The wraps have started to come off Cliff Terrace. I was saddened to see the size and layout of the ground floor of 14 and 15 (the corner building that is listed). What was previously the shop space has been turned into a ground floor and basement flat. Looking through the windows it's clear just how tiny the rooms are, made all the more tragic is the fact that these face directly onto the street with the old shop windows. I'd imagine the effect is a touch claustrophobic. The bedroom of one room opposite the Lido is so small it looks barely big enough to get a bed in and any furniture at all. There's something to be said for increasing the minimum floor space rather than concentrating on the minimum number of bedrooms.
One other revelation is that TDC social housing didn't want anything to do with the development because the units are so small.If this is true, it makes a mockery of the deal set up with TDC's Empty Properties dept. to renovate the building and bring it back into use with a view to providing some social housing. Secondly, I'm told the building has been sold on from Mr Ward to a social housing group. It's such a shame that a more dignified use and renovation couldn't have been put forward for the building. One that provides room sizes that people are happy to live and function in. Sorry if this sounds harsh, but Cliftonville is full of greedy over development that no one would actively choose to live in.
