THE INVESTORS behind Belfast's largest development site have pledged to deliver on the project's lofty ambitions.
The 340 acre Giant's Park on the North Foreshore of Belfast Lough was declared open for business yesterday, with hopes the multi-million pound investment will deliver hundreds of jobs for the local economy and drive private sector investment.
The former landfill site developed by Belfast City Council and part funded by Invest Northern Ireland (£1.6m) and the European Regional Development Fund (£2.2m) offers 200 acres of commercial development land, a £20 million film studio complex and Northern Ireland's first green technologies hub.
Belfast Lord Mayor Brian Kingston said Giant's Park had "huge potential" to deliver physical, economic and social benefits for the city and declared: "We’re expecting a lot of interest".
Awakening the Giant #giantspark #Belfast @belfastcc @irishnewsbiz @BeatCarnival @irish_news @belfast @InvestNI pic.twitter.com/E2wGjW6YjI
— Mal McCann (@MalMccann) May 3, 2017
“Not only does Giant’s Park offer businesses excellent connectivity through our airports and motorways, there’s the obvious additional benefit of being able to recruit from Belfast’s strong skills and talent base," he said.
Moira Loughran, Invest NI’s eastern regional manager believes Giant's Park has the potential to make Northern Ireland a "world leader in investment in green technology".
"The Park will not only benefit local businesses but enhance Northern Ireland’s economic infrastructure and attract inward investment," she said.
“It has the potential to make Northern Ireland a world leader in investment in green technology and to create up to 330 green collar jobs. We will continue to work in partnership with the council to attract investment onto the site and ensure that the ambitions of this project become a commercial reality.”
The Cleantech Hub, an innovative business cluster for companies working in the environmental sector is housed on 40 acres of the southern portion of Giant’s Park and it is hoped will create an estimated 330 jobs in green technologies and generate in the region of £88 million private sector investment for Belfast.
Commercial estate agents Lisney are marketing the hub to potential occupiers, investors and developers, while expressions of interest are being sought by GVA Property Consultants for a commercial leisure led, mixed use development to occupy 200 acres of land within the northern and western portions of the site.
The site is also home to a £20 million state of the art film studio complex, developed by Belfast Harbour, with NI Screen marketing the film studio to its global industry contact network.
Over 1,700m of roads have been installed to improve access to the site and each of the four access roads have been named after Gulliver, in tribute to Gulliver’s Travels - the novel which the beauty of the Cavehill and surrounding landscape famously inspired Jonathan Swift to write.
