Eyre Square - What's going on?

[Boyler]

Does anyone know why it is taking sooooo long for Eyre Square's landscaping? I heard it won't be finished until November, if we're lucky. Why did they have to use chinese granite? What's wrong with Irish granite? Me mother thinks it's a disgrace.

Is it just me or are all the best buildings, architectually, in Galway are in Shop St. and the street that you are in if you keep walking? The name, Spanish Arch, is misleading, don't you think? You'd expect a graceful Baroque arch but all you get is a plain one.

[PVC King]

Does anyone know why it is taking sooooo long for Eyre Square's landscaping? I heard it won't be finished until November, if we're lucky. (

Prophetic words

http://www.rte.ie/news/2005/0405/galway.html

Eyre Square workers in wage row

05 April 2005 17:07
Talks are taking place in Galway to try to resolve a dispute which has brought work on the city's Eyre Square redevelopment programme to a virtual standstill.

Thirty workers employed by the main contracting firm, Samuel Kingston Construction, have walked off the site in a row over wages.

The workers, 19 Irish and 11 Polish, claim some of the workforce were not paid last week and others were only paid part of the wages due to them. They say they will not return to work until the issue is resolved.



A small number of sub-contractors are still at work today.

Samuel Kingston Construction has so far made no statement on the dispute, but the men were called to talks with local management this morning.

Galway Corporations says the management of the workforce is a matter for the company.

[Boyler]

Just thought I would write something. I don't want thread to go away.

[nono]

chinese granite is 'cheaper' despite the exorbitant cost of brining it a few thousand kilometres from china as opposed to a few hundred from wicklow (or somewhere similar) as it is extremely heavily subsidised by the powers that be in china, ie probably exported at a net loss, but china gains valuable foreign currency.

[PVC King]

chinese granite is 'cheaper' despite the exorbitant cost of brining it a few thousand kilometres from china as opposed to a few hundred from wicklow (or somewhere similar) as it is extremely heavily subsidised by the powers that be in china, ie probably exported at a net loss, but china gains valuable foreign currency.

The subsidy you talk of is a rural population of in excess of 600m people who work for about $1.50 a day, Chinese granite is cheaper because it is possible to finish the product by hand at a cost that wouldn't get the average quarry worker out of bed in the morning. The Chinese Currency is contrary to what you might think being kept artificially low at the moment i.e. they have too much foreign currency at present.

The problem I have with Chinese granite is the colour it is simply too pale for what we are used to in Ireland.

[PaulC]

Does anyone have any photographs of completed sections of the Square, or even drawings of what the proposed redevelopment will look like?

[nono]

thanks for the info thomond park

[Peter Fitz]

Some sketches / plans available from the landscape architects site, mitchell & associates:

http://www.mitchell.ie/site/eyre_square.asp

A fair way to go from what i could see yesterday, right in the middle of things at the moment, have a few pics and will post them later.

[PaulC]

Thanks for that Peter - the plans certainly looks nice.

[Peter Fitz]

a few shots taken on monday ...

[Boyler]

You can make out what it will look like in November. It will be great to use the park again.

[PVC King]

http://www.rte.ie/news/2005/0627/galway.html

More difficulty for Eyre Square redevelopment

27 June 2005 12:11
The controversial €9m redevelopment of Eyre Square in Galway city has run into further difficulty.

Work on the site has come to a standstill following the withdrawal of staff employed by the main construction company, Samuel Kingston Construction.

Galway City Council says it is shocked that Samuel Kingston Construction has abandoned the project and it will now have to find another company to complete the work

Work on the redevelopment of the square began in May of last year and was due for completion this October.

There has been constant criticism of the project because of the slow progress of the work and the major disruption it has caused to local businesses. Ends

[PVC King]

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/breaking/5810432?view=Eircomnet

Workers walk off Eyre Square development
From:ireland.com
Monday, 27th June, 2005


Construction workers on the controversial €9 million Eyre Square redevelopment in Galway city today walked off site.

Work on the city centre refurbishment ground to a halt after teams of builders failed to man the job.

A spokesman for Galway City Council said officials were seeking legal advice after employees from Samuel Kingston Construction walked off.

He said the workers had abandoned the job without notice. "Galway City Council wishes to express our deep disappointment and annoyance at the decision of Kingston Construction to walk off-site at Eyre Square despite repeated and ongoing attempts with the contractor to secure the completion of the contract by the November deadline," he said.

The spokesman said no warning had been given of the stoppage. And he said all work carried out on-site, under terms of the contract, had been paid for in full by Galway City Council.

Work on the redevelopment of the square began in May of last year and was due to be completed by November. But the redevelopment has been dogged by criticism from the outset due the slow pace of work and the massive disruption to businesses in the city centre.

The Health and Safety Authority carried out a number of inspections at Eyre Square over the last year. No safety issues were identified by the HSA that would warrant the site being closed.

Earlier this year workers, some of whom are Polish, walked off site in a row over wages. Ends

[FIN]

and the fun just keeps going.. now there is no contractor....seemingly kingston went bankrupt.

[Boyler]

I bet we'll be waiting another month before work will start again. Is it true that Kingston was paid a million euros just last Friday?

[Peter Fitz]

surely the landscape architects - mitchell & associates - would have been heavily involved supervising the implementation & should have had some indication re the situation with the contractor ?

[PVC King]

Samuel Kingston Construction Ltd. Address:, Unit 3N Kinsale Commercial Park
Knocknahobilly Kinsale Co. Cork. Phone:, 00353 21 4779151

I've heard that contract enforcement should be sought, one feels a lot of sympathy for local authorities at times

[PVC King]

http://www.rte.ie/news/2005/0701/galway.html

New Eyre Square task force set up

01 July 2005 20:00
A new Mayoral task force has been set up in Galway to try to resolve the continuing problems surrounding the re-development of Eyre Square.

The move comes after the decision of the main contractor to abandon the project earlier this week.

Seven of the city's leading businessmen are to join the team which will try to minimise the damage being caused to business and tourism as a result of this latest setback to the highly controversial €6.5 million scheme.

Mayor Brian Walsh said the members of the task force would use their business expertise and no-nonsense approach to try to find solutions to the complex problems which had arisen in relation to the refurbishment of the square.

Galway City Council has already brought in a firm of outside contractors to begin work on reopening some of the streets around the square. The work is expected to be completed in three weeks.

It is also involved in negotiations to try to find a way of completing the main redevelopment work in the square. It says it is now likely that that may not be completed until early next year.

[PTB]

6.5 million

It was up to 9 before this whole latest incident began.10 or 11 looks like the finishing cost and I think that the City Council will be sued for compensation due to some of the shops closing down due to loss of buisness so that could be a further cost.

P.S When did it start and when was it due to finish?

[Boyler]

Let's just say that the Empire State Building in New York was built faster than this project.

[garethace]

When Dublin City Council hosted that Landscaping lecture no too long ago, one of the strongest points I took away from the talk was of green spaces, mixed with harder wearing surfaces, so that spaces were usuable, but less prone to the damage usually associated with green squares, most of our squares in Dublin and throughout the country, being of that Georgian legacy, of green square parks etc. This picture of a scheme....

http://www.archiseek.com/content/attachment.php?attachmentid=882

http://www.archiseek.com/content/attachment.php?attachmentid=884

http://www.archiseek.com/content/attachment.php?attachmentid=885

...realised for the city of Manchester sums up alot of that common sense approach, to making open space, accessible to urban inhabitants, in everyday life, but still keeping greenery as a large part of the equation. That is Terry Farell's building in the side of the picture.

This image shows how buildings can be tucked into the park landscape, but done so in a way, which still facilitates access by people, through the green space...

http://www.archiseek.com/content/attachment.php?attachmentid=886

I felt around the Dublin City Council Civic Office, this lesson was sorely missed, and pedestrian access to anywhere near Wood Quay offices now has all but vanished.

Which is a pity I think.

Brian O' Hanlon.

[JPD]

Interesting images Brian you can almost see the Great Southern Hotel in the background if you think creatively.

[BTH]

Brian's images arent a million miles away from what is currently half finished in Eyre Square- better materials and a purer concept in use but the general ratio of green to hard surface, the stepped terraces and the routes through the space are all very reminiscent of the scheme as proposed. I still think the finished product will be great, even moreso now that the kingston cowboys are gone - not only did they sneak off the job in disgrace but the general standard of workmanship on the completed parts of the square is abysmal. Some of the paving looks ready for ripping up and replacement already.
I must get some decent photos to load up here! Could anyone give me a crash course in how to display pics on the site??

[modular man]

I must get some decent photos to load up here! Could anyone give me a crash course in how to display pics on the site??

There was someone else asking that recently, i'll see if I can find it.

[modular man]

Found it

http://www.archiseek.com/content/showthread.php?t=4082

and that brings me to 50 posts , horah!