Unminuted meeting between LGBTQ+ campaigners and top Belfast council officials to talk about idea of a new centre 'was within normal practice'

The LGBTQ+ charity HereNI tweeted last week that, alongside sister organisations Cara-Friend and the Rainbow Project, it had “a series of meetings [plural] with senior staff and the chief executive of Belfast City Council about the future LGBTQ+ Hub”.

The concept of this hub has been talked about for years but no final decision has been taken to build one.

And if and when plans for one are published it will be elected councillors, not unelected officials, who will have to approve it.

So in the absence of a decision by councillors, the council was asked why its officials are meeting campaigners to talk about it.

Belfast City Council responded that its staff had “regular discussions about the potential future development of a dedicated LGBTQIA+ Hub in the city”.

The officers whom the campaigners met with were council CEO John Walsh, director of property and projects Gerry Millar, and director of city regeneration and development Cathy Reynolds.

Though there are no minutes of what was said, “actions from the meeting [singular] were recorded”, said the council – though it would not divulge further details about this. No gratuities were received, it added.

“It is normal practice for council officers to meet with groups to discuss live projects without elected members being present,” it said in a statement.

“Members of the council’s strategic policy and resources committee have received, and will continue to receive, regular updates on progress with this and other emerging capital projects at its monthly meeting.”

The whole story dates back to late 2021, when the council granted funding for a feasibility study into the idea of a new hub.

This study has since been completed but the council is refusing to release it (though the News Letter is fighting this).

In January 2023 the council launched a public consultation “to consider the need for a dedicated LGBTQIA+ hub in Belfast”.

Often overlooked is the fact that there already is such a hub: The Belfast LGBT Centre in Cathedral House, based at 23-31 Waring Street.

The address is shared by HereNI, Cara-Friend, QueerSpace, Trans Pride NI, The Rainbow Project, and pro-choice sexual health advocacy group Common Youth.

The office building is in Belfast's fashionable Cathedral Quarter, a short walk from what Visit Belfast refers to as the city's ‘Gay Quarter’, where there are several bars/clubs tailored specifically to gay/transgender customers.

The most recent major development on the subject of the hub came in August 2023, when the council's strategic policy and resources committee agreed to ask the EU if it would provide funding for the project – a decision which was okayed the following month by the full council.

As to what will happen next, the council told the News Letter: “Members of the strategic policy and resources committee will be provided with an update on the council’s application for PEACEPLUS funding for the project in due course.

“At that stage, members will be asked to consider next steps dependent on the funding outcome.”

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