Developments in Cork

[Spinal Tap]

I'd always point visitors in the direction of The Cork Gaol in Sundays Well, the Museum in Fitzgerald park, the ogham corridor in UCC and St.Finbarres Cathedral. For a city the size of cork, I believe we have our fair share of visitor attractions. That being said, Spinal Tap has come up with a good Wish List for the city in terms of attractions. I'd add to that as follows:
A national interactive science museum
A national events centre

Notice I said national. There is no reason why national institutions should not be based in Cork, or for that matter Limerick or Galway, etc. This government is determined to decentralise pen-pushers without decentralising any of the good stuff!
Feel free to add to the list and we'll come up with some sort of top 10.

The current Government is going to get a big surprise in Cork at the next election I'd say as the second city does'nt get a major government department in decentralisation and I voted for them the last time !

Cork Airport debt fiasco.
1 airbridge farce.
Broadband access.
Delayed funding for school of music / Cork 2005.

Killarney has beaten us to the National Events Centre and best of luck to them as they had the guts to do it whilst the second city procrastinates.

4.2 million people in the country and the balance shifts even more to the east coast.

Add to list of ideas for Cork and we will get a top ten.Innovation and feasability required i.e.something that is a success elsewhere and we could do with (not the usual Starbucks & H&M stuff ).




Indoor winter sports centre

[ToMuchFreeTime]

Cso just out still looking at it and to me it shows that the city realy have to sort out the boundary issue as it realy is
affecting how people perceve cork. This is a great city that has a real good feel about it at moment with all thats
planned in next few years i'd imangine that for next census the population for city will be way up from current low level.

________ _____ Persons 2002 _|_______ 2006________ Male ________ Female ________ Change ________ Percentage change

Cork ___________ 447,829 ________ 480,909________ 240,470_______240,439 ________ 33,080 ________ 7.4
of which

Cork City _______ 123,062 ________ _119,143________ 58,214________ 60,929 ________ -3,919 ________ -3.2

Cork County ______ 324,767 ________ _361,766 ________182,256 ________179,510 _______36,999 ________ 11.4

[A-ha]

I always thought that a Botanical garden would do very well in Cork. Apparently the Royal Cork Institution did set up a Botanical Gardens in Cork in 1803 but they were closed some years later due to lack of..... get this..... GOVERNMENT FUNDING. Wouldn't ya know, like!?!?!? Fota could be marketed abit more and incorporating the railway to get you there would be a good idea. The train to Cobh is very scenic and the best part of a day could be spent in Fota, not to mention the Queenstown heritage centre. Getting a few better plays to come to the Everyman Palace wouldn't hurt either and it might start to attract alot more people from the rest of Ireland to come to Cork for week end breaks. And with weather like this, I'm sure the beaches around Youghal would be very attractive too. Re: The Population Charts, it's obvious that those boundaries need to be sorted out. Those numbers give false impressions about the population of Cork.

[Pug]

Indoor winter sports centre

I dont know about that one! Why not just build the much needed long awaited years delayed 50,000 seater STADIUM on Pairc ui Chaoimh for concerts & matches. Its just so do-able and not a finger being lifted.

[PTB]

Someone sugggested getting some sort of an open air market going in Fitzgerald Park. I'd prefer somthing closer to the cith center. With the new Grand Parade there'l be a big pedestrian area to the east side of the street. You could put two rows of stalls facing each other down the lenght of it. You could also possibly put a canopy over the area between them also to protect people against the irish weather.

Visitor attractions:

::Some plazas in the new docklands would be very nice indeed for performing arts and all that stuff. If a new theater was built there and perhaps a comtempoary art gallery that would be great, especially if the gallery was really striking and got some paintings by some well known artists in it.

:: A maritime musuem. Obvious given the cities location. It would be great if there was a few ships lined up along the quayside like the Jeanie Johnson and the Asgard.

::An observation tower. Cork dosn't really have any vantage points. And theres plenty to be seen if you've ever looked down on the city from lofty Montenotte or culturally not-very-lofty Gurranabraher. There are a few solutions to this.
1. Build a new, striking tower somewhere. Where, I'm not sure. It would want to be close to the city centre but not intrude on the low character of the city centre. I'm thinking somewhere near the bus station. It could also create a new landmark for the city. Twas done in london with the London Eye Observation Wheel
2. Build a land based observation place on the northside hillside. It would be cheaper but would however, give a lesser view.
3. Moor a balloon somewhere. I've been on the one in Parc Andre Citroen in Paris. It was great fun and gave a great view. There was plans to do this in Dublins Temple bar but I'm not sure where this got
4. Use Eglington street tower or some possibly upcoming docklands tower. I'm not sure if Eglington street could be used as it is a residential toweran the occupants may not like this. If there are other towers to be built..who knows? The County hall already functions as an observatory of sort. It has leased the top flooor to a catering company for parties and the likes.
5. Build a replica Eifell Tower a few feet shorter than the original and call it 'The worlds tallest model of the Eifell Tower'. Two attractions for the price of one!

What would be equally silly would be to rename the city Leprechaun City and thus fill the place with naieve but hopefull and wealthy Americans. Hire a few midgets and we'll be raking in the cash. With rakes.

I need less alcohol.

[A-ha]

I need less alcohol.

You got that right! But the part about the observation deck in Eglinton St. isn't a half bad idea. Put a restaurant up there and you've got a very attractive place to eat in the night time. I would imagine the lights from that height would be nice in the evenings. If it were to revolve... even better, hmmm, maybe I should stay away from the alcohol too.

[Pug]

paul montgomerys plans for the former esso muskerry station on western rd have had further info requested.

[A-ha]

Will someone please tell me what the story is about all these rumours to do with Ryanair buying land in Killeagh where the Old Aerodrome used to be? I've heard talk about it everywhere, but nobody seems to know the full story. From what I hear so far, they are planning to use it as an airport. Without laughing, can someone gimme some more info. It sounds so crazy I can't believe it, but I've heard it from lots of different people. (I've posted this in both the Developments and Transport threads...... I really want to find out as much as possible).

[PTB]

I would greatly doubt that Ryanair would buid their own airport. It totally goes against their low-cost ethos. The cost of such a development would be, and I cant really give anything near an accurate estimate, huge - the aquisition of large tracts of land( the old aredrome alone site will not be of much use I imagine as it probably only ever took up the space used to land small one and two seater planes), bribes for councillers, building a runway and a cheap 'terminal'. And I doubt the poeple of Killeah would like to live next to an international airport. They're gonna fight it tooth and nail if this really happens.

[Boyler]

bribes?

[Pug]

work has begun on the former Irish International Trading site at South terrace. Its only on the corner yet but I assume work on the development of the Breastcheck faciity to be built there is about to commence.

[lawyer]

Will someone please tell me what the story is about all these rumours to do with Ryanair buying land in Killeagh where the Old Aerodrome used to be? I've heard talk about it everywhere, but nobody seems to know the full story. From what I hear so far, they are planning to use it as an airport. Without laughing, can someone gimme some more info. It sounds so crazy I can't believe it, but I've heard it from lots of different people. (I've posted this in both the Developments and Transport threads...... I really want to find out as much as possible).

I think more people have seen/met Michael O'Leary in Killeagh over the past while than saw moving statues in Ballinspittle some years ago.

[A-ha]

I would imagine you're right, but why is it that I have heard it from so many different people? It must be a pretty big rumour.

[A-ha]

Does anyone know who the main anchor tenant will be in the Cornmarket St. development. When is it supposed to be completed and who else is interested in occupying a space there?

[Radioactiveman]

There has been a serious breach of planning regulations at a development on College Road.
"Cliffords" shop (well known to generations of students) as well as no.'s 1 and 2 Westbourne, College Road have (over the weekend, surprise, surprise) been reduced to rubble to make way for a new development on the site. Planning permission for such demolition has not been granted.
PP was recently conditionally granted (04/28769) for the demolition of a portion of the existing shop and the dwellings and to construct 4 no. terraced townhouses along Highfield Avenue. With regard to the properties 1 and 2 Westbourne it was intended to convert these into 4 no. apartments.
Permission had previously been refused by CCC and ABP for the development of 8 no. student apartments on 4 floors at 1-3 Westbourne, College Road.
The applications were made by a Ms. Ann Clifford.

The Planning Department at CCC can be contacted as follows, if you feel this merits a complaint:
Telephone: + 353 21 4924321 / 4924324 / 4924325 / 4924720 / 4924722 / 4924723

Fax: + 353 21 4924706

e-mail: planning@corkcity.ie

[mickeydocs]

There has been a serious breach of planning regulations at a development on College Road.
"Cliffords" shop (well known to generations of students) as well as no.'s 1 and 2 Westbourne, College Road have (over the weekend, surprise, surprise) been reduced to rubble to make way for a new development on the site. Planning permission for such demolition has not been granted.
PP was recently conditionally granted (04/28769) for the demolition of a portion of the existing shop and the dwellings and to construct 4 no. terraced townhouses along Highfield Avenue. With regard to the properties 1 and 2 Westbourne it was intended to convert these into 4 no. apartments.
Permission had previously been refused by CCC and ABP for the development of 8 no. student apartments on 4 floors at 1-3 Westbourne, College Road.
The applications were made by a Ms. Ann Clifford.

The Planning Department at CCC can be contacted as follows, if you feel this merits a complaint:
Telephone: + 353 21 4924321 / 4924324 / 4924325 / 4924720 / 4924722 / 4924723

Fax: + 353 21 4924706

e-mail: planning@corkcity.ie

My brother lives in the area and he was complaining about this at the weekend. He's already contacted the council, as have I.

[A-ha]

I read that Debenhams will take over all Roches Stores except the ones located in Wilton and Nutgrove. Roches on Pana will become a Debenhams, but it is likely that Marks and Spencer will take over the one in Wilton.

[kite]

There has been a serious breach of planning regulations at a development on College Road.
"Cliffords" shop (well known to generations of students) as well as no.'s 1 and 2 Westbourne, College Road have (over the weekend, surprise, surprise) been reduced to rubble to make way for a new development on the site. Planning permission for such demolition has not been granted.
PP was recently conditionally granted (04/28769) for the demolition of a portion of the existing shop and the dwellings and to construct 4 no. terraced townhouses along Highfield Avenue. With regard to the properties 1 and 2 Westbourne it was intended to convert these into 4 no. apartments.
Permission had previously been refused by CCC and ABP for the development of 8 no. student apartments on 4 floors at 1-3 Westbourne, College Road.
The applications were made by a Ms. Ann Clifford.

The Planning Department at CCC can be contacted as follows, if you feel this merits a complaint:
Telephone: + 353 21 4924321 / 4924324 / 4924325 / 4924720 / 4924722 / 4924723

Fax: + 353 21 4924706

e-mail: planning@corkcity.ie

Happens all the time in Cork, remember Mr. Tracy and the listed Church in sullivans quay that "disappered" over a weekend without as much as a slap on the wrist from CCC. People that carry on in this fashion should be in jail.
Planning in Cork is a joke from the City Manager down.

[mickeydocs]

any one got any pics of the blarney golf resort?

[Radioactiveman]

<img src="http://img111.imageshack.us/img111/6122/schoolofmusicvv8.jpg">

A very recent image of the new Cork School of Music.

<img src="http://www.murrayolaoire.com/education/projects/csm/models/380m_b.jpg">
and an image of the finished project.
"With an area of over 12,900 sq.m., will be the first purpose built building of its kind in Ireland, consisting of specialist tuition areas, rehearsal hall, live recording studio, drama suite and lecture rooms. The school was the first educational PPP project undertaken by the Irish Government.
Forming its heart and rising up five storeys at the centre of the school is the concourse, providing circulation and visually connecting the many inter-related activities of the school."

Good to see this project making real progress given its disasterous start.

[THE_Chris]

I read that Debenhams will take over all Roches Stores except the ones located in Wilton and Nutgrove. Roches on Pana will become a Debenhams, but it is likely that Marks and Spencer will take over the one in Wilton.

Would M&S bother with that tho assuming they're only just updating the Merchants Quay store?

[Spinal Tap]

<img src="http://img111.imageshack.us/img111/6122/schoolofmusicvv8.jpg">

A very recent image of the new Cork School of Music.

<img src="http://www.murrayolaoire.com/education/projects/csm/models/380m_b.jpg">
and an image of the finished project.
"With an area of over 12,900 sq.m., will be the first purpose built building of its kind in Ireland, consisting of specialist tuition areas, rehearsal hall, live recording studio, drama suite and lecture rooms. The school was the first educational PPP project undertaken by the Irish Government.
Forming its heart and rising up five storeys at the centre of the school is the concourse, providing circulation and visually connecting the many inter-related activities of the school."

Good to see this project making real progress given its disasterous start.

Was there meant to be a new pedestrian bridge from the new SOM to the School of Commerce ?

[jdivision]

Would M&S bother with that tho assuming they're only just updating the Merchants Quay store?

Yes, M&S is in aggressive expansion mode at present

[A-ha]

That picture of the Cork School of Music looks amazing. It really has made good progress. As for M&S, they've been looking for ages for somewhere suitable to locate another Cork store. Glad they are going there, but nothing has been finalised yet.

[Spinal Tap]

O'Callaghan Properties have applied for changes to their retail park at Mahon Point to facilitate PC World & Currys at Units 5 & 6.


Where is Lexington ?