Flats in west Belfast that were once home to hundreds of hospital staff have become ‘an eyesore’ after being left derelict amid growing calls to release the land to make way for affordable housing.
Broadway Towers opened in 1966 as a 12-story tower block that housed hospital staff for almost 50 years.
The complex’s three towers – Broadway, Grosvenor, and Victoria have been derelict since 2015 when around 200 residents, mainly staff from the nearby Royal Victoria Hospital, were evicted.
The site is currently used for excess parking for hospital staff and the Belfast Trust claims it is awaiting the review of the 10-year capital plan, which will ‘assist in determining the use of the site’.
Margaret Graham was a resident during the late 1970s and told the Irish News she is saddened to see the once well-maintained site in its condition today.
“It was just a nice place to live. The accommodation was well maintained during my residency and equipped with all the modern amenities, it was a really solid building and everything on site was kept in good working order nothing ever came apart and it was regularly painted, you felt like a lot of care was put into it,” she said.
“The bathrooms on site were the only room without a window which proved helpful during the Troubles if you worried about a stray bullet coming through a window.
“When we came off duty we would pile into a room and talk about what we had seen and support each other through some of the more difficult cases. It was a really tight community with a true sense of camaraderie.
“I do think it’s just awful to drive by now and see old curtains flapping about through broken windows. The cost of living is hard on anybody and if the site could be restored in line with its original purpose of affordable housing it would really give a bit of a hand up especially if it was for the nurses working in the trust.
“I think there needs to be some engagement with the current nursing students into whether the accommodation in line with its original purpose would benefit them today.
“There is also the history aspect. Bostock House for example had Matron Musson who was a World War Nurse and there isn’t even a plaque to mark her historic presence at the site. I feel a lot of history could be lost if we just demolish the buildings and use the site for car parking. I know car parking is a real issue for staff at the hospital but even some sort of garden plot to house some memories and history would put it to good use.”
Fellow resident Ruth Smith lived in both Victoria and Broadway Tower for three years from 1979.
She told the Irish News demand was high due to their convenient location and modern amenities.
“It was an absolutely wonderful place to live, especially at a time when accommodation was limited. Most people lived in a two up two down and most nurses were renting along the Donegall Road area so it made sense to have this purpose-built accommodation. From what I recall it was in such demand I was on a waiting list for around 18 months.
“I was rooming with a friend in Victoria and the British Army were stationed on top of the tower so you would often hear them moving around. My friend married and moved on so I moved from the Victoria Tower to Broadway which was a single bedsit but still very modern for the time.
“The great thing was there was a staff bus every 15 minutes so we had the choice of it or walking and it saved us having to change on site. It really was ahead of its time.
“It was a happy place, the only negatives that come to mind would be when there was gunfire and we would be rounded up to Bostock’s house to wait it out. Even with that, everyone wanted to live there.
“Looking at their condition now I have to say I’m quite saddened given its past. I think it is awful the site has been left in such a state, it really is an eyesore.
“I think the land would be best used by the (Belfast) trust for affordable housing or released to provide housing to the community to honour its legacy. There’s a lot of history and fond memories there and a memorial garden for the staff would be the icing on the cake.”
MLA Gerry Carroll told the Irish News that the ‘crumbling Towers’ are a ‘reminder of the Housing Executive’s former ambition and success’ in building social homes.
The People Before Profit representative added that through community engagement the land could alleviate the ‘high housing stress’ in the area by providing land for affordable housing.
“Belfast Trust and the Department of Health should act urgently to develop the Broadway Towers site and put this to good use for the community.
“Plans for the site must be developed in close consultation with the community.
“People are aghast that we have so many empty buildings, some 3,200 homes across Belfast and these large properties behind us that could be utilised and brought up to standard to address the housing crisis.
“These crumbling Towers are a reminder of the Housing Executive’s former ambition and success in building social homes. Broadway Towers sit in an area of high housing stress, with people waiting for years on end for a social home.
“Whatever happens to the site, residents in the area should have proper input into future plans - whether for housing or healthcare.”
The party is aiming to tackle the root problems of the housing crisis here with a proposed ‘Peoples Housing Bill’, which is out for public consultation.
A spokesperson for the Belfast trust said that the site remains ‘operationally important’ for the trust as it awaits a review of plans determining use for the site.
“The Broadway Towers site continues to be operationally important for the Belfast Trust providing 327 much-needed car parking spaces,” they said.
“There is also a daycare provision for young children located within the site.
“Belfast trust is awaiting the review of the 10-year capital plan, which will assist in determining the use of the site. It remains of strategic importance to the Trust given its proximity to the Royal Group of Hospitals and as an option to meet the strategic development need for Northern Ireland health service.”
