Agenda and minutes

            No apologies were reported.

            The minutes of the meeting of 12th March were taken as read and signed as correct.  It was reported that those minutes had been adopted by the Council at its meeting on 1st April.

            Councillor Maskey declared an interest in relation to item 6 (a) “Go Succeed Enterprise Support Service Update”, in that he had received support through the service and left the meeting whilst this item was under consideration.

            The information contained in the reports associated with the following two items was restricted in accordance with Part 1 of Schedule 6 of the Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 2014.

      Resolved – That the Committee agrees to exclude the members of the press and public from the meeting during discussion of the following items as, due to the nature of the items, there would be a disclosure of exempt information as described in Section 42(4) and Schedule 6 of the Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 2014.

            Members were also reminded that the content of ‘restricted’ reports and any discussion which took place during closed session must be treated as ‘confidential information’ and that no such information should be disclosed to the public as per Paragraph 4.15 of the Code of Conduct.  

            The Director of City Regeneration and Development provided the Committee with an update on the Vacant to Vibrant Scheme and outlined the recommendations from the Vacant to Vibrant Assessment Panel following the receipt and assessment of recent applications.

            She advised the Committee that funding for the city centre portion of the scheme was fully depleted and that it was now closed to applications.

            She highlighted the potential for underspends to be realised within the city centre scheme and recommended that a mechanism be put in place to reallocate any underspend to the citywide scheme.

            Accordingly, the Committee:

                    i.          noted the update in relation to the Vacant to Vibrant Programme and that it would be supporting up to 57 businesses/organisations to locate or expand into long term vacant units;

                   ii.          noted that the funding allocated to the City Centre Vacant to Vibrant Grant was now fully committed, and that the scheme was now closed to receiving any further applications;

                  iii.          noted the decision on application V2V130, as outlined within section 3.20 of the report;

                  iv.          agreed the recommended city centre grant awards, as outlined within section 3.19 of the report;

                   v.          agreed the recommended citywide grant awards, as outlined within Section 3.21 of the report; and

                  vi.          agreed the recommended mechanism to reallocate any potential future underspend realised in the city centre fund to the citywide fund, as outlined within section 3.22 of the report. 

The Director of Economic Development provided the Committee with an update in relation to the Council’s engagement with the cultural, arts and community organisations that had been affected by the closure of Connswater Shopping Centre.

The Committee noted the engagement to date and the support being offered by the Council to help organisations mitigate the effects of the closure.

            The Committee agreed to receive, at a future meeting, a presentation from the Department for Infrastructure in relation to the Eastern Transport Plan (ETP), and that an invitation be extended to members of the Planning Committee, given the ETP’s strategic alignment with the Council’s Local Development Plan.

            The Committee considered a request from local architect Mr. M. Hackett to present at a future meeting on the proposed alternative design to the York Street Interchange.

            The Committee:

                    i.      noted the request to receive a presentation from Mr. M. Hackett in relation to the alternative design to the York Street Interchange, and that the Department for Infrastructure would be presenting the York Street Interchange Update to the Committee in May; and

                   ii.      agreed to defer the decision to receive the presentation on the alternative design until after the Department for Infrastructure’s presentation in May.

            The Committee considered a request from the Blackstaff Residents’ Association to present at a future meeting of the Committee in relation to a proposal for a workhouse museum and interpretive centre within the grounds of Belfast City Hospital.

            The Committee agreed that, in the first instance, the request be referred to the South Area Working Group.

            The Committee considered the undernoted report:

“1.0      Purpose of Report/Summary of Main Issues

1.1        To provide Members with an update on the Belfast City Centre Regeneration Tracker which captures regeneration and development activity which took place in the City Centre during 2024, as aligned to the eight core policies of the Belfast City Centre Regeneration and Investment Strategy (BCCRIS).  The detail of this report will be provided by way of a presentation at Committee.

2.0        Recommendation

2.1        Members are asked to note that:

i.      An overview of regeneration and development activity which took place in Belfast City Centre and Titanic Quarter during 2024, as aligned to the eight core principles set out in the Belfast City Centre Regeneration and Investment Strategy, will be provided by way of a presentation to be made to this Committee on 9th April 2025. 

ii.     This will include identifying challenges and proposed next steps to help unlock the next stage of the delivery of the Regeneration & Investment Strategy priorities in line with the 2024 BCCRIS 10 year stocktake for discussion with Members.

4.0        Main Report

4.1        As members are aware the Belfast City Centre Regeneration and Investment Strategy (BCCRIS) sets out our collective ambition for the continued growth and regeneration of the city core and its surrounding areas for the period 2015 to 2030. It contains a road map of policies to guide city centre decision-making and key projects that translate those policies into action, aligned to our overarching ambitions outlined within the Belfast Agenda. BCCRIS seeks to address the universal elements of a thriving city centre as well as challenges and conditions that are unique to Belfast and is underpinned by the following eight core principles:

·         Increase the Employment Population;

·         Increase the Residential Population;

·         Manage the Retail Offer;

·         Maximise the Tourism Opportunity;

·         Create Regional Learning and Innovation Centres;

·         Create a Green, Walkable, Cyclable Centre;

·         Connect to the City Around, and

·         Shared space and social impact.

4.2        To facilitate the implementation of the eight policies for the city centre, BCCRIS identified a series of projects aimed at creating a liveable and economically thriving city, alongside,

            identifying the following five Special Action Areas:

·         Inner North

·         Inner West

·         North East Quarter

·         Transport Hub and South Centre

·         Oxford Street and the Eastern Bank

4.3        The city centre provides an important role for Belfast, the Council and the wider region given Belfast’s role as the regional driver and the critical role the city centre in particular plays in terms of employment, investment, tourism, education and a place to live and to visit. , The city centre makes up 2.6% of Belfast’s spatial area but represents the largest employment base employing over 86,000 workers across the various sectors, representing c37% of Belfast’s workforce. Approx 80% of the Councils income comes from the district rate, with the city centre accounting for 41% of Belfast’s non-domestic rates income. The sectors contributing greatest to city centre rates are the office sector (66% of city centre non-domestic rate) and retail (17% of city centre  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5a

            The Committee considered the undernoted report:

“1.0      Purpose of Report/Summary of Main Issues

            The purpose of this report is to:

·         Update members on sector engagement and recommendations relating to potential delivery and support models for Culture Night 2025 in Belfast and subsequent iterations.

·         Seek approval for recommendations within this report and launch a public procurement exercise to deliver the 2025 Culture Night programme up to the value of £150,000

2.0        Recommendation

            The Committee is asked to:

·         Note the contents of the report and Appendix 1 – ‘Culture Night Sector Engagement and Roadmap for Delivery’

·         Seek approval for recommendations within this report and launch a public procurement exercise to deliver the 2025 Culture Night programme including supporting marketing activity up to the value of £150,000

3.0        Main Report

3.1        Background

            At the City Growth and Regeneration Committee on 10th April 2024, Deputy Lord Mayor Cllr Groogan, outlined a proposal to support cultural venues in the City to open on the evening of ‘Culture Night’ in September, within the Belfast 2024 Programme of events. The Committee agreed to refer the decision to the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee for consideration so that further detail of how this could be facilitated, resourced and managed could be provided. After having considered various options, it was agreed that Belfast would not have a Culture Night event in 2024. Reasons included limited officer capacity, limited delivery lead in aligned to budget approval process and recognition of the volume of cultural activity being delivered across the September period as part of the 2024 programme. Papers also presented detail on benchmarking of delivery models in other cities.

3.2        At the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee on 24th May 2024, members agreed an allocation of up to £30,000 to the facilitation of an engagement programme with the wider cultural sector, key funders, partners and other interested parties in relation to culture night, its purpose and potential delivery models from September 2025 and onwards.

3.3        The Culture Night concept

            Established in 2009, Culture Night Belfast was a large scale and free cultural event taking place in the Cathedral Quarter and city centre of Belfast. The concept traces its roots to an initiative of Temple Bar Cultural Trust / Dublin City Council in 2006. The first event in Dublin began as an innovative but relatively modest local event with 40 venues opening free and late in the evening in Dublin’s Temple Bar, expanding citywide in 2007, more than doubling in size with 87 cultural institutions participating. From this foundation, the Culture Night concept has grown in scale and profile becoming an established and popular part of the cultural calendar across over 40 towns and cities throughout the island of Ireland alongside events internationally such as in London, Paris, Berlin and New York.

3.4        Culture Night in Belfast

            Culture Night in Belfast began in 2009 when a number of arts organisations came together to organise the first Belfast Culture Night in September 2010. In 2012/13, the Cathedral Quarter Trust became the custodians  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6a

            The Committee considered an invitation from the Irish Echo for the Lord Mayor to attend its “Heroes of Irish America Awards” in Buffalo, New York, on 16th May, 2025.

            In response to a Member’s question in relation to the Council’s international engagement approach, the Senior Manager, Economy, advised that an update report would be submitted to the Committee for consideration at its meeting in June, 2025.

The Committee:

                    i.     approved for the Lord Mayor to attend and address the Irish Echo ‘Heroes of Irish America Awards’ in Buffalo, New York, on 16th May, 2025; and

                   ii.     noted that the costs associated with the attendance of the Lord Mayor and one officer at the event, would not exceed £3,400, and that these costs would be covered within the International Relations budget for US-based activities. 

            The Committee considered the following requests for market licences:

·       an external market to take place on a temporary basis in the former Europa Bus Station building; and

·       a one-off market as part of the 25th Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival in mid-May, 2025.

            During discussion, the Markets Development Manager and the Senior Manager, Economy, advised that the Market Rights Policy was currently under review and that an update would be provided to the Committee in due course.

After discussion, the Committee approved:

                         i.a licence for an external market to take place in the former Europa Bus Station on a monthly basis over the course of the coming months; and

                        ii.a licence for a one-off market as part of Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival in May, 2025.

            The Committee considered the undernoted report:

“1.0      Purpose of Report

1.1 The purpose of this report is to update members on the Enterprise Support Service (Go Succeed) – the regional initiative to support business start-up and growth that is being led by Belfast City Council on behalf of the 11 councils.

2.0 Recommendations

2.1 Members are asked to:

·       Note and endorse the progress to date on the delivery of the Enterprise Support Service across Belfast and beyond, with the objective of driving more and better businesses

·       Note the update to the current funding position from MHCLG for the 2025/26 financial year

·       Agree to the provision of match funding from Belfast City Council of £314,415 to support delivery for the 2025/26 financial year

·       Agree to support the work to secure resources for delivery beyond March 2026.

3.0 Main Report

3.1 At the August 2024 meeting of this Committee, members were provided with an update on progress to operationalise and deliver the Enterprise Support Service which has been branded as Go Succeed. The service has now been operational for around eighteen months and has reached thousands of potential entrepreneurs and businesses across Northern Ireland. 

3.2 By way of background, members will recall that Belfast City Council led on a successful funding application to the UK Government’s Ministry for Community, Housing and Local Government (MHCLG) for UK Shared Prosperity Fund monies (SPF) to support delivery.  This provided £17 million of support for the period to March 2025; £12 million programme delivery and £5 million for small grants. 

3.3 Belfast City Council, as lead for the service, has now secured additional funding via an application to UK Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF) of £9.2 million for the 2025/2026 financial year, ensuring continuity of the service. The focus over the next year, alongside delivery of the service, will be working to secure a more permanent funding source.  The coming year is considered a “transition” year for Shared Prosperity Fund and work is underway within the NI government departments to consider how they will take a more direct management role in a future Fund from April 2026 onwards. 

3.4 The service aims to be the go-to source for expert business advice across the region. It represents the councils’ collective response to our statutory responsibility and offers a set of connected enterprise support services where individuals, entrepreneurs or businesses can access a continuum of support to meet their needs, depending on their stage of development.

      The concept is that the service will help people get the right support at the right time – and will also help maximise other available funding streams by helping businesses to navigate the complex support ecosystem. 

3.5 The service has been established to deliver across three core areas – Start, Grow and Scale – with tailored support for clients aligned with their growth ambitions. 

·       Start: this element of the service aims to identify individuals with entrepreneurial intentions as well as reaching those individuals who do not have an intention to start a business  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7a