Assembly Buildings (Presbyterian Church in Ireland)
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The Assembly Buildings, formerly known as Church House, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, are the headquarters of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. It was refurbished in 1992 and also functions as a commercial conference centre.[1] Although there was a decision taken to move to a new location the General Assembly, in 2006, voted to overturn the decision.[2]
Location
The building is located near the centre of Belfast at the junction of Fisherwick Place, Great Victoria Street, Howard Street and Grosvenor Road.[3] It was built in 1905, in the Gothic style, and opened by the Duke of Argyll.[4] It is dominated by a 40m high clock tower, which contains Belfast's only peal of 12 bells.[3]
It is home to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. The Assembly Hall is oval-shaped with a gallery, and can seat 1,300 people. The hall is illuminated by a glass skylight, which is now illuminated artificially.[5] In 2005, the General Assembly announced that they planned to move their headquarters from the Assembly Buildings after receiving six offers for the building.[6] It was initially approved by the General Assembly with the provision that they could still meet there.[7] However in 2006, the General Assembly reversed the decision and voted in favour of retaining the Assembly Buildings.[2]
Commercial use
Following its refurbishment in 1992 following damage from a bomb blast, it was reopened by Princess Diana.[1] From there, the Assembly Buildings also function as a commercial conference centre, Assembly Buildings Conference Centre as well as The Spires shopping centre being opened on the site.[8] However, in 2016, the Presbyterian Church announced that they were closing the shopping centre in order to expand the Assembly Buildings' conference facilities.[9]
External links
- The Presbyterian Church in Ireland homepage
- Assembly Buildings information page
- The Spires homepage for the old conference centre
- Homepage for the current conference centre
References
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