Bagels to boxing: Businesses revitalise abandoned buildings

Steven Orr has opened Bodega Bagels on Royal Avenue

Belfast businesses have been giving a new lease of life to empty shop units in the city.

Funding from Belfast City Council's Vacant to Vibrant scheme has given business owners the boost they need while also helping tackle the city's high levels of vacant buildings.

New York-style bagel shop Bodega Bagels opened on Royal Avenue in October.

Its owner, Steven Orr, told BBC News NI the funding was a "massive help", allowing them to kit out their kitchen space "without having to go into loads of debt, take out loans, and all that stress".

Bodega Bagels has another location at Banana Block in east Belfast and used to have a stall at Trademarket on the Dublin Road before the site closed.

Mr Orr and his partner spotted the potential of the Royal Avenue area a few years ago, realising it could become similar to Queen's and Botanic Avenue when the new Ulster University campus opened.

"[Our premises] was a coffee shop, and we stood outside and looked at it and went, 'This would be perfect. It's on a corner, it's all red brick, there are big windows. It looks like a New York bagel shop.'"

They "took a punt and got in early", he said, with the Belfast Stories visitor attraction also expected to open nearby and plans for a conference centre in the former Belfast Telegraph building.

"We're hoping this becomes a really busy part of town."

The funding helped Bodega kit out their kitchen

'Nobody lives in the city centre'

According to the Department of Finance, of the 5,576 non-domestic properties within the Belfast city boundary, 1,914 were vacant on 31 October 2024.

Of the 17,142 non-domestic properties in the wider Belfast district council area, 3,612 were vacant on 31 December 2024.

Mr Orr said the city centre could benefit if some of its empty office units were turned into apartments.

"We've got loads of student buildings around us and office workers, so we have a good steady footfall," he said.

"But it's at the weekends you realise nobody lives in the city centre.

"If that was to change, everything in the city centre would feel a positive impact."

Clare Guinness, chief executive of the Belfast Chamber of Commerce, said this was a challenge "not just for Belfast but for towns and cities across the region and indeed the UK".

"Given the lack of demand for office accommodation, we need to rethink and repurpose those buildings, perhaps to create homes where we know there is a demand and supply imbalance."

Curtis (left) and Johnny (right) own Sloan's Gym

Another business benefitting from the Vacant to Vibrant scheme is Sloan's Gym on Chapel Lane, run by Curtis and Johnny Sloan.

Memorabilia is still on display from the building's former life as Eastwood's Gym - where Barry McGuigan trained - but it now boasts another unique selling point, a rooftop workout space.

They used most of the funding for an electrical awning which covers half of the roof, creating shelter if it's raining or cold.

When the gym first opened six years ago, Johnny said they saw the potential for the roof area.

"The idea was so brand new. It attracts people to us," he said.

"If you're in an office all day you want to get out and get fresh air."

Sloan's Gym used the funding to create an outdoor gym space

The space is now used for a range of activities, including spin and boxing classes, yoga, pilates, hyrox and health and wellbeing sessions.

"We are the first rooftop gym north and south of Ireland which is pretty cool," Curtis said.

"It went from a vacant, plain, flat roof that had nothing else on it other than a satellite to a fully functional fitness facility."

The roof is the finishing touch for the gym, Johnny said.

"Before, you were always looking out on this bleak flat roof. Now I just feel like the gym's completed and I'm really proud of it."

What is the Vacant to Vibrant scheme?

The Vacant to Vibrant scheme has been operating in the city centre since July 2022, and £500,000 in funding has been secured to roll it out for vacant Belfast properties beyond the city centre.

The first city-wide application was approved this month and is due to be ratified at a full council meeting in February.

To date, 40 city centre applications have been approved and 13 businesses have opened.

There are three levels of capital grants available - up to £2,500, up to £15,000 and up to £25,000.

If a grant application is successful, the applicant must contribute a minimum of 10% match funding.

The scheme is helping tackle the problem of vacant buildings in Belfast

Chair of Belfast City Council's City Growth and Regeneration Committee, councillor Sam Nelson, said the scheme was "not only encouraging more footfall and spend in the city centre but also making our streets more attractive and diversifying the offer for shoppers, workers, students, and visitors".

"Several of these buildings have lain unoccupied for years – and I applaud the people reinvigorating these properties for their vision, energy, and commitment," he added.

For Ms Guinness, of the Chamber of Commerce, Vacant to Vibrant has been positive and is "a welcome initiative", but she added that it is "a very small-scale scheme set against the size of the challenge here".

"The council needs to do more, and at a more strategic level if this growing and persistent issue is to be addressed," she said.

"They also need wider support from government departments and the Executive Office to be able to address these issues for the city."