[caption id="attachment_69788" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Councilor Jim McVeigh of Sinn Féin, and Councilor Tim Attwood of the SDLP, with copies of the city council investment package."]
Belfast is set for a multi-million pound shot-in-the-arm after the city council announced a £233 million investment package for the city.
Leisure, community, cultural and economic projects are all set to benefit from the mammoth cash injection over the next three years.
Some of the projects in the area to profit from the economic boost include a £20 million investment in the Waterfront Hall on the banks of the River Lagan as well as the Gaeltacht Quarter on the Falls Road.
In addition, the council will be creating 200 jobs and 400 placements and internships providing opportunities for the long-term unemployed, this on top of the hundreds of jobs that will be created from the development projects.
Backed by every party in the council, the unprecedented financial package is an attempt to off-set the worst of the recession and was backed at its launch by the first and deputy first ministers, Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness.
SDLP leader on the council, Councilor Tim Attwood, said the investment program was a robust and imaginative attempt to address the
consequences of the recession.
"This is a really positive initiative by all parties in Belfast city council," Attwood said.
"We see on a daily basis the consequences of the economic downturn in all our wards, especially West Belfast. We see the suffering it causes
and there is a major responsibility on us to try to do our utmost to deal with that. This package offers the support that communities need and is also able to offer job opportunities.
"It was important for everyone to get a balance across the city and to offer communities the resources they need to get through this economic crisis. We have the political imperative to work for the communities and from something negative we are aiming to create prosperity for both sides of the community in this city.
"I think we have done that with this package," he said.
Sinn Féin leader on the council, Cllr. Jim McVeigh, said supporting the community was at the heart of the investment package.
"We know there is much more to be done and that the legacy of decades of neglect will not easily be turned around, but working together with our colleagues in Stormont, our community and voluntary sector, and indeed the private sector, we believe we can begin to make a real difference.
"Our vision is for a society that puts community and social justice at its heart. This investment package has these principles at its core," said McVeigh.
