- St Luke’s, a former Church of Ireland church in Belfast, was listed at £185,000
- The Gothic Revival building was consecrated in 1863
- The nave covers about 3,900 square feet
- The agent suggested youth, leisure, commercial or residential uses
A Gothic Revival church in Belfast has been put up for sale for £185,000, the News Letter reported in March 2025.
St Luke’s Church at 58 Northumberland Street was consecrated in 1863, a year after its foundation stone was laid by John Alexander of Milford, Carlow. It was designed by Welland and Gillespie and built by Harvey and McLaughlin. The Church of Ireland sold the building 12 years ago, and it has since been used by a non-denominational church.
The nave measures 97ft 11in by 39ft 6in, about 3,900 square feet, and there is a gallery, office space, a bell tower, a decorated vaulted ceiling, a raised sanctuary, an original solid wood entrance door and a narthex with an original tiled floor. The building has a slate roof and dark stone walls. It is marketed by UPS, and an application to reclassify it from church use could be made after 26 July.
Johnny McClarnon, a partner at UPS, said: “It could be considered for use as a youth centre, leisure use, a commercial hub or someone might just want to buy a church and live in it.” He added: “There can be 101 different uses. It just depends on the buyers’ imagination in terms of what they would want to do with it.”
At £185,000, St Luke’s shows how cheaply a large historic church can change hands, and how much depends on the change-of-use rules. For Jamaican congregations in the UK looking for their own premises, a building already used for worship can be a realistic purchase. For churches in Jamaica, St Luke’s is a reminder that a sale to another congregation can keep a building in use for years.
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