Dunloe Ewart has been granted a judicial review of the Government decision to effectively block its proposed £150 million sterling retail and leisure complex in Belfast city centre.

Dunloe Ewart Northern Ireland Director Barry Gilligan strongly criticised the actions of the Belfast Regeneration Office (BRO) in respect of its handling of proposed major retail developments within Belfast city centre.

On Monday, Judge Collum granted Dunloe Ewart leave to challenge decisions by the BRO, under the direction of the Department of Social Development (DSD) at Stormont, to refuse the company's request for the compulsory purchase order of the last few properties within the site of its proposed "Cathedral Way" development.

The developer has been acquiring properties in the site between Royal Avenue, Lower North Street and Rosemary Street since 1993 with the intention of redeveloping the run-down north end of the city centre. It has acquired 85 per cent of the triangular site opposite the highly successful Castlecourt Shopping Centre. Retail rental levels in Belfast remain at exceptionally high levels because of the shortage of prime accommodation.

Dunloe has now lodged two applications to the High Court over the decision to block its development. The first application relates to the actions of the Planning Service within the Department of the Environment. The second relates to the activities of the BRO within the Department of Social Development.

Commenting on the actions of the BRO, Mr Gilligan said: "This is the first time in 10 years of major property development in this city that we have had to seek a remedy in the courts for the actions of a government department and this is not an action our company wished to embark upon.

"However, we have been forced into this action because of the misguided activities of the BRO which, in my view, is now hindering the successful development of Belfast city centre rather than promoting and assisting it.

"I find it extremely disappointing that the organisation charged with the regeneration of our city objects to a £150 million private sector development proposal, upon which we've already spent nearly £15 million and for which we are not seeking one penny of public funding.

"It is apparent to everyone that Belfast city centre badly needs quality retailers to enable it to compete with out of town centres and with other regional capitals.

"The development of the Laganside area and other aspects of the city centre have been extremely beneficial in recent years but the retail offer does not match this progress." He pointed out that retailers such as Selfridges, House of Frazer, Brown Thomas and others have been in contact with local commercial agents seeking a major outlet in Belfast city centre.

Mr Gilligan added: "These opportunities will not last forever and in our view, the BRO is gambling with the future of our city centre through its lack of willingness to support anything other than one scheme which could take anything up to seven or eight years to complete."

He said that, in 1997, BRO "actively encouraged" Dunloe Ewart to assemble a site for a major retail development.

The North's new Minister for Social Development, Mr Nigel Dodds of the DUP, has granted permission to the Dutch company Multi-Development Corporation for a major mixed retail, hotel and leisure development in the Victoria Square area. Unlike Dunloe Ewart, Multi-Development Corporation does not own any significant tract of land in the site earmarked for its development.

Mr Gilligan said he had no objections to the development of Victoria Square. "What we do object to is the fact that the BRO is refusing to use its powers of compulsory purchase, despite its past encouragement to us to proceed, and in so doing, is actually prejudicing our ability to advance a development with all its obvious regeneration benefits for the city centre, and Cathedral Way in particular."

Dunloe Ewart's first application relates to the BRO's actions in ignoring the Belfast Urban Area Plan and Planning Policy Statement 5 by refusing to grant its compulsory purchase powers to Cathedral Way. The second application refers to the Planning Service's decision to apply Article 31 of the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order.