Iconic Belfast courthouse undergoes £25m revamp

Belfast’s Crumlin Road Courthouse is getting set to be transformed into a £25m luxury hotel.

Signature Living Group, the hotel group, will revamp the landmark site as part of a city-wide growth strategy.

The project will be one of five new hotels the developer will bring to Northern Ireland’s capital over the next three years.

Designed by Charles Lanyon, the heritage site dates back from 1850.

It is famous for hosting the trial of the Shankill Butchers – the notorious Ulster loyalist gang that was responsible for the murder of 23 people.

In 1983, 22 IRA suspects were jailed for a total of 4,000 years in the building.

However, it has fallen into a “state of disrepair” in recent times.

Lawrence Kenwright, chair of Signature Living Group, said the firm’s focus will be on “sympathetically restoring the building to its former glory.”

“We see ourselves as the custodians of these important buildings and the courthouse will very much still belong to the people of Belfast,” he added.

“For us, this is an investment in the local Belfast community and, as well as committing around £25m to the restoration project, we will be investing in a series of community initiatives – including the launch of a special apprenticeship academy – in the coming months.”

Belfast City Council chief executive Suzanne Wylie said the boom in tourism in Belfast over recent years required an additional 2,000 beds in the city.