The site features over 30 retail units featuring independent local businesses
21:50, 27 Jun 2026
Traders at an iconic Belfast city centre market say the site is being “left to run down”, amid claims that Belfast City Council have not been maintaining it.
Smithfield Market is in the heart of the city’s retail district, at the back of CastleCourt on West Street and Winetavern Street. The site where it is currently located was a former bus station and the original market, dating back to the 1700s, was situated where CastleCourt is now.
The original market was destroyed by firebombs in 1974 during The Troubles and it would be 15 years before it reopened in its current location. Today, Smithfield Market has over 30 individual retail units, featuring small, independent local businesses.
It has been a staple of shopping in the city for generations, but traders claim the Council is letting it “run into the ground.” Ryan Gilmore, who owns vintage football shirt shop NI CLASICO, said the market doesn’t even look like it’s open due to the disrepair.
He said the Council “refuse to clean outside and try to bring a bit of life to the building,” adding it’s an “embarrassment how the place has been allowed to deteriorate.”
Belfast City Council said they “remain committed to Smithfield Market” with maintenance teams “actively addressing immediate issues, including external weeding, deep cleaning, and structural upkeep.”
Speaking to Belfast Live, Ryan said: “We’re looking for the outside to be cleaned up, we’re asking for the glass not to be covered in two inches thick of dirt. We’re not allowed to paint outside our shops for example, so the shops haven’t been painted in years. They look old and a bit rough.
“If we were allowed to do that, the onus would be on us, but the parts we can’t touch like the hallways, the outside with the weeds and dirt, if that could be cleaned, it would be such an easy win from our point of view for the Council.”
Many people who walk through the market on a regular basis are coming from the car park behind it, however, Ryan said many are rushing through instead of hanging around to see what’s to offer.
“People who use the car park here just pass right through the building because they don’t think there’s anything here. If they’re on the outside, they’ll go through the car park entrance, because the market just looks old and worn,” he added.
Ryan said the traders would love the Council to promote the site more often, saying that other sites such as St George’s Market are well-known amongst locals and tourists alike, while Smithfield remains relatively unknown.
“They [Council] were offering bigger businesses in the city centre a few years ago to paint their shutters. These are significantly bigger businesses than what is here in Smithfield, they were offering to spruce up their premises for free, while we get nothing here at all,” he explained.
“We’re not going to be communicated with, we’re not going to be treated the way St George’s Market is, we’re not going to be pushed on social media. The feeling is it’s just been left to be run down, they just want this place gone.
“We’re just asking for a bit of help. We know we’re at the edge of the city centre, we understand it’s not the busiest part of town.
“This is our livelihood. I’ve been here off and on for seven years, there are businesses here significantly longer than me, and they can’t go and do something else.
“We would love if Smithfield got a bit more promotion from the Council, or for tourists to know more about the place. It would be great for the building to just get some real care to show a bit of pride in it.”
Gary McCann, owner of McCann’s Army Surplus Store, is the third generation of his family to trade at Smithfield. His grandfather started the business back in the 1940s, with his dad taking over in the 1960s.
He said “pretty much everything that could break has broken” at Smithfield, drawing attention to a broken heating system, and broken lights in the main hallway of the building.
“Just above the front door as you walk in is just horrendous. They fitted new roofs recently which still leak. When customers start noticing it, they’ll come in and say about the state of outside,” he added.
“We’re having to go back and forward all the time with the same issues, it’s like Groundhog Day.
“They’re letting it run down because they have plans to demolish it, and I think they want to make it look the part when they say ‘we need to demolish it, sure look at it’, because they have let it run down.”
As for ways to spruce the place up, Gary said he would love to see local street artists being given the chance to come in and paint the inside walls, to add to its rough and ready vibe while creating a bit of an attraction to come see.
“This place is full of quirky, individual little shops, it would be great to see support from the Council when retail is really struggling,” he said.
“We are definitely the poor cousin to St George’s Market. We get very little support here. I see other people here much younger than me here and they’re not businesses, they’re livelihoods.
“They pay the mortgage. Business sounds like it’s a big enterprise, but these are one-man bands mostly, and it’s people’s livelihoods but the Council don’t seem to care about that.
“They should keep us where we are and extend it, throw some money at it, make it a more vibrant, interesting place to come to. Make it a place tourists and locals want to come to.”
Green Party councillor, Brian Smyth, said he has been speaking with traders at Smithfield who “feel they have been ignored by the Council for the past couple of years and the place has been allowed to slide.”
He added: “I contacted the Chief Executive and asked that he and his senior officers deal directly with the traders to address issues.
“We’ve made progress with parts of the City Centre in recent years, but still have a long way to go. Yet my frustration is that I believe it’s left to a handful of councillors out of the 60 in City Hall to fight and advocate for the City Centre.
“There may not be many votes in it, but there are jobs that we need to protect, especially during a relentless cost of living crisis.”
A Belfast City Council spokesperson said: “Belfast City Council remains committed to Smithfield Market, which is an asset in our city’s retail heritage.
“Our markets team maintains regular, active engagement with Smithfield traders to collaborate on the upkeep and maintenance of the site. We take all feedback from our tenants seriously and use it to guide our ongoing improvements.
“While historic indoor markets present unique operational challenges, our maintenance teams are actively addressing immediate issues, including external weeding, deep cleaning, and structural upkeep.
“We value our partnership with the traders and will continue to work closely with them to ensure Smithfield Market remains a welcoming destination for local shoppers and visitors alike.”
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