'Good news for local residents': Green light for two new Belfast hotels and residential nursing care facilities
Planning committee approves hospitality, housing and care projects aimed at boosting tourism infrastructure and meeting growing residential demand
Belfast City Council’s Planning Committee has given the green light this month to two new hotels in the city centre.
The first application approved is for change of use from fast food/restaurant, retail and office space at Lindsay House, Callendar Street - for a 76-bedroom hotel, with ground floor bar and restaurant.
The second is for a change of use from office and retail space in Rosemary Street to make way for a 30-bedroom hotel with associated facilities and café.
The Planning Committee also approved applications for two new nursing care facility developments.
The green light was given to the provision of a 156-bedroom nursing home accommodation at Cromac Place (former Halifax building). This would see the conversion of the site to comprise accommodation units including an ancillary scanning unit, along with ancillary offices and landscaping.
Permission was also granted for the change of use from office space at the Grade B1 listed building Netherleigh House (former headquarters for the Department of the Economy) to provide residential and nursing care facilities. The conversion will include an extension to existing office block and build of 36 assisted living apartments over two four-storey blocks
The Planning Committee also approved a planning application that will see the conversion and long-term future of the former Good Shepherd Centre, a Grade B1 listed building, to residential accommodation comprising 28 apartments (1, 2 and 3-bedroom units). The conversion will include a ground floor extension and reconfiguration to the external layout with amended parking layout and new access from Ormeau Road.
Councillor Ryan Murphy, chair of Belfast City Council’s Planning Committee, said: “We have had a range planning applications through Planning Committee this month which will benefit our residents and visitors alike, through the provision of much needed accommodation in our city.
“It’s great to see plans approved that will further enhance Belfast’s tourism infrastructure, increasing accommodation capacity and providing visitors with a wider range of hotel options.
“It’s also good news for residents with the approval for the development of new apartment dwellings in the south of the city.
“The approval of two new residential care facilities, is also good news for local residents. These facilities will help meet the growing demand for care services and ensure that more people can access quality care services and further the council’s agenda of supporting older people in our communities.”