City Centre Context and Character

Today Belfast city centre is distinct and identifiable lying to the west of the River Lagan and bounded by major roads to the west and north (the Westlink and M3). The southern part of the city centre has a regular grid street and block structure, with a more irregular medieval street structure north of City Hall. Parts of the city retain many of its Edwardian and Victorian buildings marking its evolution throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. Although many of the industries that helped expand and build the city have long ceased operations, their presence remains as highlighted by the city's surviving twentieth century buildings and structures such as the Harland & Wolff cranes that dominate the city skyline. The southern boundary of the city is less distinctive as the regular street pattern of the city begins to give way to the residential areas of the suburbs.