Queen's University buys two more city sites for student rooms

It is understood that the Laganbank Road development will be on the site of the former Edge nightclub

Queen's University plans to build a further two student housing schemes in Belfast as part of a £100m investment.

The university has bought sites at Brunswick Street and Laganbank Road in the city centre.

It has also confirmed it has appointed the construction firm Graham to work on a third project on the Dublin Road.

The previously-announced Dublin Road scheme will be a 460-room development, occupying part of the site which was formerly the Movie House cinema.

A public consultation on this site is currently taking place, which will be followed by a planning application.

The university says the schemes represent an investment of up to £100m over the next four years as part of its overall plan to help meet an "unprecedented" increase in demand for student accommodation in Belfast.

Edge nightclub site

Caroline Young, vice president of students and corporate services at Queen's, said the university had been planning for a major increase in demand for student accommodation.

"The three new accommodation sites form part of a longer-term plan by the university to obtain up to 3,000 more rooms," she said.

She said it would have a positive effect on the economy for the foreseeable future in terms of job creation.

It is understood that the Laganbank Road development will be on the site of the former Edge nightclub.

The site already has planning permission for an apartment development.

Queen's has two major accommodation blocks in the city centre at College Avenue and McClintock Street, as well the Queen's Elms student village on the Malone Road.

Kainos bought the Movie House cinema site on the Dublin Road in February 2019 to accommodate its growing workforce.

The rise of home working during the pandemic meant the IT firm did not need as big an office as originally planned, and it sold half the site to Queen's last October.