BELFAST City Council is to appoint a Holylands 'Tsar' to create a regeneration scheme for the area.
At the council’s full monthly meeting on Monday, elected representatives agreed to a Green Party proposal calling for the creation of a council role dedicated to solving antisocial behaviour and housing problems in the south Belfast enclave, which is popular with students.
The motion described the recent Freshers Week in the area as "turbulent" and said "little progress" had been made by the council to address the ongoing issues.
It called for the Stormont Executive and universities to work with the council in establishing the new role that will lead a regeneration scheme for the Holylands.
"This role will be properly resourced and empowered to work cross-departmentally and in conjunction with residents and other stakeholders in the area to achieve fundamental changes to the area," the motion stated, adding that the council would "redouble its efforts" to implement recommendations from previous reports into the area, including the Holyland Transition Study, which was published in 2020.
Green councillor Aine Groogan said previous council initiatives and reports on the Holylands problem had "died a death".
She added: "There is too much hand wringing and blaming some other body as to why something can’t be done right now. That has to change."
DUP councillor Tracy Kelly said: "The Holylands is without doubt a grave concern, and the residents living there are at their wits end and no one elected to the council is unaware of the issues."
