developments in cork
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@Radioactiveman wrote:
A few points regarding Corkdood’s and Lexington’s posts:
Just to clarify something, The Lee swim DID take place this year, in August. The race started at St. Vincents bridge on North Mall and finished at the Clarion Hotel, a total distance of 2,000 metres. Jack Higgins, former Cork City Manager had always promised to swim in the river once the main drainage scheme was completed and true to his word, he did so prior to the race getting underway. See here for images.
I stand corrected and well done to Jack Higgins for being as good as his word. Is it just me or has the PR machine for Cork 2005 been a disaster.
Interesting to hear that the idea of a tidal barrier has been proposed already. Of course the control of city centre flooding would be an important bonus of implementing such a system. I’m sure city centre retailers and residents would be in favour of that!
@Radioactiveman wrote:
A ‘thames barrier’ type project for the river, while ideal, is hardly realistic in the medium term due to the enormous costs involved.
I disagree, the long term costs to homes and businesses that are most often subject to flooding, over a long-term period justify such an investment – and that’s how the barrier should be viewed, an investment. With rising water levels and increased levels of adverse/freak weather conditions, Cork cannot afford to continue over the next few decades without such a system. Much of the city centre island is actually below sea-level. The installation of such a barrier may also aid issues of flood insurance cover that many homes and businesses are without due to the regularity of such circumstances. Now indeed, there are many other side issues that are responsible for flooding, but by reducing the impact and removing the source elements of some of these causes is indeed favourable. Recent events in the city centre are surely an indication of what damage can actually be caused in the absence of some form of decent resistance structure. Furthermore, a controlled water level will allow for increases in investment and development opportunities from water uses such as transport, to marinas, berthing fees income etc etc. The long-term payoff is well worth the investment if it is done correctly. A transport mechanism, utilising the river, may also in part alleviate road-wear and traffic congestion – which all impacts on infastructural maintenance as well as health implications and associated costs respectively.
Ruling out such a strategy with consideration to the medium term is hardly logical, after all, it is a long-term investment and would be undertaken as so in any event.
@lexington wrote:
I disagree, the long term costs to homes and businesses that are most often subject to flooding, over a long-term period justify such an investment – and that’s how the barrier should be viewed, an investment.
Apologies if I seemed to be dismissing this project out of hand. A barrier such as this will, I have no doubt, be completley necessary within this century. Cork should get a project like this and I would be very much behind it. What I was getting at, is that it may be dismissed since there is no way central government will provide funding such a scheme since it will not produce votes in the short term. Politicians and the people who hold the purse strings will be the main ‘barrier’ to this scheme.
I haven’t a doubt in my mind that Cork will one day have some sort of barrier/dam to keep out the sea, I just hope it wont be too late. And I’m sure Cork won’t be the only city with a barrier…. any town or city that is built around the sea or a tidal river will have to have some protection from it. Especially an island country like our’s….. we’re gonna have to take a page out of The Netherlands book, constantly fighting off the sea. Read an article in the paper the other day, suppposedly, all of the ice in the north pole will have disappeared by 2070. It’s really creepy when you think about it…..
Oh, and for any of you who have been to Paris and did a Seine cruise, you would have noticed that the river is so clean you could drink from it. The bridges are spotless and there isn’t even the slightest smell from the river. There are 10 million people living in Paris…. how do they manage to keep their river so clean?? Their sewage is probably cleaner then the Lee, although that wouldn’t be hard.
@Radioactiveman wrote:
there is no way central government will provide funding such a scheme since it will not produce votes in the short term. Politicians and the people who hold the purse strings will be the main ‘barrier’ to this scheme.
I agree 100%, having travelled a lot, Ireland for a wealthy country sets fairly low benchmmarks to be achieved and then when the politicians actually do something its seen as progress. Case in point is building the Kinsale flyover years after the roundabout was built.
Back to the point of this thread or I’ll get edited. Personally I think this is a great website and the info thats available is brilliant, just to hear whats going on. I think the advent of 10/15 storey towers around Cork is excellent eg, Eglinton Street and Crows Nest (did the developers have an inkling that the County Library might go up behind them and set a precedent for the height? a friendly councillor??)). What is poor is the freedom of councillors, who have no greater experience than most professionals, to rezone huge swathes of land for poor planning – Hello Rathcormac.
Went up to the Rossdale / Woodville HOK marketed development in Glanmire recently, its a brave break from the normal 3 bed semi but fair play, it looks like a great design.
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A-ha is this for real? I lived there 1990-96 and it would be a long time before I would drink from the Seine! I’ve never even seen a fish I would eat in it. A few comments:
Most of the bridges were cleaned up as part of a Millennium project and have been treated with anti-graffitti coatings so they can be easily cleaned.
The river does smell, but not often, because the volume of water is huge when compared to da Lee and the current is much faster, particularly in Spring when it gets the winter ice melt.
Most of the sewage is piped far downstream to a processing plant.Incidentally, Paris drinking water comes from the Champagne to Chablis region, is full of calcaire/lime and does not work with Barry’s.
Most of the water used to sluice down the boulevards is part-purified river water that goes straight back into the river.
House numbers in Paris start from the river and increase with distance from it.
That’s the quota of useless info for today!@A-ha wrote:
Read an article in the paper the other day, suppposedly, all of the ice in the north pole will have disappeared by 2070. It’s really creepy when you think about it…..
A relative of mine works in a research station in the artic monitoring the icebergs and reliably informs me that they are disappearing quicker than snuff at a wake. Given that probably 90% of our population lives near the coast, the Government might have to rethink its spatial strategy. At this rate, Athlone will have become the capital city quicker than it will have become a gateway city.
I think were i too drink from the Seine i may as well admit myself to the nearest hospital in expectancy!!
Its been a while since I’ve heard any talk on the event centre? has anyone any news on it?? I would have thought following the Marquee event this summer, of all those encouraged by the success of the arrangement, McCarthy Developers would be the most interested in trying to get a permanent fixture off the ground. the Showgrounds seemed like an ideal location to me.
@altuistic wrote:
I think were i too drink from the Seine i may as well admit myself to the nearest hospital in expectancy!!
and if you fell into the river youd also be inseine!!! 😀 seriously i am my own best company.
anyway as far as the event centre goes i do know that there was once a plan for blackash but thats scrapped now. another event centre was pitched for the showgrounds but that seems stagnant now for what i gather, all the talk i hear says other developers are circling it and the gaa like vultures. the ford site would be sweet too but that would require “the big money” and i dont know if the land value + development and operational costs would make such a project there viable unless it was incoporated in with other development uses. apparently manor park homes & treasury holdings promised to look into the centre for horgans quay but was that simply just a polite gesture to the city council before they turn around and say hey, sorry, but it aint gonna happen? paul montgomery was looking to it at one stage, maybe he got achatting with mickey o’d and sort somethin out for horgans quay???
thats enough brain power for me for one day. think ill ly down for awhile.
Here’s another view of the Victoria Cross development from Frinailla Ltd. Looks good.
<img src="http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/5125/vclogo7ua.png"
With regard to the event centre, I know there are still two possibles in the running- Horgans Quay and Showgrounds. I’m not up to date on either so, how far each has progressed (if at all) i don’t know.
Saw in the Echo today the shops due to open in the new Ballincollig Shopping Centre. Here’s a list if anyone didn’t manage to get it; Dunnes (fashion and food), Easons, Dixons, New Look, Hallmark Cards, Carphone Warehouse, Roxy Records, Cummins Sports, Sasha, Royal Bank of Scotland, Hickey Pharmacy, Ballincollig Credit Union, Jump Juice, Nu Schu, Dr. China, Impulse Accessories, Art and Hobby, Fitzpatricks Jewellers, Carrig Donn, Paddy Power, O’Briens Sandwich Bar, Paco Store and Burger King. Another bar and restaurant and an opticians are also to open but are not yet named. I think the variety is ok, Dixons and New Look will probably be the main attractions to the centre but no doubt all of the other outlets will do well too. It opens on Oct. 18.
ay ideas whats being done to the building on your left just as you come over the bridge from georges wuay and turn right on to south mall? Property Team the estate have a sale agreed sign up on it and there is scaffolding and workers floating around it
A PRIVATE consortium has offered to build a €250m power plant outside Cork city – which, at 400 megawatts, will boast output over 300pc greater than the existing ESB facility in the city.
The project – proposed by Mountlawn Ltd for an industrial site at Little Island – aims to cater for the booming electricity demands in the Cork and south Munster region.
It is also underpinned by the soaring power demand from industries in the Little Island, Cork city, Ringaskiddy and Midleton areas.
Two years ago, the ESB installed two portable generation units at their Cork-Aghada power station to boost output in the region.
However, the private plant must first secure the endorsement of the Commission for Energy Regulation before it can proceed to the planning stage.
A decision on the proposed Little Island plant is unlikely before 2006.Irish Independent
🙂 Lush have been cleared to proceed with the appropriate alterations to the premises at 96 Oliver Plunkett Street, on which the company has a long-term lease, and will now open it’s first stand-alone Cork store.
Ryanair move forces Aer Arann to slash Cork-Dublin flights
12:59 Wednesday September 21st 2005Aer Arann has announced plans to reduce the number of flights it operates between Cork and Dublin by two-thirds.
The company said it was forced into the move as a result of Ryanair’s move to operate three return flights every day on the same route.Aer Arann said it could not compete with Ryanair’s 99-cent-a-seat offer for the flights, but added that no jobs were at risk because of the cutbacks.
Irish Independent
🙁 I don’t think Aer Arann get it…
@Aidan wrote:Any word on what this power station would be fuelled by?
The station would be gas fed Aidan.
What I would be interested in is to see how this station, should it be granted, impacts on Marino Point in the docklands. I doubt the ESB would invalidate the station there but nonetheless, one wonders. :confused:
Thanks Lex, thought so.
As for Marino point, how old is it? If the machinery/gen sets are getting on, it may be cheaper to close it, rather than compete with new (private) plants like this. Specially as gas prices go up.
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