A gambling centre is to open on the site of a former Ann Summers shop in Belfast after objections from the city’s oldest surviving place of worship failed to sway councillors.
Belfast City Council members have approved a planning application for an amusement arcade and adult gaming centre at Rosemary Street.
First Presbyterian Church, which opened in 1644 and has been at its current location since 1783, opposed the application.
The unit at 51 Rosemary Street, which had been an Ann Summers lingerie and sex toy shop, has been derelict in recent years.
South Belfast DUP MLA Edwin Poots lodged an objection to the application earlier this year. There were three letters of objection sent to the council.
They raised concerns including the nature of the description of the application, the principle of a non-retail use in this location, and the impact on the character and appearance of the conservation area.
Objectors also raised issues of noise, litter, traffic, health and well-being and the impact on the image and profile of Belfast city centre.
At a council meeting on Tuesday, Diana Thompson on behalf of the First Church said: “The approval will cause a cluster of these uses within a small area, and it will be a bad neighbour to the church.”
She added that the council’s own building control said arcades “do little to project an image that Belfast is open for business”.
A representative for the applicant said the existing premises were “dilapidated and a blight on Rosemary Street” and said the £200,000 plan would “support vibrancy by refurbishing a vacant derelict unit, retaining eight jobs and bringing footfall”.