Primark's Bank Buildings opens after restoration

Primark has reopened its shop at the historic Bank Buildings in Belfast after a "huge undertaking" to restore it following a major fire.

The listed building was almost destroyed by the blaze, which burned for three days from 28 August 2018.

The reopening follows a £100m investment in the rebuild by Primark, leading to the creation of 300 jobs.

A fire service investigation into the cause of the blaze concluded that it had been accidental.

One of the conservation architects who worked on the restoration of the five-storey Bank Buildings said the project was a "mammoth job".

"I think all of us looked at the shell that was remaining and wondered was it possible to save it," said Stephen Douglas.

"There was quite difficult work in the initial days, when it was a dangerous structure, to find out whether it could be saved.

"There was a lot of disruption and trading was interrupted but at the same time we had a building that was one of the key historic buildings in the centre of Belfast, representing the Victorian heyday of the trading city."

"Also the social history side of it - everyone in Belfast has some connection with the building, whether we shopped in the building or worked in the building, everyone would have a story to tell.

He said that rebuilding the stonework involved hundreds of people, including stonemasons from all over Ireland.

"It involved not only medieval techniques of guys with hammers on site restoring and repairing stone but craning in new stone quarried in Scotland that weighed two-and-a-half tonnes," he said.

"[We had to] learn how the building was constructed in the first place as we took it down, to number every stone and detail its condition and then restore it or put it back new."

A safety cordon put in place around Bank Buildings meant 14 nearby businesses were not able to trade for several months.

Kathleen McGovern, from neighbouring Abacus Beads, said that was "really tough".

"I wasn't even allowed into the street, bar a day or two later when a fireman escorted me in to turn out the lights," she said.

"I wasn't allowed back in for months, not even to get the stock to relocate somewhere else."

She temporarily relocated to nearby Queen's Arcade but said she nearly "threw the towel in".

"I just thought I cannot do this - I cannot start from scratch," said Ms McGovern.

"But friends and family and customers rallied behind me and told me: 'You've got to keep going.'"

Even with the city getting busier again, it was hard for Ms McGovern to gauge if the situation was improving for her business because a hoarding remained around Bank Buildings.

"That was hard - we had such a narrow piece of pavement still open here that people thought the street was closed, unless you knew the city centre," she said.

With the hoarding now removed she is hopeful that trade will improve.

"It will bring the city back to life to a great degree because it cut the city in half - it's great to have it open," she added.

The new Primark shop at Bank Buildings is 76% bigger than it was previously, with an extra floor, a Disney café and beauty services.

The company took over the original shop in 1979, four years after a huge fire destroyed large parts of it.

It is hoped that the improvements will bring more shoppers into the store and help compete with online retailers.

"We're hoping this investment will be beneficial for the people of Belfast too and our neighbours and traders in the city centre," she said.

Primark's Northern Ireland manager Jacqui Byers said the company had made a "huge investment" into the shop.

CEO of Visit Belfast Gerry Lennon said the reopening was "exciting news for Belfast".

"It's returned to its former glory and it has opened up a major thoroughfare," he told BBC's Good Morning Ulster.

He accepted that Belfast city centre was still facing challenges, in terms of drug use in the city centre and cleanliness, but said it was a "complex issue that is the responsibility of not just Belfast City council but a range of agencies".

After the blaze, Primark opened a shop at nearby Donegall Place but that has since closed.

The staff who worked there have been moved to the shop at Bank Buildings, making the total headcount almost 500 workers.

Prosecutors have started cases against three companies in relation to health and safety offences arising from the fire.

The charges do not relate to the cause of the blaze.