Business

Consultation process starts on £400m Royal Exchange city scheme

How Garfield Street might look under the new plans for Royal Exchange
How Garfield Street might look under the new plans for Royal Exchange How Garfield Street might look under the new plans for Royal Exchange

A PUBLIC consultation process begins next week on a new proposal for the £400 million Royal Exchange scheme, Belfast’s largest-ever city centre regeneration project.

London-based developers Castlebrooke Investments have drafted a planning application they claim will "revitalise the city" and "deliver thousands of jobs" and completely transform an 11-acre area between the Cathedral Quarter and Royal Avenue, which has been neglected for many years.

They will open the plans for the mixed-use retail, leisure, residential, community and office scheme for public comment at three separate consultations at the Mac on February 14 and 27 (from 2pm-8pm) and on February 28 (9am-6pm).

The site had been the subject of various proposed projects for nearly two decades, and at one stage had secured planning permission for a £350m mixed use retail and development scheme which had promised to create 3,000 jobs.

Castlebrooke say that once their current proposal is completed, the redeveloped area - which is bounded by Royal Avenue, Donegall Street, Garfield Street and High Street - will support 3,500 jobs.

The developers took control last year of the strategic Royal Exchange scheme, which had been acquired by US vulture group Cerberus as part of a loan portfolio bought from Ulster Bank.

A spokesman for Castlebrooke said: "Royal Exchange is without doubt Northern Ireland's most significant regeneration project with the potential to deliver thousands of jobs, pre- and post-completion, as well as significant investment of over £400 million.

"The investment will underpin the huge commitment already made by the University of Ulster in this key area of the region's capital city.

He added: “We are pleased to launch the public consultation at the start of a process to revitalise a site which has been badly in need of regeneration.

"While we are ready to invest in the scheme, we want to make sure the whole community has a chance to have their say on the way that investment is delivered. We intend to implement the scheme in a way that protects the important heritage of the area by starting with the refurbishment of Garfield Street and the Northern Bank on Waring Street.

“With Ulster University’s new campus under construction, building under way on several new student housing schemes, Belfast City Council bringing forward plans for a new ‘cultural hub’ and work set to commence on the third phase of the Department for Communities Streets Ahead Programme, there is already substantial investment taking place to enhance the city centre. We believe our scheme will be an important part of this vibrant new vision for Belfast.”

Castlebrooke's statement made no mention of whether it has made a formal approach to department store John Lewis, which has been mooted as a potential tenant

The professional team behind the new plans includes architects and master-planners Chapman Taylor, built heritage specialists Consarc Design Group, planning consultants Savills and commercial real estate company Colliers International.

Dawson Stelfox from Consarc Conservation said: “The team working on the project are very aware of the public interest in this historically important part of the city. The plans submitted for consultation aim to bring economic regeneration that benefits Belfast and its people, but which also recognises the area’s built heritage, listed buildings and cultural significance alongside its potential as a mixed use destination.”

Jonathan Millar, director at Colliers International in Belfast, said: “The City Centre Regeneration Proposals represent a fantastic opportunity for new investment in a part of the city centre which is already attracting interest from national and international funds. This mixed use development will play a major role in joining together Belfast’s two main retail locations and further increasing the overall connectivity of the city.”