Student flats plan in Sandy Row 'should be resisted because we need social housing instead' says campaigner Billy Dickson - adding that an upcoming public meeting will address the issue

That is the view of Billy Dickson, a founding member of the DUP who has become known as a vocal advocate for the preservation of the area.

He said that the Sandy Row neighbourhood at large is locked in a battle for survival, having faced years of decline.

Plans for an 870-bedroom new block of student accommodation on the old Murray's tobacco factory site were revealed on Tuesday, on empty land next to tightly-packed terraced homes.

Sandy Row is a traditionally-loyalist, working-class neighbourhood on the southern side of the city centre.

In recent years the area has become home to many foreign nationals, including students; census figures show that in the Botanic district electoral area, into which Sandy Row falls, 23% of residents were born outside the British Isles.

Parts of the neighbourhood now lie derelict, while other plots of land have seen apartments built on them.

It was here that the worst of the anti-immigration rioting took place at the start of the month, with a Middle Eastern cafe and supermarket burned.

Mr Dickson, who is now a member of the TUV, and who worked on the preservation of historic artefacts the Ulster Museum for some 40 years, said "people should be fighting to get mostly social housing built along the Linfield Road" (where the student flats would stand).

Such social housing "is the only way Sandy Row is going to survive" he said.

"Unless Sandy Row gets social housing, very, very quickly, Sandy Row as we know it – the historical, cultural, unionist, Orange Sandy Row – will disappear forever."

Could an influx of students bring more money into the area? Mr Dickson is sceptical.

"You see, all the developments that already exist now – the large apartment blocks – have done nothing for Sandy Row. Not a thing.

"The new apartment blocks that already exist in Sandy Row, they're in Sandy Row but they're not a part of Sandy Row."

He is likewise sceptical that the vast Grand Central Station bus-and-rail terminal being built nearby will help either.

The talk among locals is that people are having to move away due to a lack of affordable homes, with the need for social housing "very bad".

As Mr Dickson (78) put it, the chat is "Sally can't get a house, Jack can't get a house – and that's been building up for years".

For the "traditional communities" around Sandy Row and the Donegall Road, it's now "the 11th hour".

He is in charge of the Blackstaff Residents Association, which gets about 30 or so people to its monthly meetings.

He also stressed that there are people from places ranging from Hong Kong to Germany who attend, and "we're not racialist at all".

The next will be on Wednesday September 4 at Olympia Leisure Centre at 6.30pm, and the student flats will be on the agenda.

A spokeswoman for the outfit which will apply to build the new flats, Elkstone, told the News Letter the plans are “still evolving”, with no formal planning application submitted yet.

“Later in the process, Elkstone will be hosting a community consultation period, with a public information event, where individuals will have ample opportunity to learn more about the proposed scheme as well as provide direct feedback on the plans,” she said.

"This is in line with normal planning procedure."