IHBC Yearboox 2018

R E V I E W A N D A N A L Y S I S 31 The hotel with Titanic Belfast in the background THE HEART OF THE YARD SHARING THROUGH REGENERATION AT TITANIC QUARTER, BELFAST KERRIE SWEENEY T ITANIC QUARTER, just a 20-minute walk from Belfast City Centre, is one of Europe’s largest waterfront transformations. Over the past ten years the 180-acre site has witnessed radical changes, evolving from one of the largest shipyards in the world to a hub of financial services, tourist attractions, education facilities and residential accommodation. While Harland & Wolff’s yellow cranes still dominate the skyline, a welcome reminder that this heavy industry is still very much in business, many of the buildings once associated with the shipyards on Queen’s Island, such as the engineering works, brass works and the Arroll Gantry, have gradually disappeared. Fortunately, some of the shipyard heritage has survived, including a number of slipways, dry docks and pumphouses. Titanic Belfast, the flagship building and visitor attraction, located at the foot of the original Titanic and Olympic Slipways, tells the story of the shipyard, the building and the fate of RMS Titanic through nine interactive galleries. Attracting over four million visitors since it opened in 2012 and with year-on-year growth, it continues to demonstrate that Titanic’s birthplace is in huge demand. When it comes to authenticity, the jewel in the crown is the former Harland & Wolff Headquarter Building and Drawing Offices. Built in phases from 1886 through to the 1920s, the building’s development maps the massive growth of Harland & Wolff, which at its peak employed over 30,000 men and women on Queen’s Island. The two magnificent drawing offices, with their high-arched ceilings and decorative mouldings, were designed to be a statement of quality, a showcase of Harland & Wolff’s craftsmanship. While most yards had temporary drawing offices that moved with the work, these were permanent, designed to capture as much natural northern light as possible, and built far enough apart to avoid casting a shadow when the sun was low. As the shipyard grew and the company expanded, more orders meant more staff and an administration block was added in 1908, with further extensions appearing in 1911 and 1922. The building continued to be adapted until Harland & Wolff left in 1989 when ownership was transferred to Titanic Quarter Limited, the new regeneration company for the area. Competing priorities, the cost of restoration and economic recession hindered plans for the future of the building and by 2012 it had been added to the Buildings at Risk Register. A partnership emerged between Titanic Foundation, the charity established to preserve Belfast’s maritime heritage, and the property developers in a bid to save the building from further decay. Several options were considered, but the preferred solution was to regenerate and repurpose the derelict buildings into a hotel, adding to the visitor infrastructure and allowing public access to the drawing offices and other heritage spaces within. Following the launch of the HLF’s