BELFAST City Council has agreed to invest over £500,000 in the historic Floral Hall building in the north of the city.
Built in the 1930s and located in the grounds of Belfast Zoo, the venue was used as a dance hall and later a concert space but has lain dormant since the early 1970s.
Following its closure, it fell into a state of disrepair and has been the subject of numerous calls for its restoration.
On Friday, councillors on Belfast City Council’s Strategic Policy and Resources Committee agreed to provide funding to see a new roof installed, pending ratification at the next full council meeting on February 2.
North Belfast councillor Carl Whyte welcomed the funding.
"This half million pounds will mean the installation of a new roof on Belfast's iconic Foral Hall," he said. "Unfortunately since it closed in 1972 the building has fallen into such bad disrepair that an extensive asbestos clearing operation had to be undertaken. That is now completed and the next phase of restoring the building is now fully funded.
"This will make the building fully watertight and the next stage will be to engage with people across Belfast to decide how we bring the Floral Hall back to public use to benefit the community in North Belfast and our city as a whole.
“For many people the Floral Hall holds special memories. It hosted major acts including Pink Floyd and Roy Orbison and was a hub for dances and roller skating. I hope this investment allows a new generation to create their own memories here and plays a real role in regenerating this part of our city.”
The funding, if ratified at full council next week will allocate £565,000 to the second phase of the health and safety works at the Floral Hall.
