Crumlin Road Courthouse Set for Luxury New Beginning
September 11, 2006
Belfast, Northern Ireland ….One of Belfast’s most historic landmark buildings is
planning to open its doors to the public again for a very different purpose. The
Crumlin Road Courthouse which has been out of use since 1998 is set for a new
beginning as a luxury hotel, according to its owner, Northern Ireland-based
property developer, Barry Gilligan. The development represents a £25M
investment and will create over 200 full and part-time jobs on opening and up to
300 jobs in the construction phase.
Mr Gilligan’s proposals, which were submitted to the Planning Service last
Friday in addition to an urban development grant application to the Department
of Social Development, envisage a luxury 161 bed hotel, with many historical
features retained including the Crown Courtroom, featuring the infamous tunnel
which links directly into its dock from the Crumlin Road Gaol, across the road
from the Courthouse.
Barry Gilligan said:
“The Crumlin Road Courthouse is an essential part of the history of Belfast as
well as being a very beautiful building. I think its use as a hotel provides it with a
new future that will allow many thousands of people to come through it and
appreciate its architecture and its history. In particular, the Crown Courthouse is
an extremely valuable feature that has a multiple of potential uses: for lectures
and talks; business seminars; tourist trail tours and even, as is happening in some
of the world’s smartest hotels, as an occasional private cinema.
“With its close proximity to the City Centre and good links to Northern Ireland transport routes, the Courthouse offers an excellent opportunity for luxury hotel operators to get into the burgeoning Northern Ireland business and tourism marketplace in an absolutely unique building.”
The new design of the building has been carried out by leading conservation
architect, the Consarc Design Group. Managing Partner, Dawson Stelfox said:
“Raised on a tall plinth and looking imperiously down on the Crumlin road and
the Gaol opposite, the County Court building of 1848-50 is one of Belfast’s most
impressive and important buildings. We hope our new designs for its
refurbishment as a hotel have captured the grandeur of the Victorian era as well
as providing the form and function required of a top quality hotel. Certainly the
expansive entrance hall and impressive courtrooms one and two on either side
give the interiors a scale that we feel are perfect for this type of use.”
Gerry Lennon, Chief Executive of the Belfast Visitor and Convention Bureau
welcomed the proposals saying: “With Belfast tourism figures at well over six million last year and continuing to
grow this year, this type of very high quality proposal is exactly what we need
here in order to attract the right type of operator either to expand its portfolio or
for a new entrant to the market. Belfast is also witnessing a big increase in the
number of major conferences and exhibitions being hosted here, so the additional
business and banqueting facilities planned for this development is very
welcome.”
Barry Gilligan explained that the completion of the project would depend on a
number of things: “Obviously, we must secure planning permission for the
scheme though having had a series of pre-application discussions, the responses
have been very favourable; secondly, we will need a government grant to make
this restoration viable and; lastly then we need a high quality hotel operator to
make this reality, my company can design and build this hotel but we need an
operator with vision to come on board, though I have no doubt that this project is
one which will generate much interest in the hotel marketplace, nationally and
internationally” Barry Gilligan said.
“Belfast is a city which has been going through a lot of development recently,
however, the Shankill and Crumlin Road areas have seen very little of this. This
development will change that by creating jobs and opportunities for local people.
I have met with a number of local groups recently who warmly welcomed this
development and I am confident that this proposal can kick-start further
regeneration in the area. Contacts with these groups will be ongoing and I’m
looking forward to working in partnership with them in the coming months and
years.”
The Courthouse is grade B+ listed building and was designed by Charles Lanyon
who also designed several other landmark buildings in Belfast including Queens
University, the Custom House and Belfast Castle.
