Business

United front - but MIPIM 'is not just about Belfast'

Pictured are: Suzanne Wylie, chief executive of Belfast City Council; Councillor Donal Lyons, chair of Belfast City Council’s city growth and regeneration committee; and Jackie Henry, senior partner at Deloitte and chair of the private sector taskforce leading the Belfast at MIPIM delegation.
Pictured are: Suzanne Wylie, chief executive of Belfast City Council; Councillor Donal Lyons, chair of Belfast City Council’s city growth and regeneration committee; and Jackie Henry, senior partner at Deloitte and chair of the private sector taskfo Pictured are: Suzanne Wylie, chief executive of Belfast City Council; Councillor Donal Lyons, chair of Belfast City Council’s city growth and regeneration committee; and Jackie Henry, senior partner at Deloitte and chair of the private sector taskforce leading the Belfast at MIPIM delegation.

THERE'LL be an outwards show of unity from an 80-strong delegation from Northern Ireland attending the world’s largest international property investment conference in Cannes this week.

But all six councils which form part of the Belfast Region City Deal consortium will be seeking their own slice of the action at MIPIM, an expo which annually attracts 28,000 international property investors, developers and occupiers, many with deep pockets.

The fact that the self-styled 'Team Belfast' grouping is armed with £850 million from Westminster, central and local government funding to grow the region's economy over the next decade will give it more appeal than in past years.

A raft of regeneration schemes like the Belfast Waterside Regeneration project in the East Bank area (the former Sirocco Works) and the Giant’s Park at the North Foreshore will be presented, along with projects in the office, visitor accommodation, event space and education/student accommodation areas, which have been particularly buoyant.

But Belfast's five partner councils in the City Deal won't want to be left out, and insist they don't want to be been as bit-part players in Cannes, according to a source from one of the local authorities.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, an official at one of the councils told the Irish News: "The local MIPIM delegation will travel as one, speak as one, present as one and all sing off the same hymn sheet, and as a result we will be expecting a high level of interest in the impressive Northern Ireland showcase.

"However, there are schemes within each of the individual councils which will merit attention, and despite the united front we're rightly presenting, there'll be some who'll perhaps want to make contacts for themselves.

"If there's a major developer who want to build a hotel or a speculative office block and bring jobs to somewhere other than Belfast, it's understandable that the five other councils might want to stake a claim for themselves and woo that potential contact."

This is the fourth consecutive year a group has represented Belfast at MIPIM, but the first time the delegation will have included representatives from the five councils partnering with Belfast City Council in the Belfast Region City Deal programme of co-investment.

Over the next three days, the delegation will present a portfolio of major real estate investment and development opportunities to would-be investors.

The programme will also include a focus on demand for build to rent and city centre living in Belfast, as well as waterfront regeneration developments.

A number of schemes from private sector schemes from the delegation will also be presented – including the Merchant Square development by Oakland Holdings, headline sponsor of this year’s MIPIM delegation.

Jackie Henry, chair of the private sector task-force leading the local delegation, says the expo highlights the importance of private and public-sector collaboration in attracting investment and building sustainable economic growth.

“MIPIM is a prime example of how a strong partnership approach can provide the optimum environment for businesses to thrive,” she said.

“Investment in real estate not only delivers jobs and economic prosperity, but is essential to our ability to attract international businesses to our city, whilst supporting our indigenous businesses to grow and flourish.

“MIPIM 2019 will be about building upon the successes achieved through our attendance at the conference in the past three years. We’re delivering a strong, engaging programme of events to ensure that Belfast and the region’s compelling investment proposition is reaching new audiences and investor networks."

The Belfast programme of events will be enhanced by a series of ‘special interest’ slots – including two sessions featuring world renowned architect Daniel Libeskind, most famous for the new masterplan for New York’s World Trade Center and Berlin’s Jewish Museum.

The Team Belfast stand will also be home to the iron throne from Game of Thrones, highlighting Belfast and Northern Ireland's burgeoning film and screen industry.