THE Bryson Charitable Group's main Belfast city centre headquartered at 28 Bedford Street has been put on the market for just under £2 million.
The four-storey red brick building, a former linen warehouse dating back to 1867, was purchased by Bryson in 1944.
But the charity has grown substantially in recent years, with more than 200 new staff joining in the last 12 months alone, and it plans to redevelop its Ravenhill Road property into a new administration office and service centre to bring more staff and services together under one roof.
Osborne King has been appointed to market the property on behalf of Bryson.
The agency's associate director Richard McCaig said: “We're delighted to be instructed on this historic building in such an extremely prominent and desirable location at 28 Bedford Street, next door to the famous Ulster Hall, also designed by the same architect, William J. Barre.
“This is an excellent redevelopment opportunity and we expect significant interest from a range of occupiers and investors.
“The building extends to 16,000 sq ft over four floors and we are seeking offers in excess of £1.95 million."
He added: “Given the continuing growth in the city's office market, the high profile location opposite Belfast’s newly developed Grand Central Hotel, and the opportunity to create unique accommodation utilising the building’s inherent character, will prove an exciting proposition in the market.
“Hopefully occupier demand for this type of space will see the continuation of the rich heritage of the building which started out as a linen warehouse for 80 years and then transformed into a social welfare innovator through Bryson for the last 70 years.”
The sale comes as McAleer & Rushe have commenced development on the 200,000 sq ft Bedford Square office development which will be anchored by Deloitte.
The relocation to new premises will allow Bryson to grow and provide the services to the 28,000 people they support on a daily basis including employees working right across Northern Ireland, Wales and the Republic.
Bryson has a long history, dating back to 1906, of helping those in greatest need, tackling issues facing society and the environment which include getting young people into work; supporting older people to live at home; helping people out of poverty; working with people seeking asylum and refuge; and providing recycling services with the greatest environmental and economic benefit.
Bryson Group (www.brysongroup.org) employs more than 1,000 staff across 25 locations and has a turnover of around £30 million.
