Lord Mayor's Letter
Foreword by The Rt Hon The Lord Mayor Councillor Naomi Long MLA
It is my great pleasure to welcome you to Belfast for your annual Conference in Sydenham Methodist Church.
East Belfast is an area that has witnessed many changes in recent years, with the decline of traditional employers such as Harland and Wolff. At the same time the areas around Laganside and the Harbour Estate have experienced multimillion-pound redevelopment, with further to come. There has also been movement of people from other countries and cultures bringing new skills and experiences to enrich our own communities.
I note you are using other Churches in the local area, including St Mark's Church of Ireland for the Presidential Installation service and Bloomfield Presbyterian Church for the Ordination service. We are pleased to be able to welcome you to the recently refurbished Belfast City Hall for a civic reception and to offer use of council land for car parking at Alderman Tommy Patton Memorial Park near the Conference Centre.
During my year in office there have been too many special moments to number. The Tall Ships visit to the city was incredible, attracting hundreds of thousands of people from across Northern Ireland and further afield to the city over a single weekend. That buzz was also evident at events like Culture Night, when people had a unique opportunity to experience the vibrancy and dynamism of the culture and arts sector in the city. The reopening of City Hall after 2 years of refurbishment stands out as a truly special occasion, not least because I had the pleasure of welcoming US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, to cut the ribbon at the official opening.
Despite all of the "big moments", and there have been many them, what has really impressed me most is the welcome which I have received in every part of this city, and the privilege of meeting people who are working hard to make Belfast the best it can be, by being good neighbours, good friends and good citizens. The generosity, humour, warmth of those people and their love for Belfast are what make this city a wonderful place to serve as First Citizen.
