Earlier this week I found myself standing inside a building I had walked past hundreds of times without ever really noticing.

The Scottish Mutual Building on Bedford Street has been part of Belfast’s landscape since the early 1900s, its stone façade blending easily into the familiar architecture of the city centre.

But inside almost feels like another world: marble walls catch the light, while stained glass softens the space. Heavy vault doors, once used to protect financial records, remain intact.

Now, as it prepares to reopen as The Bedford Hotel, those original features have been carefully preserved rather than stripped away. It is not simply a renovation but a decision to carry part of the city’s past forward into its future.

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It made me realise how much of Belfast survives only because someone made a conscious decision to protect it, while also preserving some of its original character.

Read more: The Bedford Hotel: First look inside multi-million pound revamp of historic Belfast building

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