Your Place And Mine - Greater Belfast - Room With A View

Room With A View - Belfast

Programme Four of "Room With A View" hits the streets of Belfast to investigate whether new developments are creating a modern vibrant city

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UPDATE - KITCHEN BAR ON THE BRINK...

The article below was linked to a BBCNI TV programme called Room With A View, which dealt with planning issues around the province. The subject certainly provoked a strong reaction as you can tell from the many messages in the pages that follow.

When the original article was written in 2002, few people thought that the impressive Kitchen Bar would actually be destroyed.

Rita Harkin from the Ulster Architectural Heritage Society said, "The demise of this 19th century theatre bar is deeply infuriating, given the strength and breadth of opposition.
What does it take to get the message across? Rare gems like the Kitchen bar should be viewed as assets."

But all the talking is over, the wrecking ball is starting to swing.....

Well it seems that news of the demise of the Kitchen Bar is slightly premature, but as the pictures taken today (Tuesday 29th June 2004) show, it's only a matter of time.

One of the foremen on site seemed to think it would be the week after next, 12/7/04, before the bar actually comes down.

The building work, or rather demolishing work, so far has left a huge, open expanse of mangled concrete and leaves the area resembling a war scene.


The site is opened up so much that you can now see the buildings of Victoria Street in the background.		The buildings which faced Chichester Street are sliced apart like the honeycomb chambers of a bee's nest.


This is the view from what used to be the corner of Victoria Square retail centre and Chichester Street. The Kitchen Bar is on the far left of the site.		You can just make out the roof of the the Waterfront Hall, far right. The Laganside redevelopment is one of the reasons why the Victoria Square scheme got the go-ahead.


The Kitchen Bar hides behind the heavy plant machinery awaiting its turn.		"have you turned the oven off?" Pat Catney, (on the right) the bar's owner, begins the clear out.

Taking Belfast into 21st Century

In Georgian and Victorian times there was a thought out design for the city which helped Belfast to develop in an architecturally rich way. If it now wants to be a cutting edge 21st century city the question of quality of design needs to be addressed and a strategy put into place.

Belfast City Council say their goal is to preserve the past while creating a city for the future. To achieve this they believe the inherited architecture which gives the city its uniqueness needs to be conserved, while maintaining a close eye on the quality of new buildings.

We'd like to hear your views on the current state of Belfast. Do you feel Belfast has lost its personality architecturally? What are your thoughts on the new developments that have been taking place around the city?

Victoria Square

In July 2000 plans for Victoria Square (central Belfast), submitted by a Dutch-based multi-national development company M.D.C., were selected by the Department of Social Development over 3 rival schemes. In January 2002 a Public Inquiry was conducted by the Planning Appeals Commission and the results were passed on in mid May to Nigel Dodds, head of the Department of Social Development. These results have yet to be made public. The developer has been waiting over 2 years now with no sign of progress. Is a better system required to process these kind of development plans?

The Kitchen Bar, established in 1859, is due to be bulldozed when the new development at Victoria Square gets underway. Though one of the oldest bars in the city it's not listed. It is proposed that the new complex will include a bar, but Kitchen Bar customers want the old bar to stay.... "....it's one of the few bars left, it's an institution..." "...there were a lot of great pubs in Belfast. They've been torn down in these developments. It's ripped the character out of the centre of Belfast ...

We'd like to hear your views on these large development projects. What benefits do you think they bring to the city? What do you think of their designs - are they bold architectural statements or carbuncles on the skyline?

Planning Minister has his say

The Department of the Environment has a new Minister, Dermot Nesbitt, and the hope is that he will bring about the changes required to the Planning Service. With new legislation and a Belfast metropolitan area plan just around the corner, the Minister spoke about what he would be focusing on in the future.

He wants to see an effective, efficient planning process for those who abide by the proper procedures. But he also wants to see the full rigour of the law applied to those who don't abide by these procedures. The current upper limit for fines is £5,000, which Dermot Nesbitt would like to see increased to £30,000. He's also keen to implement a procedure where planning breaches could be taken to a higher court, where fines would be unlimited.

When questioned about whether it was fair that at present a developer can appeal if his plan is refused, but the objector has no right of appeal, the Minister said this issue was being addressed but he wasn't keen that the planning process be prolonged any more than necessary.

The Planning Minister finished by reiterating how development is essential, but it's a question of how and where. That it's a case of being mindful of all the issues and balancing the needs of the environment against those of 21st century life.

Dermot Nesbitt also took part in a live chat online, after the "Room With A View" programme on Thursday 12th September, 2002. Click this link to read the live chat transcript of this "Ask Event".

What changes would you introduce to strengthen the Planning Service or improve the planning process?
What do you think is required to create a city we can be proud of?
How would you balance preserving our heritage while meeting our future needs?

Share any views and comments you have on planning by e-mailing ypam-online@bbc.co.uk .

Read your responses so far...

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