A public inquiry has opened into Multi-Development Corporation’s (MDC) plans to develop Belfast’s largest shopping centre.
The hearing, which is scheduled to last two weeks, will focus on MDC’s £200m plans for the city’s Victoria Square area.
Among those due to speak at the inquiry are representatives for Westfield Shoppingtowns, owner of the nearby CastleCourt complex, the Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, Belfast Civic Trust and a range of local businesses.
MDC’s case received an 11th-hour boost this week when Dunloe Ewart dropped its objections to the scheme. The move came after the Northern Ireland’s Department of Social Development confirmed that it had reached agreement with Dunloe on how its rival Cathedral Way retail scheme could co-exist with Dutch group MDC’s plans.
Dunloe had been at loggerheads with the department over its decision to grant preferred bidder status to MDC, but now plans a complementary scheme with a clearly differentiated tenant profile from that envisaged for Victoria Square.
Speaking from the inquiry, Rory Joyce, head of planning for Drivers Jonas, which has been advising the Belfast Regeneration Office on city centre retail regeneration opportunities, said: “If successful, the subsequent redevelopment of Victoria Square will provide a significant uplift in the retail offer provided in Belfast, enabling retailers such as House of Fraser who have already expressed an interest in the development, to enter the market.”
EGi News 24/01/02
