For many hundreds of years, Lisburn's strategic location on the River Lagan made it an important economic hub linking Belfast and Dublin. The area now known as the Historic Quarter was first laid out in the 17th century. It falls within a designated Conservation Area which includes Market Square, Castle Street and Bridge Street. This area was destroyed by the great fire of 1707 but an attractive 18th century landscape was rebuilt on the original layout and this has remained largely unchanged to the present day.

Lisburn City has a population of around 112,000 of whom 65,000 live in the Lisburn City Centre. The population in the city has doubled since 1961, with a 40% increase in the past 25 years.

Lisburn City Centre has enhanced its position as the civic and retail centre of the City. There are around 500 businesses in the city centre of which around 250 are located in the Historic Quarter. However, ground floor vacancy for the Historic Quarter (17%) is substantially higher than that for the city centre (7%) and rental values are correspondingly lower.

There are less than two hundred households currently in the city centre and approximately fifty in the Historic Quarter. These indicators point towards the need for intensive local regeneration. They also highlight the substantial investment opportunities offered by the Historic Quarter.