Minutes:
The Director of City Centre Regeneration and Development reminded the Committee that a residential population was important for the creation of a successful and vibrant city centre. She highlighted to the Members that the population in Belfast’s city centre was underdeveloped, with between 9,000 and 10,000 residents, and that the Belfast Agenda and the Local Development Plan had set a target of growing the City’s population by 66,000 residents by the year 2035, with a proportion of that growth to be accommodated within the city centre.
She advised the Committee that there was an increasing student population in the city centre, with the relocation of Ulster University having been a major catalyst, and that other cities had illustrated that a student population brought greater vibrancy and footfall to a city centre. However, she pointed out that the growth of student accommodation must be matched with other housing tenures if the city centre was to be balanced and inclusive.
She provided the Members with an update on the work streams which had been progressed since the Committee Workshop which had taken place on 23rd October 2017, namely ‘Understanding the City Centre Residential Market’ and ‘Living over the Shops (LOTS)’.
The Director explained that she was seeking approval to co-commission, in conjunction with the Department for Communities (DfC), a residential housing market analysis for the city centre in order to provide a comprehensive market overview of the residential sector, to include the rental, private for sale and private rented sectors. She outlined to the Members that the research would provide a robust evidence base and options for how the Council could shape and input into city centre housing.
The Members were also advised that a piece of work was also being undertaken to set out the existing funding options and criteria around social and affordable housing in Northern Ireland.
In relation to the Living over the Shops (LOTS) initiative, the Director advised the Committee that a 2016 report on the LOTS programme, which was prepared by Public and Corporate Economic Consultants (PACEC), did not state its support for a programme of grants in order to deliver a significant number of units in Belfast city centre. She explained that, while LOTS played a part in encouraging people to live in the city centre, the time and resources available might be better applied in bringing forward public sector land for development.
She advised the Members that officers had continued to explore how to address vacant units in the city centre and had met with officers from Dublin City Council (DCC) who had operated the Living City Initiative (LCI), a programme which was similar to LOTS, which had been rolled out across the Republic of Ireland. In order to assist the Members in exploring the issues around developing this type of accommodation, the Director suggested that a workshop be held, with officers from DCC invited to outline their experiences.
The Committee noted that other relevant stakeholders would be invited to attend the workshop, including the DfC, Northern Ireland Environment Agency, Planning Service and Building Control.
In response to a Member’s question regarding the Workshop, and given the requirements which might be placed upon retailers, the Committee agreed to also invite representatives from the Chamber of Trade and from the retail sector.
After discussion, the Committee agreed:
1. to the procurement of residential market analysis;
2. to hold a workshop on the Living City Initiative that operated in Dublin and across ROI;
3. that representatives from the Chamber of Trade and from the retail sector be invited to attend the workshop; and
4. that a map illustrating the BMAP boundary be provided with future reports.