A NEW boutique hotel is planned for Belfast's rejuvenated Bank Square.
The once neglected part of the city has been enhanced in recent years following £3 milllion of public money on regeneration work.
Now a vacant gap next to Mourne Seafood Bar is to be transformed into a 17-room hotel.
The four floor hotel will also feature a restaurant.
The Department of Social Development has appointed MM Developments to bring the scheme to completion.
It is just the latest new hotel planned for Belfast.
There are plans to convert the Scottish Mutual Building into a boutique hotel while Hastings Hotels has £30 million designs on turning the former Windsor House into a new Grand Central Hotel.
Meanwhile, Bill Wolsey's Beannchor Group plans to spend £4 million converting former offices.on the corner of Victoria Street and Ann Street to a 55-bedroom hotel.
Social development minister Mervyn Storey said: "The developer's proposal for a boutique hotel will be the final piece in the jigsaw of regenerating Bank Square in Belfast city centre, and will complement the £3m regeneration work recently undertaken in the area by my department.
"The hotel development will provide an active frontage for Bank Street that will further enhance the new streetscape and contribute to the physical and economic renewal of the area. It will create job opportunities and attract tourists, which will benefit businesses both locally and in the wider city centre.
"This is an exciting time for Bank Square area, with events such as the weekly Folktown Market and other planned activities now bringing increased footfall to the area. The time is right to move forward with the development of this site and I believe that a boutique hotel will fit well into this up and coming area."
Mark Matthews from MM Developments added: "I am delighted to be selected as the preferred developer for the Bank Street site to continue the rejuvenation of the Bank Square area, building on DSD's recently completed refurbishment of the streetscape.
"I look forward to working closely with the department to deliver the boutique hotel project, which will complement the existing hospitality offered in the square and create new jobs and much needed economic activity in this unique part of the city centre."
The area has changed massively in recent years with a new streetscape and public art pieces.
It received a further boost earlier this week when it was announced the Kelly's Cellars pub would retain its listed status after fears it would lose the tag.
