261A Belmont Rd, Belfast, Co. Antrim, BT4 2AJ

A two-storey three-bay flat-roofed Modernist house built in 1937 to designs by local architect Anthony Frederick Lucy. The building has a rectangular plan form facing north with a full-height return to the southwest, abutted by a single-storey flat-roofed extension in similar style to the southeast. A single-storey single-bay block is abutted to the west, which may originally have been a garage. The structure is situated within an area of suburban development to the south of Belmont Road and west of Pirrie Road.

The principal elevation presents a main two-storey three-bay section with a projecting ground floor having curved ends and a raised parapet forming a balcony at first-floor level, with a single-storey one-bay section to the west. The front entrance door is positioned to the centre bay and flanked by stream-form curved bay windows. The main entrance bay projects slightly from the flanking curved bays, featuring a square-headed door opening surmounted by a blank round-arch smooth render panel. The timber door has horizontal panels to its bottom section, with Art Deco leaded geometrical stained glass to the top half and replacement brass furniture. The curved bays retain original metal-framed single glazing with curved sections divided by thin horizontal glazing bars, and small top opening windows with original Art Deco chevron detailing. The single-storey section to the west has a replacement uPVC window with a flat pediment-like contrasting band to the window surround. The first floor features three bays with a central shallow projecting bay containing replacement uPVC double-leaf glazed doors with coloured glass topped by Art Deco stepped detailing and a projecting keystone. Windows elsewhere have been replaced with uPVC in similar style to the corner windows. Concrete cills are provided to windows throughout.

Rendered and painted rough-cast cement walling features raised smooth render banding to the parapet, window surrounds, and chimneys. The flat roof is set behind a raised parapet with polygonal cast-iron hoppers discharging to circular-section cast-iron downpipes. Rectangular-section chimneys to the east and west have two terracotta pots to the east chimney and one to the west.

The east elevation is partially obscured by the site boundary and adjacent housing but shows a three-bay main section with replacement uPVC corner windows at first-floor level and a smaller rectangular uPVC window to the centre. A partly engaged chimney breast, stepped to the north at first-floor cill level, extends to roof level where a smaller rectangular-section chimney rises above the parapet. The two-storey return features replacement uPVC corner windows at first-floor level, with a single-storey flat-roof extension to the south.

The south elevation, visible only from the public footpath to the southeast, shows a two-storey return with central double-leaf uPVC doors at first-floor level featuring Art Deco stepped detailing above and horizontal tubular metal balconette railings. Replacement uPVC corner windows are positioned to the eastern side of the return and main building.

The west elevation is largely obscured by the site boundary but features a square-headed window to the centre of the single-storey section and a similar window to the two-storey section. Staggered irons provide access to the flat roof from the roof of the single-storey section. The main two-storey building has a rectangular-section chimney with no external chimney breast.

The building is set on the south side of Belmont Road with its principal entrance approached by a short tarmaced driveway to the northwest corner of the site. Access is gained through iron sunburst gates hung on iron posts, with a tarmaced pathway leading east to the main doorcase. A modest garden to the north of the main door is laid out in lawn with mature shrubs, and a garden to the rear to the south. The site is enclosed by square-cut hedging.