big red crane
21st century Tuesday!!
7 days of shooting theme "red line(s)
The cranes are here to build the biggest skyscraper in Belfast. The Obel.
The 26-storey Obel Tower — a conflation of old Belfast and obelisk — will have 182 apartments with prices starting at £90,000 for a one-bedroom flat up to £475,000 for a penthouse. At £365 per square foot, it is the most expensive development in the city.
It is Belfast’s boldest move yet; the current tallest residential building has seven storeys. Developers have shunned the city centre, conspicuously avoiding building high or using vast swathes of glass. For decades, the city’s waterfront, viewed as nothing more than a wasteland, has been ignored.
The Laganside Corporation was set up by the government in 1989 — a decade before the Good Friday agreement — to mastermind the regeneration of 346 acres of inner-city land, straddling both banks of the River Lagan, which snakes through the centre of Belfast.
Since then, £800m has been spent cleaning up the river and investing in housing, jobs, office space and 700 homes.
Two years in the planning, Donegall Quay exemplifies the momentum of riverside development. Occupying a mere three-quarters of an acre beside the Lagan Weir, the glass tower is a symbol of Belfast’s regeneration.
“It had to be different,” says Gayle Blackbourne, a director of Karl Properties, one of the consortium of developers forming Donegall Quay, which is behind the £45m project. “We wanted a tower. It stands for the future.”
Five years ago such a vision would have been unthinkable, both as a financial investment and due to the security risk. But the developers, the Laganside Corporation and the planners believe it’s time to tackle Belfast’s skyline. “For years buildings in the city have been low-rise with no glass; the Obel Tower is a statement of confidence,” says Doug Garrett, deputy chief executive of the Laganside Corporation.
“The first flats in Laganside were built in 1994. We struggled to sell a two-bed penthouse for £30,000. Banks would not lend on city-centre properties. Today the same flat is £200,000.”
It signals a move back to the original port hub of Belfast that was once one of the busiest parts of the city. In the 19th century it was a mass of industry, the quaysides teeming with workers. The Troubles saw it fade to a muddy mess.
“The interest in Donegall Quay has been colossal,” says Simon Brien, of estate agents Eric Cairns Partnership. “A decade ago nobody would have contemplated living near the river, but now they feel safer and there are more social amenities. Seventy per cent of the flats went under offer on the first day.”
Peter Vaughan of Obel architects Broadway Malyan, whose previous projects include Battersea Reach in London and The Edge in Manchester, feels the city is much like Manchester was five years ago. “The design using clear glass is simple, calm and polite,” he says. “Standing at the gateway to the city, it will mark a moment of arrival.”
As Belfast reinvents itself, developers are out to reap a profit from the peace dividend. Future projects along the Lagan include 100 flats at Victoria Square and sites at Queen’s Quay and Titantic Quarter. Belfast is joining the trend for urban renewal — which can only mean rises in property prices.
should be great for some photo ops too... tho can't say i'll be taken photos from the inside out lol...still a pretty glass fronted skyscraper can make a new challenge. esp if it's all lit up at night!
big red crane
21st century Tuesday!!
7 days of shooting theme "red line(s)
The cranes are here to build the biggest skyscraper in Belfast. The Obel.
The 26-storey Obel Tower — a conflation of old Belfast and obelisk — will have 182 apartments with prices starting at £90,000 for a one-bedroom flat up to £475,000 for a penthouse. At £365 per square foot, it is the most expensive development in the city.
It is Belfast’s boldest move yet; the current tallest residential building has seven storeys. Developers have shunned the city centre, conspicuously avoiding building high or using vast swathes of glass. For decades, the city’s waterfront, viewed as nothing more than a wasteland, has been ignored.
The Laganside Corporation was set up by the government in 1989 — a decade before the Good Friday agreement — to mastermind the regeneration of 346 acres of inner-city land, straddling both banks of the River Lagan, which snakes through the centre of Belfast.
Since then, £800m has been spent cleaning up the river and investing in housing, jobs, office space and 700 homes.
Two years in the planning, Donegall Quay exemplifies the momentum of riverside development. Occupying a mere three-quarters of an acre beside the Lagan Weir, the glass tower is a symbol of Belfast’s regeneration.
“It had to be different,” says Gayle Blackbourne, a director of Karl Properties, one of the consortium of developers forming Donegall Quay, which is behind the £45m project. “We wanted a tower. It stands for the future.”
Five years ago such a vision would have been unthinkable, both as a financial investment and due to the security risk. But the developers, the Laganside Corporation and the planners believe it’s time to tackle Belfast’s skyline. “For years buildings in the city have been low-rise with no glass; the Obel Tower is a statement of confidence,” says Doug Garrett, deputy chief executive of the Laganside Corporation.
“The first flats in Laganside were built in 1994. We struggled to sell a two-bed penthouse for £30,000. Banks would not lend on city-centre properties. Today the same flat is £200,000.”
It signals a move back to the original port hub of Belfast that was once one of the busiest parts of the city. In the 19th century it was a mass of industry, the quaysides teeming with workers. The Troubles saw it fade to a muddy mess.
“The interest in Donegall Quay has been colossal,” says Simon Brien, of estate agents Eric Cairns Partnership. “A decade ago nobody would have contemplated living near the river, but now they feel safer and there are more social amenities. Seventy per cent of the flats went under offer on the first day.”
Peter Vaughan of Obel architects Broadway Malyan, whose previous projects include Battersea Reach in London and The Edge in Manchester, feels the city is much like Manchester was five years ago. “The design using clear glass is simple, calm and polite,” he says. “Standing at the gateway to the city, it will mark a moment of arrival.”
As Belfast reinvents itself, developers are out to reap a profit from the peace dividend. Future projects along the Lagan include 100 flats at Victoria Square and sites at Queen’s Quay and Titantic Quarter. Belfast is joining the trend for urban renewal — which can only mean rises in property prices.
should be great for some photo ops too... tho can't say i'll be taken photos from the inside out lol...still a pretty glass fronted skyscraper can make a new challenge. esp if it's all lit up at night!