A £500 million (€588 million) regeneration project that could transform a 12-acre site in the heart of Belfast has been granted planning permission by city officials despite major objections from campaigners. Castlebrooke Investments has said it intends to develop office, retail, hotel and residential projects on the 12-acre site which they have named Tribeca Belfast – a name which many Belfast city councillors had initially opposed. The London group claims its development project will “yield substantial economic benefits including the estimated creation of 1,600 new jobs on completion” for Belfast. Neil Young, chief executive of Castlebrooke Investments, said:“This is the start of a major regeneration for a vital part of Belfast city centre and we are delighted that approval has been granted. The Save Cathedral Quarter (Save CQ) group said an “authentic, organic and richly diverse cultural working population now is under threat”.

Source: The Irish Times January 22, 2020 14:14 UTC