COUNCILLORS are to consider reintroducing CCTV to the Holylands student area of south Belfast following increased concerns over anti-social behaviour.
More than 300 incidents were recorded in the Holylands last month during freshers' week when throngs of students arrived for the new university term.
Permanent residents in the area described the scenes involving drunken students as "nightmarish" and hit out at "impotent" multi-agency efforts to tackle the problem.
A CCTV system had previously been in place after disturbances on St Patrick's Day in 2009 when crowds clashed with police in riot gear.
But Belfast City Council removed the surveillance cameras earlier this year – just weeks before further disturbances over St Patrick's that saw bottles thrown at police.
At a council meeting on Monday night, it was agreed that a report should be produced to consider reinstalling CCTV.
It will also look at other measures such as using wardens and more rigorously enforcing by-laws, as well as examining the impact of private landlords.
Several residents concerned about trouble in the Holylands attended the meeting.
Alliance councillor Emmet McDonough-Brown, who proposed the motion, said: "Civic leadership requires us to deal with problems that appear intractable.
"The Holylands is fixable and it is important that the council deals with issues that make residents' lives a misery."
The report is expected to be considered by a council committee later this year before a final decision is made.
The original CCTV system was ditched following a council report highlighting its cost.
It found the system would cost up to £150,000 to upgrade and £45,000 to maintain for three years. Council officers advised that there was no budget to invest in the system.
The people and communities committee voted in January to dismantle the system.
In February, Alliance's Mr McDonough-Brown proposed keeping the system for another three years. However, the DUP, UUP and Sinn Féin voted it down.
