Northern Ireland’s newest live music venue opens its doors in Co Down this week, following seven years of fundraising, lobbying, planning and extensive refurbishment.
The formerly derelict Court House in Bangor has been transformed into a permanent venue in the seaside city.
A small, local, independent charity has been behind the work to revamp the old Court House at a cost of £1.7m after the iconic listed building lay empty for almost a decade following its decommissioning by the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunal Service in March 2013.
Read more: Transformation of derelict Court House into arts hub in final stages
The Quay Street building was slowly falling into disrepair until organisers of Open House Festival stepped in to transform it into a thriving arts and entertainment hub, which will soon be home to the festival and offer events all year round.
Built in 1866 as a branch of the then Belfast Bank, the Court House became Bangor’s magistrates court in the 1950s and is one of the few remaining Victorian structures on its seafront.
When the court was decommissioned in 2013, it was listed as a Grade B2 building on the Heritage At Risk register. Remaining the property of the Department of Justice, it began to fall into disrepair.
In 2015, a local volunteer lobby group Bangor Shared Space (BSS) raised the possibility of acquiring the building via the Community Asset Transfer process for use as a community or creative venue, and invited Open House to join the campaign.
The scale of such a transition soon became clear, and BSS ultimately decided to step aside and pass the baton to Open House, who had the capacity to pursue the acquisition and restoration of the building for use as an arts venue for social benefit.
Over the following years Open House worked with several government departments to develop a business plan that showed the potential for the building to become an accessible, multi-purpose arts venue and reflected the social and economic benefits it would bring to the local community.
In 2017 they embarked on an initial crowdfunding campaign, hoping to secure £30k to do some urgent works while the major funding application to The National Lottery Heritage Fund was being prepared.
In December 2020, Open House took possession of the building via the first ever Community Asset Transfer in Northern Ireland, with the keys officially presented to Open House founders Kieran Gilmore and Alison Gordon by the Minister for Justice, Naomi Long.
Following a tender process, a design team and building contractors were appointed, and the construction phase began in September 2021, finishing in August of this year.
The major extensive work included the removal of walls and some internal re-modelling as well as the restoration of original features such as sash windows and cornicing.
While predominantly a music venue, the new Court House will also host a regular classic film club, literary and spoken word events, comedy, theatre, and talks, as well as pop-up food and drink events.
“The building work was a long stressful process but the team of specialist architects, and contractors did an exceptional job,” explained Kieran Gilmore.
“There were some wonderful discoveries along the way, such as the original tiled floor that was uncovered in the banking hall come court room that will be our main performance area.
“We were able to use two bars and a slate fireplace from the neighbouring Royal and Windsor Hotels, both of which are due for demolition and both of which have a place in the hearts of Bangor people.”
Rachael Campbell-Palmer has recently joined the Open House team as Court House Director, fresh from running the Black Box in Belfast's Cathedral Quarter.
She believes the possibilities that The Court House will bring are hugely exciting.
“I know the fundamental impact an innovative and creative space like the Court House can have on a place, on individuals and communities.
“This will be a welcoming home for a wide range of arts programming providing entertainment, employment and vital opportunities for collaboration and creative development,” Rachael said.
Kieran is hugely proud to have finally reached this momentous moment as the Court House officially opens its doors on Tuesday.
It comes at an exciting time for Bangor, awarded city status earlier this year to mark the late Queen's platinum jubilee, with planning recently approved for a new two storey food market at the nearby Flagship Centre and the long-awaited regeneration of the Queen’s Parade area.
Kieran said: “It has taken us seven long years and a great deal of trial and error to get to this stage. We’ve had support and help from so many individuals and organisations along the way – too numerous to mention.
“But we want to thank every single person who has played their part in making this project a reality, and in bringing the Court House to life.
“As the third largest city in Northern Ireland, Bangor needs and deserves a dedicated music and arts venue. We’re looking forward to developing an exciting year round programme of events, and working with other local businesses and creatives to draw new audiences into the city centre.
“We hope this is the start of a new era for Bangor, with arts-led regeneration right at the fore.”
Kieran added: “The response from local people and businesses to our crowd funding campaign was phenomenal, confirming public appetite for a restoration project and validating our vision for the building.
“Alongside a charity fund-raising ball organised by Barclays Bank, who also donated £15,000 match funding, that campaign raised over £70,000, triggering an eventual £1.7m of funding from several sources.”
Other key funders of the Court House project include the Department for Communities NI, Garfield Weston Foundation, Arts Council NI, Ards and North Down Borough Council, Foyle Foundation, Swire Charitable Trust, Ulster Architectural Fund, Esme Mitchell Trust, and Ulster Garden Villages.
The equivalent of 15 full-time jobs will be created once the venue is operating at full capacity, including bar staff, event managers and security.
The first performances this Thursday, 20th October will be from up and coming Bangor band The Florentinas, who are championed by Gary Lightbody’s artist development company, Third Bar, alongside Lemonade Shoelace, another local band currently making waves who recently won a prestigious international music contest.
Future acts scheduled to perform in the new venue include Dana Masters, Camille O’Sullivan, and Jesca Hoop, with many more to come. More information is available here.
Video by Belfast Live videographer Harry Bateman.
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