The winners of the MyBelfastIdea design competition were announced at Architecture Night 2018, an annual event celebrating architecture and the important role it plays in Northern Ireland.

Architects developed a series of ideas in response to the fire at Bank Buildings / Primark in Belfast City Centre.  These ideas, which were the product of a design competition, were unveiled recently at Architecture Night and the winner, titled #BelfastMagnets by Robert McCluskey and Darragh Collins, proposed the creation of an art and cultural quarter along Royal Avenue.  Other entrants included ideas for a city centre playpark, and the pedestrianisation of Castle Place.

The brief for the #MyBelfastIdea Design Competition challenged Early Career Architects to react to the fall-out from the devastating fire at Bank Buildings/Primark in Belfast City Centre by generating ideas for a temporary intervention or interventions to the built environment which will help attract people to the surrounding area.  

Speaking after the winners were announced, RSUA President Joan McCoy said: “The RSUA / JP Corry #MyBelfastIdea Design Competition shows architects have a constructive role to play following the Primark fire.  Belfast is evolving, and we need to think differently about how we design for the future of our city centre.  Through a focus on art and culture, Belfast Magnets offers us a glimpse of Belfast re-vitalised and places people at the centre of the city – where they should be.  We hope these ideas inform policymakers as they work to renew Belfast City Centre.”

Chris Mc Comb, JP Corry Specialist Sales Manager, commented: “This competition gets more difficult to judge each year, with the calibre of entries continuing to be outstanding. The panel of judges were truly impressed by all submissions, and I would like to congratulate Robert and Darragh on their winning design.”