A year ago, we asked architects to imagine how the Mackie's site could be transformed to help communities respond to the cost of living, housing, and climate crises in line with a set of principles developed by homeless families.
The response was outstanding. The competing designs envisioned approaches to transforming the 13-hectare Mackie's site into a sustainable community and capable of setting a precedent for modern residential developments across Belfast which contribute positively to both the housing and climate crises.
See the winning design, meet the architects behind it, and help us make these plans a reailty.
Take Back the City was formed in 2021 to develop sustainable solutions to Belfast’s housing crisis. We are families in housing need supported by experts in architecture, urban planning, housing policy, technology, communications, permaculture, human rights and equality. We believe we can build a better Belfast - a city that’s not divided by walls, where everyone has a home and the things that really matter are society’s priorities - family, community, environment, health and happiness.
Let’s talk about the Belfast of tomorrow. Everyone is welcome.
The State of Belfast is an evolving interactive mapping tool produced by the Take Back the City coalition.
Its purpose is to provide communities, activists, professionals, public servants and politicians with a visualisation that will help us to respond equitably and resiliently to the challenges facing the city, challenges such as homelessness and climate change.
Using a range of data from different sources, the State of Belfast lays bare a city divided by sectarianism and inequality, and one that is ill-prepared for the challenges of climate breakdown. But the map also demonstrates our city's potential; how our assets, resources and communities can be mobilised to respond effectively to the critical socio-economic and environmental tests of our time.