dublin docks

it seems to be working quite well, the developers will still get the heights and density they want, but the east and north wall community will get a say in the location, nature and organization of public space and amenities. what it will hopefully mean is that the new developments will be more permiable and outward looking, the adversarial keep them out approach certainly hasn’t worked.

why are the ddda filling in the basin beside the stock house a, is it really so bad if people swim and fish?

They’re not filling it, they’re putting in a raisable floor for use as an outdoor stage. When it’s not in use it will be lowered below the water level. The water won’t be as deep though.

sorry, i ment filling in to a depth of .75 metres. i get the docklands newletter so i have heard all this about the stage, but wasn’t so inclined to believe it really.

The floor will sit inches below the water line and will be raised above it for use.

It will make a lovely litter collector.

sounds pretty cool though, hadn’t heard about it before …

that can’t be true can it, what about that massage parlour boat? i thought they promised more of this, cafe boats etc. what about the litter, traffic cones, bicycles etc, what about the water quality? i spent half my life thinking the ddda are super and half thinking they are awful.

From http://www.DDDA.ie

George’s Dock to take Centre Stage
June 20, 2003

The Dublin Docklands Development Authority announced the commencement of works at George’s Dock in the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) to create a unique event platform to accommodate live music, theatre and even an ice rink. The result will be a spectacular enhancement to the IFSC and Docklands area.

The works involve extensive upgrading of George’s Dock to include an underwater stage, improved lighting, new water fountains, seating and handrails to increase use and enjoyment of the amenity for residents and visitors alike.

A retaining wall is also being constructed between George’s Dock and the Inner Dock to facilitate control of water levels and to allow for drainage of each of the Docks separately. This is an essential upgrade so that periodic maintenance work can be carried out in both basins, when necessary.

The upgrade of George’s Dock demonstrates the Authority’s continued commitment to developing a world class physical environment in the Dublin Docklands area.

For further information, please contact Loretta Lambkin at 01-818-3300 or 086-1717386

While this all seems like a good idea, did you know that a lot of the rubble being dumped there is from the ramp at Connolly Station ? Convenient or what?

Which brings us nicely along to the subject of the Ramp. Whether or not it was necessary to remove the ramp as part of LUAS (the arguement seeming to be that Line C should continue into the docklands and not turn into Connolly at the ramp) I can’t help but be delighted that it is gone. It has completely opened up the Docklands to the rest of the city. It has made a huge visual impact as far as I can see…. well worth the expense in removing it. My only query is what happens to all that stone facing. It looks like granite. Its a bit dark and grimy but it should be used for something other than infilling the George Dock.

Another thing I noticed in this area was the stretch of LUAS line under the Loop Line Bridge on Beresford Place. The tarmac on the road has been removed to reveal cobblesets. The contractors seem to be removing the cobble carefully. I hope they will be reused as well. Maybe even relaid between the line. I am sure Store Street was completely cobbled until a few years ago

The DDDA dont have a clue what to do with Georges dock – the pontoon based business died on its arse, what makes them think that an underwater stage is foing to be any better (not that anyone takes any notice of the lunchtime Jazz in the IFSC either!!)

I think you have a good point about this stage. It strikes me as valid about alot of these ‘stunning additions’ to the city. Smithfield, Meeting House Square, the Capel Street Bridge book market, the Boardwalk cafes, the proposed O’Connell Street kiosks…. they are all great additions and I support them completely. But why do they all seem to flounder?

Are we, as citizens, undereducated in making the most of these resources. Meeting House Sq has a great market on Saturdays but is devoid of life the rest of the week. The stage is only used on summer and then the Irish weather makes that touch and go.

The underwater stage sounds good but will it get used? Are the residents of the Docklands too busy on their way to work to enjoy it? What is the solution to getting better use of all these facilities.

Personally, I think reducing cars in the city and encouraging people into the city as pedestrians would be a good start. Perhaps a free city centre bus to get people around. Its a hard one isn’t it.

Absolutely. If the city centre was a more inviting place (clean, a lot less traffic, pedestrian friendly, greener, less winos/pissheads) then all these efforts would seem worthwhile

i am all for these nice things, plaza’s, squares, linear parks and so on, but i think a bit of thought has to be put into them and i don’t think that’s the case with filling george’s dock. maybe it will be great and if it is, super, but i feel it is some ill-conceived attempt on the part of the ddda to stop kids swimming and the stage thing is an a postori justification. they should have finished the stack house first, and don’t get me started on that, and then kept trying with the pontoon and the cafe and massage boat idea and then, if that didn’t work and if it looked like there would be a use, beyond some sterile annual ddda sponsored event, for a stage, then maybe they could have tried that. what the ifsc lacks is a community to hold events in its public area and filling in george’s dock won’t change that. even dermot desmond feels that the area is too closed in and exclusive.

glad the ramps gone.

Suddenly remembered that the ramp was to go as part of the original customs house scheme as “it acts as a barrier, both physically and psycologically” – if I remember my prospectus right

It seems like such an obvious thing to do doesn’t it. I wonder then if the DDDA contributed to the costs of its removal.

Far from it. I’m told the DDDA have valued the land at commercial rates and want paying for it !!
JQ

Don’t CIE own the land?

Surely they are both state entities so we all own it

Looks like we have already had this discussion

https://archiseek.com/content/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1942

Its mad the way the world works.

From this mornings Indo:

CASH shortages could delay the construction of a bridge which is a central plank in the redevelopment of the Grand Canal Dock area of Dublin.

Dublin Docklands Development Authority (DDDA) plans for the refurbishment of the area, due for completion in 2006, hinge on the construction of the Macken Street bridge which is supposed to link the Grand Canal Dock to the redeveloped sites on the Liffey’s northside.

The bridge has been promised since 1999 but the City Council has yet to issue a tender for its construction.

There are now concerns that the docklands reconstruction could end up without any connection across the Liffey.

It is planned that the bridge will carry four traffic lanes, two bus corridors, two LUAS lines, two cycleways, and pedestrian paths.

It has also emerged that the IFSC may not now have a direct link to the Airport due to proposals to divert a metro line to O’Connell Street.

The success of DDDA’s plans to revive the docklands are also dependant on the Rail Procurement Agency providing new LUAS links on time and on Iarnród Éireann developing a rail interconnector, new station, and rail tunnel under the River Liffey.

Yesterday DDDA chief executive, Peter Coyne, said that it was the City Council’s responsibility to ensure the key link bridge was built. The deputy city engineer, Michael Phillips, said the intention was that tenders for the Macken Street bridge would be issued in the autumn and he expected construction to begin early next year, with completion by early 2006 at a projected cost of €20m.