12 College Gardens, Belfast

A mid-terrace three-storey townhouse over basement, built in 1877 in red brick with late Victorian detailing. The building forms part of a symmetrical block of four properties (numbers 11, 13 and 14 College Gardens), positioned near the east end of College Gardens, a tree-lined street running from Malone Road to Lisburn Road. The street lies within the Queens Conservation Area, and the house faces south overlooking the grounds of Methodist College. The architect is unknown.

The building is constructed of red brick in Flemish bond on the front elevation and English Garden Wall bond to the rear and return. The natural slate roof is topped with black clay ridge tiles and a replacement red brick chimney with a concrete cap and multiple circular buff clay pots (shared with No. 11). Projecting moulded eaves sit on a plain frieze band between projecting moulded string courses.

The front elevation is asymmetrical at ground floor level, with the entrance positioned to the left and a single-storey canted bay to the right. A dark painted render base plinth with moulded and chamfered top is complemented by smooth stucco detailing on the bay and door surround, each with projecting moulded cornices depicting foliage. The ground floor bay windows have stop-chamfered heads and jambs with heavy bull-nosed cills set within the reveal and serrated edge to the plain frieze below the cornice. The entrance comprises a timber-framed door with twin round-arched moulded panels, a plain fanlight over a deep moulded transom, and moulded base with roll-edged reveal, raised keystone and carved stone spandrels below the cornice. The upper floors are predominantly red brick with projecting moulded stucco string courses at first and second floor cill levels. Two windows are positioned at each upper level with segmental arched openings, moulded stucco surrounds, projecting hoods at the first floor and lugged surrounds at the second floor. The front door opens onto two stone steps with a bull-nosed edge and a cast iron boot-scraper to the right side of the top step. A flat-roofed dormer centred above the cornice contains a four-part casement window and is clad in a dark grey PVC membrane.

Windows throughout the building are single-glazed double-hung sashes with 1/1 panes on the front elevation and 2/2 panes on the rear and return, except where otherwise noted.

The rear elevation (north) overlooks Elmwood Mews and is plainly detailed compared to the main building, with shallower stone cills, red brick soldier coursing above windows, and projecting painted timber eaves board. A three-storey mono-pitched return is positioned off-centre to the right, with one window at each first and second floor level to the left of the return. A modern uPVC-framed canted oriel window sits at ground floor on a roughcast rendered wall, supported on substantial brackets fixed to the basement wall. This oriel has a flat, lead-clad roof with uPVC gutter and downpipe. Brick walling is painted up to the head height of ground floor openings. The return is detailed in red brick matching the rear elevation, with single windows offset to the left at each first and second floor half-landing. A flat-roofed enclosure conceals the ground floor. Timber barge board and eaves, painted white, complete this elevation.

The east elevation is abutted by No. 11. It features informally arranged openings including a door and two windows at ground floor, two windows at the first floor and a single window at the second floor half-landing, generally offset to the left. A flush modern door opens onto concrete steps with square hollow section metal uprights and handrail. A single window to the left of the door has metal security bars fixed to the outer reveal, and paired windows sit to the right. Ground floor windows have 1/1 panes. A projecting timber eaves board, painted white, supports a half-round gutter.

The west elevation is abutted by No. 13.

The building is set back from the tree-lined street by timber hit-and-miss fencing and a low brick wall with hedge behind. A semi-mature deciduous tree stands in the front garden, with the remainder surfaced in resin-bonded coloured safety matting. A concrete surfaced path leads to the entrance, retained by modern buff brick low walling. The rear yard is paved mainly with concrete flags. A mono-pitched outbuilding set at 90 degrees abuts the rear wall to the alley. Brick walling with curved terracotta cap forms the east boundary of the yard at No. 11. The north boundary comprises variegated reddish-brown brick walling with curved terracotta cap forming an asymmetrical gable (shared with No. 11), with remnants of a former chimney and a timber window frame with missing glass, and modern cement rendered walling to a flat-roofed basement structure with concrete coping and sheeted timber door.

The building is currently used as student accommodation and overlaps with an adjoining crèche at No. 11. Rainwater goods consist of cast iron on the south elevation and cast metal on the north and return, with some uPVC used elsewhere. Numerous vent extracts are present throughout the building.