Agenda and minutes

            An apology for inability to attend was reported from Councillor Campbell.

            The Committee was reminded that the Minister for Regional Development had launched in the City Hall on 30th September the “Belfast on the Move” Transport Masterplan proposals for Belfast City Centre.  The main aims of the proposals were to reorganise traffic management within Belfast City Centre to facilitate the reduction in general traffic levels and encourage walking, cycling and public transport.  The Department for Regional Development had launched a public consultation process on the proposals and had requested comments to be submitted by 30th November.  The Committee, at its meeting on 11th August, had agreed that representatives of the Department for Regional Development be invited to a meeting to outline the proposals and, accordingly, Mr. C. De Burca, Rapid Transport Division, and Mr. S. Pollock and Ms. H. Brady, Roads Service, were admitted to the meeting and welcomed by the Chairman.

            With the assistance of visual aids, Mr. De Burca outlined the background to the development of the Transport Masterplan for Belfast City Centre which had arisen as a result of the 2004 Belfast Metropolitan Transport Plan.  Mr. De Burca then displayed maps which outlined the proposed network layout, the proposed rapid transit city centre network and presented images as to how the plans would affect areas like Wellington Place and May Street.  He then reviewed the proposed improvements for pedestrians and cyclists, which would include the number of controlled crossings increasing from seventy-three to ninety?three, the length of dedicated cycle lanes increasing from 391 metres to 1,353 metres and bus lanes, which are also available to cyclists, increasing from 104 metres to 2,646 metres.

            In conclusion, Mr. De Burca outlined the next steps which would be undertaken.  Following the initial consultation exercise, the Department would consider any responses, develop proposals and then undertake further consultation with stakeholders and interest groups, which would then be followed by a formal consultation process.

            During discussion, the Members made the following points:

·        the reduction in car usage in the City centre and an increase in the number of people using public transport would require a significant shift in public attitudes in order for the transport proposals to succeed;

·        much of the City centre traffic congestion was caused by improper use of junctions, which was not properly enforced by the appropriate agency;

·        a strategic Transport Masterplan was needed to integrate the whole City, including the outer edges.  The proposals would appear to be displacing the problems of traffic congestion from the City centre which would increase the volume of traffic in other areas of the City;

·        the reduction in traffic lanes for general use and the increase in the number of bus lanes needed to take cognisance of Council’s responsibility for waste collection and street cleansing and allow waste collection vehicles to use bus lanes for short periods to enable Council operatives to undertake statutory waste management functions;

·        consideration needed to be given to removing the buses laying over in Donegall Square West and East and inappropriate parking which contributed to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.

            The Committee considered the undernoted report:

“Relevant Background Information

      The Belfast Integrated Strategic Tourism Framework 2010-2014 was agreed in draft format by Development Committee on 29 January 2010 and open for public consultation for four weeks from 2 March 2010.  The Framework has been developed in partnership with Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) and Belfast Visitor and Convention Bureau (BVCB) and is based on an interdepartmental approach across the Council as it impacts not only on Development Committee but Parks and Leisure, Environmental Health, Good Relations etc.

      The final draft was presented to Development Committee on 15 September 2010. Members requested that party briefings be undertaken to review the consultation and amendments before finalising the report. 

      Two priorities identified with the Framework were tabled at Strategic Policy and Resources Committee on 22 October 2010.  That Committee had agreed to scope the Belfast Story as a potential capital project to the Special European Union Programmes Body (SEUPB) under the Peace 3 Priority 2.1 Creating Shared Public Space and to allocate £100,000 additional funds to the Development Committee to progress the Tourism Place Destinations during 2010/2011 period.

Key Issues

      As a result of the Party Briefings and Consultation, the main changes that have been incorporated into the document include:    

-   A greater balance is now reflected between North, West, South, East and Shankill areas.  The Maps will be reworked at publication stage to represent these changes.

-   Tourism Figures have been updated to reflect 2009

-   The Belfast Story has been included as a visionary driver

      The final draft of the Belfast Integrated Strategic Framework 2010 – 2014 has been circulated as Appendix 1.  Changes are highlighted in yellow.  Where text has been replaced, the previous text is show in box at side under “deleted”.

      Once agreed by Council, the Framework will be uploaded on the Council’s website with consultation responses and actions taken to address these responses.  A shorter summary document will be published.

      The Belfast Tourism Forum will be established and chaired by the Lord Mayor or the Chair of Development Committee (subject to availability).  It will be inclusive of key private and public sector stakeholders and will play a key role in overseeing delivery of the Framework.  The first meeting will be an opportunity to launch the document and demonstrate achievements to date.  A key output of the meeting will be to agree a 4 year action plan.

      In relation to the specific actions agreed by the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee, the Tourism Culture and Arts Unit will liaise with Property and Projects to prepare an application to SEUPB under Peace 3 Priority 2.1 for the Belfast Story.  This will focus on working with communities across Belfast to capture local stories and create an exhibition space within Belfast Central Library.  This is a unique opportunity as the Belfast Central Library is undergoing redevelopment work in the region of £32 million and the Peace 3 Priority 2.1 currently has a fund of €29 million.

      The  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

            The Director submitted for the Committee’s consideration the undernoted report:

“Relevant Background Information

      Members will be aware that at a meeting of the Development Committee on 12 May 2010, approval and budget was given to develop the Nashville SisterCity relationship and 2010/11 Action Plan and its implementation. It was agreed that an update report in relation to planning and preparation will be brought to Committee.

      Members will also be aware that new partnerships have been formed to deliver the Belfast Nashville 2010 /11 Action Plan, which has been greatly expanded to include not only culture and tourism, but education, economic development, genealogy, literary tourism, music tourism, international exhibitions, international marketing, creative industries, film and digital media and communications.  Group membership has been expanded to reflect the new plan and now includes formal partnerships with the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Queen’s University.  The group meets on a bi-monthly basis in order to achieve economic benefits from the SisterCity relationship. 

      The Action Plan is delivered by the Belfast Nashville Advisory Group, which includes representatives from the leisure and cultural sector, historical groups, genealogy associations, community development, media and educational organisations.  The aim is to explore, agree and implement identified areas of cultural, tourism and economic development and collaboration between the two cities, and to co-ordinate and support the activities taking place between both cities and better maximise economic outputs from Sister City Nashville.

Key Issues

1.   Approval is sought from Committee to develop the Nashville SisterCity relationship by approving the contents of the 2010/2011 Action Plan and its implementation. The relationship between the two cities has been greatly strengthened with a focus on achieving maximum economic benefits for Belfast. A considerable number of partner organisations contributed both financially and in kind to sustaining the relationship, including Tourism Ireland, US Consulate, BBC, Ulster Historical Foundation, Ulster Scots Heritage Society, Queen’s University and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.  Feedback from Partners has been circulated.

2.   Support for the Belfast Nashville Songwriters Festival and Belfast Nashville Songwriters Convention is a key component of the Belfast Nashville Action Plan. The 6^th Festival, held on 24–28 February 2010, increased dramatically in profile and scale and included over 100 Songwriters, 30 Concerts and 20 Seminars.  It attracted higher profile artists to Belfast and hence successful local musicians.  Visitor numbers have increased by 29% in comparison to 2008 and it attracted over 18% of its visitors from outside Northern Ireland, leading to a much greater economic impact for Belfast. 

      Approval is sought to support the 7^th BelfastNashville Songwriters Festival, scheduled for 23 – 27 February 2011. As part of the ongoing review of Culture and Arts funding provided by the Development Committee as part of the Integrated Cultural Strategy, it is recommended that the support of the Belfast Nashville Songwriters Festival from 2012 onwards will be aligned to the support provided to all festivals across the city through the Culture and Arts funding streams.   

      The  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

Go Belfast Awards

            The Committee was reminded that the Council had been shortlisted in the Go Belfast Awards which was taking place on Friday, 26th November in the Europa Hotel.  The Continental Market, the Ulster Hall and the Belfast Zoo had all been shortlisted for awards, with the final decision to be announced at the event.  The Committee had approved previously the attendance of the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman (or their nominees), along with two members of staff.  In addition, the Parks and Leisure Committee had approved the attendance of its Chairman and Deputy Chairman (or their nominees), along with two members of staff.

            The Head of Economic Initiatives reported that, as the Belfast Continental Market had been shortlisted at the Awards, MPEL, which was responsible for that event, were attending also and had invited representatives of the Council to join them as their guests.  Up to three places had been allocated to the Council.  Accordingly, it was recommended that an additional two Councillors, along with one member of staff, accept that invitation.

            The Committee adopted the recommendation.

Cinemagic 20th Anniversary

            Further to that, the Council had teamed up with Cinemagic, the International Film and Television Festival for Young People, for Reel Business 2010, a targeted meet-the-buyer project for Belfast-based companies based in the Film and Television sector.  The project would bring together a group of leading companies involved in buying, commissioning and developing innovative creative content for the global film and television industry, to meet with key domestic local producers to participate in a series of one-on-one meetings and participatory workshops over two days.  It was envisaged that that project would not only provide new contracts and business leads for the participating business, with the aim to increase profitability and company growth, but would provide creative companies with the opportunity to gain a unique insight into the world of film and television production, with the focus on children’s television, animation, visual Facts and music licensing and production.  As part of that initiative, the Council had been allocated four places for Cinemagic’s 20th Anniversary Celebrations Dinner and Awards in the City Hall on 26th November, which was on the same date as the Go Belfast event.  There would be no financial cost to the Council of attending this event.

            After discussion, the Committee agreed that and that approval be granted for four Councillors, together with two members of staff, to attend the Cinemagic’s 20th Anniversary Celebrations Dinner and Awards.