Havelock House

Residential development

Havelock House, Ormeau Road, BT7 1EB

About Havelock House

Havelock House is a proposed residential apartment development on the site of former headquarters of UTV Media. Havelock House is situated along the Ormeau Road and was the home of UTV from 1959 until 2018, when the broadcaster relocated to City Quays.


Before becoming a television studio, the original building, built in the 1800s, was a hemstitching warehouse and belonged to James Thomas and Sons Ltd. During the Second World War, His Majesty's Government became the occupier of the building, with it becoming a billet for troops in the city. Ulster Television then acquired the premises in 1959 for around £17,000.


Initially Havelock House contained one studio. A second studio opened in the building in 1962. Construction of an extension to Havelock House began in 1992 in preparation for the station's new franchise period and its upcoming rebranding. The extension was opened on 4 June 1993, the day the station rebranded itself from Ulster Television to UTV. UTV transferred ownership of the building to ITV plc in February 2016. In May 2017, UTV announced a relocation to City Quays 2 and began relocating in 2018. Havelock House went on the market for £3.5million with Savills Northern Ireland handling the sale. The site was acquired by UK development firm, Olympian Homes.


In December 2019, Locka Ltd, a subsidiary of Olympian Homes, submitted a planning application (LA04/2020/0067/F) seeking to demolish the existing buildings and to develop a residential building consisting of 270 apartments, communal courtyard gardens, public realm, 40 car parking spaces and cycle parking. The application was refused by Belfast City Council in November 2020. Reasons given for the refusal included the potential impact on residents on Donegall Pass, close to the Ormeau Road site, and the risk that the apartment block would dominate nearby listed buildings.


Olympian Homes lodged an appeal to the Planning Appeals Commission (PAC) in late November 2020. In October 2021, the PAC upheld Belfast City Council's decision to reject the proposals to demolish Havelock House and to develop the residential development.


In May 2022, Lock Ltd submitted a new Proposal of Application Notice (LA04/2022/0896/PAN) seeking 'Demolition of existing buildings, construction of residential apartment development and associated works'.


In July 2022, the online pre-application community consultation (PACC) went live for the Millbridge House development. This consultation is related to the proposed demolition of Havelock House and the erection of residential apartment development. The plans also includes communal tenant facilities, on site management services, on site car parking and communal outdoor landscaped areas.


In 2023 Genova Northwest Limited purchased the site at Havelock House with the aim to construct a new residential scheme.


On 9th January 2024, demolition works commenced at Havelock House.


In January 2024, Genova North West Limited launched their pre-application community consultation process (PACC) for their proposals for the demolition of existing buildings and erection of a residential development of c. 105 homes with a mix of 1 bed, 2 bed and 3 bed units, including provision of Over 55’s accommodation and 10 no. wheelchair accessible units at Havelock House. There is anticipated vision for 33 no. parking spaces, 10 no. of which are wheelchair accessible.


In April 2024, Genova North West Limited submitted a planning application (LA04/2024/0626/F) proposing a residential development of 104 dwelling units, including social housing and housing for over 55s. It features a mix of family maisonettes, apartments, and wheelchair accessible units, along with landscaping, communal and private amenities, and parking facilities.

Project Information

Units

107

Cost

£50,000,000.00

Floors

4

Planning References

Project Team

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