Holywood Exchange
Encyclopedia
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
and Holywood
Holywood
Holywood is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the shore of Belfast Lough, between Belfast and Bangor. Holywood Exchange and Belfast City Airport are nearby. The town hosts an annual jazz and blues festival.-Name:...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. It is beside Belfast City Airport
George Best Belfast City Airport
George Best Belfast City Airport is a single-runway airport in Belfast, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Situated adjacent to the Port of Belfast it is from Belfast City Centre. It shares the site with the Short Brothers/Bombardier aircraft manufacturing facility...
, in the townland
Townland
A townland or bally is a small geographical division of land used in Ireland. The townland system is of Gaelic origin—most townlands are believed to pre-date the Norman invasion and most have names derived from the Irish language...
of Knocknagoney. The site was previously known as D5 and Harbour Exchange. At present the development compromises an 11 unit 13,940 m2 (150,000 ft2) retail warehouse centre with (as of November 2010); Harvey Norman
Harvey Norman
Harvey Norman is a large Australian-based retailer of electrical, computer, furniture, entertainment and bedding goods. It is effectively a franchise and the main brand owned by Harvey Norman Holdings Limited...
, Next Home, Decathlon
Decathlon Group
Decathlon is a major French sporting good chain store, with stores located throughout the world. It started with a shop near Lille, France in 1976. It expanded to Germany in 1986, Spain in 1992 and the United Kingdom in 1999. It entered the American market by purchasing the New England 20-store...
, and BHS-British Home Store (opened in December 2010). Located beside the retail warehouse is a Sainsbury's store and service station, a B&Q
B&Q
B&Q plc is a multinational DIY and home improvement retailer headquartered in Eastleigh, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1969 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kingfisher plc, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange....
store, and an IKEA
IKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
store.
Like the expansion of the Sprucefield
Sprucefield
Sprucefield is a major out-of-town retail park in the townland of Magherageery, County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the southern edge of Lisburn; about one mile from the middle of Lisburn and ten miles from the middle of Belfast. Sprucefield is located beside the M1 motorway and the A1 road...
development, Holywood Exchange has been controversial and the subject of repeated planning problems and legal disputes.
Local firm Osborne King
Osborne King
Osborne King, originally Osborne King & Megran, is a commercial property consultancy firm, based in Belfast, UK and private partnership of chartered surveyors in the United Kingdom. It is among the oldest firms of its kind in Ireland, having been founded in 1947...
are letting agents for the scheme.
History
The first planning application for what was then known as D5 was made by Aquis Estates Limited, Anglia and General Developments Limited and Belfast Harbour Commissioners on 14 November 1995. A five week public inquiry was held in December 1996 and January 1997. In 1997 the Planning Appeal Commission and the Department of the EnvironmentDepartment of the Environment (Northern Ireland)
The Department of the Environment is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The minister with overall responsibility for the department is the Minister for the Environment.-Aim:...
's Planning Service recommended that approval should be granted. Formal planning permission was granted on 13 April 1999. On 21 June 1999 Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council is the local authority with responsibility for the city of Belfast, the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. The Council serves an estimated population of , the largest of any district council in Northern Ireland, while also being the fourth smallest by area...
and The Belfast Chamber of Trade and Commerce applied for judicial review
Judicial review
Judicial review is the doctrine under which legislative and executive actions are subject to review by the judiciary. Specific courts with judicial review power must annul the acts of the state when it finds them incompatible with a higher authority...
of the decision to grant planning permission. On 9 July 1999 planning permission for D5 was quashed as it was judged that the Minister did not take the decision with all the relevant information.
Planning permission for the competing Tesco
Tesco
Tesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...
development on the opposite side of the A2 road had been granted on 28 November 1998. Following the quashing of planning permission for D5 its developers sought judicial review of the permission granted to Tesco, arguing that the same could apply to that development, however this was refused on 17 September 1999. This judgement was slightly controversial, given that the judge refused to rescind planning permission solely because the £13 million Tesco store was almost complete.
The developers resubmitted their planning application and were granted permission on 21 March 2000. This decision was again successfully challenged in September 2000. Following another appeal planning permission was granted in February 2001. The Belfast Chamber of Trade lodged a legal challenge with the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
, however its judicial committee refused to grant the chamber of trade leave to appeal. Construction of the B&Q
B&Q
B&Q plc is a multinational DIY and home improvement retailer headquartered in Eastleigh, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1969 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kingfisher plc, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange....
store commenced in December 2002.
B&Q Holywood Exchange opened in August 2003. Sainsbury’s Holywood Exchange opened in September 2003 with a sales area of 3,809 m2 (41,000 ft2)
The retail warehouse units were not let after completion; they are "the subject of strict guidelines that dictate that only bulky goods can be sold" as a result of the legal challenges to its construction. However in May 2008 The Irish News reported that The Planning Service "is considering an application that would see the addition of a mezzanine floor
Mezzanine (architecture)
In architecture, a mezzanine or entresol is an intermediate floor between main floors of a building, and therefore typically not counted among the overall floors of a building. Often, a mezzanine is low-ceilinged and projects in the form of a balcony. The term is also used for the lowest balcony in...
in the retail warehouse. Retailers say the additional space is necessary for them to display goods." The Irish News named Harvey Norman
Harvey Norman
Harvey Norman is a large Australian-based retailer of electrical, computer, furniture, entertainment and bedding goods. It is effectively a franchise and the main brand owned by Harvey Norman Holdings Limited...
, Next, T.K. Maxx
T.K. Maxx
T.K. Maxx is a retailer with stores throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany and Poland. The company is part of the TJX Companies which also owns other 'off-price' retail chains such as T.J. Maxx and Marshalls in the United States and Winners in Canada...
and Bhs
Bhs
BHS Limited is a British department store chain with branches mainly located in high street locations, primarily selling clothing and household items such as bedlinen, cutlery, crockery and lighting. The company has 187 stores throughout the United Kingdom...
as likely tenants; all selling electric and/or homeware goods.
IKEA
In January 2006 IKEAIKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
announced its intention to build a 25,800 m2 (278,000 ft2) store, its first in Northern Ireland. In May 2006 IKEA amended its application for a larger 29,000 m2 (312,000 ft2) store. The application was approved in December 2006, work on the store began in January 2007 and the store opened on 13 December 2007.
The store includes a 500 seat Restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
, Bistro
Bistro
A bistro, sometimes spelled bistrot, is, in its original Parisian incarnation, a small restaurant serving moderately priced simple meals in a modest setting. Bistros are defined mostly by the foods they serve. Home cooking with robust earthy dishes, and slow-cooked foods like cassoulet are typical...
and Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Shop and has parking for 1455 vehicles. Heating is provided by a 1.2 MW biomass
Biomass
Biomass, as a renewable energy source, is biological material from living, or recently living organisms. As an energy source, biomass can either be used directly, or converted into other energy products such as biofuel....
boiler fuelled by locally produced woodchips
Woodchips
Woodchips are a medium-sized solid material made by cutting, or chipping, larger pieces of wood. Woodchips may be used as a biomass solid fuel. They may also be used as an organic mulch in gardening, landscaping, restoration ecology and mushroom cultivation...
.
Transport
The developers of the Holywood Exchange were able to take advantage of existing road connections. The most important element of these connections was a full flyover on the A2, already built for access to the Belfast Harbour Estate. The Belfast to Bangor railway line runs between the site and the A2. There are proposals for a railway halt to serve both Holywood Exchange and the adjacent Belfast City Airport. However Belfast City Airport argues that constructing the halt adjacent to the airport terminal (further away from Holywood Exchange) would encourage more air travellers to use the rail connection. The Airport has also stated that it will consider providing road access to the airport through Holywood Exchange as a way of reducing congestion on the existing airport access route.On 16 January 2007 the Regional Development Minister
Department for Regional Development
The Department for Regional Development is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive...
David Cairns
David Cairns (politician)
John David Cairns was a Scottish Labour Party politician, who was a Member of Parliament from 2001 until his death. He represented the constituency of Inverclyde. He was the Minister of State at the Scotland Office until he resigned on 16 September 2008...
announced that a feasibility study
Feasibility study
Feasibility studies aim to objectively and rationally uncover the strengths and weaknesses of the existing business or proposed venture, opportunities and threats as presented by the environment, the resources required to carry through, and ultimately the prospects for success. In its simplest...
would be launched into the construction of a rapid transit route linking Holywood Exchange to Belfast city centre. The route would also serve the airport and the Titanic Quarter development.