THE rebirth of a historic South Belfast building has moved a step closer after a Belfast City Council motion by Alliance Councillor Micky Murray proposing its restoration.

Wilmont House at Lady Dixon Park has lay empty for over a decade and has fallen into disrepair. The two storey building consists of red brick, with a three bay front and a balustraded porch, and was designed by Belfast architect Thomas Jackson.

The current building replaced a property constructed in 1740 by William Stewart, who came from an influential farming family. After changing hands several times, it was sold in 1919 to Sir Thomas Dixon and his wife.

Lady Edith Dixon gifted the property to Belfast City Council and the people of the city in 1959, in memory of her husband, who died in 1950. The house was then used as an old people’s home until 1992, before it closed down.

Until 2013, the house was used for the occasional wedding reception or council event, but ever since, it has sat unused.

Balmoral Alliance councillor Micky Murray proposed a motion at the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee calling for the restoration of Wilmont House.

“This Council, having due regard to the value of our heritage assets across the City, agrees to commission an independent evaluation of the options to restore Wilmont House back into use," the motion stated.

"Such an evaluation should include potential business uses and associated costings for renovation and explore the viability of community or wider civic use.”

Councillor Murray provided a brief history of Wilmont House and emphasised the need to restore the building to use and protect the built heritage of the city generally.

After discussion, the Committee agreed to adopt the motion and agreed also that the process of identifying those Council heritage assets requiring action to be taken to prevent them from falling into disrepair and to address those which already had would be undertaken in the first instance through the Area Working Groups. 

It received full support at Monday's full Council meeting.

"I am very much looking forward to the independent evaluation with the options on the future of the building coming forward," said Councillor Murray.