Housing Plans and Proposals

In 2013, Lower Oldpark became one of six pilot project areas included in the Department for Communities’ (DfC) Housing Led Regeneration initiative’. In 2014, this became the ‘Building Successful Communities’ (BSC) initiative.

BSC is part of the Government’s ‘Facing the Future - Housing Strategy for Northern Ireland’ and aims to use housing intervention as one of the main catalysts for local regeneration.

A BSC Regeneration Forum was established for each pilot area. The Lower Oldpark Forum first met in August 2014. Its role was to develop and take forward plans to tackle the community’s economic, social and physical regeneration needs. Membership was drawn from public bodies and community and church groups. 

The Lower Oldpark BSC Forum agreed an Action Plan for the regeneration of the neighbourhood in 2016. This comprised three physical regeneration ‘Catalyst Projects’ which are summarised below.

• Development of 12 social houses by Clanmil Housing on a NIHE owned site fronting onto Manor Street/ Alloa Street and the former Annalee Court. This scheme will not receive funding through the BSC initiative. A planning application for the scheme was submitted by Clanmil Housing in October 2020 and it remains under consideration although is expected to receive final planning approval in September. The scheme was subject to major delay, and was put at risk,  because NI Water raised concerns about the connections the developer, Clanmil Housing, was proposing to make to the existing surface water and foul water sewers in the area. By late August 2022, a solution had been identified and was awaiting approval from NI Water which was expected in the near future.
• Development of up to 5 affordable owner-occupier three-bedroom  houses by Apex Housing on the open green space site at the Cliftonpark Avenue/ Oldpark Road junction. These properties were completed in March 2021 and were being sold under the Fairshare equity sharing affordable housing scheme. This Catalyst Project also included the development of a new petrol station/ retail unit and six new private houses on the open green space site at the Cliftonpark Avenue/ Crumlin Road/ Landscape Terrace junction. The petrol station/ retail unit was completed in early 2022 while the six private houses are almost complete and expected to be handed over to the purchasers in September 2022. 
• Improvements to the layout of seven Lower Oldpark, 1980’s housing courts. This scheme began in January2021 and was completed in early 2022. The developer was the Department for Communities and the contractor wasLagan Construction. 

In September 2017, LOCA prepared an outline proposal for the development of affordable housing on the open space site that was previously covered by Mountview Court, Beechnut Place, Beechpark Street housing, adjacent to the Oldpark Road peace wall.

From this time, LOCA lobbied Building Successful Communities (BSC) for this scheme to be included in the Lower Oldpark Regeneration Action Plan as a fourth Calalyst Project in April 2018. BSC did not support this and set out a number of arguments in defence of its position. It also placed a number of obstacles in the way of the scheme becoming a fourth Catlayst Project in April 2018. LOCA strongly challenged this approach by BSC.

LOCA was very disappointed in the approach taken by BSC. The Group viewed it as unnecessarily delaying an already long delayed Lower Oldpark regeneration process. 

In a letter to BSC dated 8th June 2018, LOCA advised BSC that, in respect to this site, it will in future drive forward, in partnership with the community, housing regeneration outside the framework of the BSC process.

In October 2018, the first meeting of the new, Lower Oldpark Housing Group took place.. This brought together LOCA, NIHE and local political party representatives for the purpose moving forward the development of vacant Lower Oldpark sites not covered by the BSC initiative. The main focus of the Group was to secure the development of owner-occupier family housing on the site that was previously covered by Mountview Court, Beechnut Place, Beechpark Street housing, . Also, the development of affordable housing and LOCA community facilities on the open, space lying between 62 Cliftonpark Avenue and Alloa Street.

In respect to the Mountview Court, Beechnut Place, Beechpark Street site, LOCA lobbied hard for progress. and by March 2021, an economic appraisal was  being prepared by the NIHE to determine what the NIHE does with the site is nearing completion. 

The Building Successful Communities has funded a number of initiatives, including:

• Provision of a Belfast Bikes station at Girdwood. The bikes were subsequently removed due to vandalism.
• Improvements to facilities within Lower Oldpark Community Centre.
• A contribution to cover part of the cost of providing  new pre-fab premises at Lower Oldpark Community Centre.
• External work to local homes, including, new fencing to the rear of homes in Manor Street, new render to some homes in Mountview Street and the repainting of railings on some properties on the Oldpark Road.
• The preparation of a feasibility study and development plan for the John Hewitt Park and adjacent peace line open space. Outline plans were subject to a community consultation process early in 2018. A related draft feasibility study and development plan was completed in May 2018.