Culture Minister Edwin Poots, MLA made the announcement today whilst he visited the new site, which is adjacent to the Gateway building at the entrance to the Titanic Quarter.
The Minister said: “My Department has committed £30 million to the re-location of the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) in the hope that everyone from the region and indeed visitors to Northern Ireland can use the resources it holds. The new state of the art facilities will greatly enhance public access, with the new building being prominently located within easy reach of many transport routes.
“Given the choice of location it is very appropriate that many of the records held by PRONI including some on the Titanic, will be returning home to where they were originally drawn up and written. The regeneration of the Titanic Quarter, which is a very high profile landmark site in Belfast, will formally put PRONI on the map as a must see tourist attraction for local, national and international visitors.”
The Minister continued: “The project to relocate the Public Record Office is very exciting and significant and shows the Government’s commitment to acknowledging the importance and inherent value of the unique cultural assets which PRONI holds.
“It is also important to ensure good building design and it is my desire that the new Public Record Office building will be a legacy which current and future generations will both cherish and use.”
Welcoming today’s announcement, Mike Smith, CEO of Titanic Quarter, said: “Located beside the new Belfast Metropolitan College and within walking distance of Belfast City Centre, PRONI’s new headquarters will represent a superb addition to Titanic Quarter.
“Our ambition is to reconnect Belfast with its waterfront - the thousands of visitors who avail of PRONI’s archives will help achieve just that. In turn, PRONI will benefit from growing numbers of tourists visiting Titanic Quarter. It’s the ideal occupant in the ideal location.”
NOTES TO EDITORS:
- PRONI was established under the Public Records Act (NI) 1923 for the reception and preservation of public records. The 1923 Act also made provision for the deposit of private records in PRONI.
- The current records in PRONI extend to 54 kilometres, and are growing. They cover every aspect of life from the Minutes of Cabinet Meetings to records of a local corner shop – from the thoughts and actions of the ‘great and the good’ to the reminiscences of the working man. The oldest document is a 13th Century Papal Bull.
- The reference to records ‘returning home’ refers to the large collection of records which PRONI holds pertaining to the Belfast Docks and Belfast Shipyard (Harland and Wolff) including unique documents on the Titanic and Olympic Star passenger ships.
- Following a European Union procurement exercise Titanic Quarter Limited has been identified as the preferred bidder to provide a site, design and build for PRONI. The process of the detailed design and seeking the necessary statutory approvals will commence immediately.
- The timescale for the new record office is to have it open to the public in August 2010.
- Media enquiries to Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure Press Office, tel: 028 9025 8901 or email: press.office@dcalni.gov.uk.
- Out of office hours please contact the Duty Press Officer via pager number 07699 715 440 and your call will be returned.
