Raising the Roof
My eagle eyed colleague Martina Purdy spotted in some recent minutes for the Assembly commission a reference to plans to refurbish the roof of Stormont's Parliament Buildings with proposals for accommodation on the roof.
With a commission source confirming that there has been talk of sticking extra structures on the roof we let our imaginations run riot. Could the authorities be considering completing the original Stormont plan which envisaged an imposing City Hall style dome or cupola? The foundations for the dome were laid but the plan was abandoned on cost grounds back in the 1920s.
Sadly the truth is more prosaic. An official told me they are looking for a solution to the twin problems of a lack of space and a leaky flat roof. Previously some temporary timber framed structures, not visible to the public, had been sited on the Stormont roof and the idea was that a more permanent version might help solve both the water and accommodation problems.
However I'm told that given the current economic climate, and the expected reduction in the budget for capital spending, the notion of new structures on the roof and the talk of extra buildings or extensions are to be "long fingered". So no chance of Stormont getting its "dome of delight".
I'm 
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