarks - the famous Barry's in Portrush - is to be re-marketed as both a "going concern" and "a development opportunity".
In a statement, Amusements park owners, the Trufelli family, said they had sought to sell the business since October 2019.
"This has been an intensive process which has been hindered by the Covid pandemic and the resulting economic conditions," the statement added.
"As we return to a more favourable economic environment, our intention is to re-market the business for sale.
"Whilst our hope is that we will be able to sell the business as a going concern, we recognise that it may not be possible to find a suitable purchaser. "
The statement went on to say that they had now "appointed Savills and Philip Tweedie & Company to market the site as both a going concern and a development opportunity."
"Barry’s continues to remain closed in line with Covid restrictions and will not re-open until the sale process has concluded," the statement continued.
"There will be no further comment from the Trufelli family.”
Barry's attracted tens of thousands of visitors every year.
The amusements were a huge part of the seaside resort for nearly a century.
The site, which sits on the Castle Erin Road seafront, was opened by Evelyn Chipperfield and Francesco Trufelli in 1926, who met when the Royal Italian Circus toured Ireland three years earlier.