goodbye hawkins house
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Health to get new HQ for free in land swap deal as eyesore faces demolition
THE Department of Health is to get a new headquarters for free under a land swap deal, the Irish Independent has learned.
The Government is expected to close a deal in the coming weeks with a developer who will provide a new modern office building for the department in exchange for the Hawkins House site in Dublin’s city centre.
Top officials from the Department of Health and OPW have been in negotiations with three major developers trying to secure a deal in recent weeks.
Junior Finance Minister Tom Parlon confirmed negotiations were taking place, but said he could not elaborate on details until everything had been signed off. “Interest in the plan has been considerable,” he said.
Hawkins House on Hawkins St behind the old Irish Press, has long been considered something of aneyesore and the building is not thought to be hugely valuable.
Civil servants say it is not a particularly nice place to work and it is totally unsuitable for modern office requirements.
However the location of the block, in Dublin 2, just a couple of minutes walk from O’Connell Bridge, and the fact that the building is high-rise, has made it very attractive to developers. Any future development would most likely be allowed up go at least as high as the existing one.
Mr Parlon said it was a good deal for the Government as well.
“It means we do not have to divert money away from areas in health where it is needed. It’s a win-win,” he said.
It is thought that while the new health headquarters will be in Dublin, it may not necessarily be in the city centre. The department was not included in the decentralisation plans.
However, another land swap plan involving the exchange of old garda stations in rural areas has been shelved because of a lack of interest fromdevelopers.
It part of the heritage of the city’s heritage at this stage!
But unlike other more quirky or streamlined ‘monsters’ from the 60s, Hawkins is just horrendous in every respect, esp the steel windows, which are an interesting giveaway as to the age of the building – vestiges of 1950s construction.Whatever about the architecture, it cannot be nice to work in the place – apparently many of the windows won’t budge at this stage, true to form – do people ever maintain steel windows…?
Often laughed at the Dept of Health being sited in the most unhealthy looking building in the state – and when you see it on the News in grim dusky light it’s just embarrassing (and very scary looking)
The Minister’s office is funny too – a bog standard room (with manky steel windows), but tarted up with happy happy brightly coloured sofas and other suburban nick nacks to keep the depression at bay 🙂By far the worst view of the building is looking south down the tunnel of Marlborough St. With the rest of the city skyline out of sight it just dominates – it turns the city into Kruschev’s Moscow 🙁
Must take that pic before it disappears…A redevelopment of Hawkins House would be one of the five most important developments in Dublin’s city centre over the past twenty years. If done right and not just a giant apartment block, I think it would give major impetus to the proprietors of Apollo House and the other monstrosities of the area to clean up their act. Could also encourage Trinity to open up Pearse Street.
For a €50 donation to charity, the OPW should rent out a sledge-hammer and hard-hat, and let the people of Dublin enjoy taking the monstrosity down themselves.
I’d pay!
James
That is excellent news; I think it is something that most have us have been waiting to hear for a long time and I am very happy that the site will not be used for the Abbey as it’s hidden nature would have done little for that institution. Only two left between Appollo House & College House. It is only a pity that one developer couldn’t secure that entire Block and do a unified scheme, with the Abbey sitting at the College St corner.
As for the Charity Sledge-athon a great idea but you would probably end up on a hospital trolley for the construction period of you got hurt.
Every time I see the title I just think of that song…
If someone’s witty enough to compose a send-up, the words are here (think the Diana version offers greater potential for humour):
http://www.eltonography.com/songs/candle_in_the_wind_1997.htmlThe winner recieves a shiny new propeller pencil 🙂
(also please excuse that rubbish written in my last post – no not the content, just the 1st line)
Well whats missing here?
Note the absence of any location for the new office. Health was listed for decentralisation, but no location was ever indicated for it.
My guess is Citywest – what is yours?
I reckon the 50 euro a whack suggestion should raise a good few quid.
No health was’nt to be decentralised…though the dept might not be staying in the city centre (see the article).
Sorry TLM
On the contrary Health was the only Department mentioned for decentralisation, in the Mc Creevy Budget 2004 announcement, for which no location was specified. This kind of got lost in the initial reaction to this very bizzare proposal.
At that stage M Martin was Minister for Health, leading to some suggestions that Cork was envisaged. as the favoured spot. There is, by coincidence no doubt, a strange but not perfect alignment of initial decentralisation location decisions and Ministerial home towns.
Now it is Ms Harney, of West Dublin who is Minister for Health.
This pic really shows it at its worst – the view from Liberty Hall.
If Liberty Hall is purchased and the viewing deck reopened, Hawkins really must go.
For anyone who’s seen it recently can confirm, it is abominable from up there – really really awful:
Talking of the Liberty Hall deck – when I was up there (mid 1995) it was quite breezy and the building seems to sway more than you would think for its height – like being on a ferry, just a constant slight movement.
There is a certain ship-like quality to it alright – don’t remember it swaying, just the dizziness from the height!
There is something of the deserted 1940s swimming pool to it up there – like those abandoned ‘baths’ you see all over southern England. Just the mosaics, the railing, the roof profile, even the aluminium windows – it’s all slightly exotic, yet sadly decayed – F McD’s ‘misplaced optimisim’ perfectly sums it up. That man really has a knack for classic phrases, they just fall off the tongue! 🙂
In 1998, Hawkins House was voted Dublin’s Worst Building on this site.
Nearly 7 years on, would it still top the poll?
The results of a re-run would be interesting…The Office of Public Works is to sell the Department of Health building at Hawkins House in Dublin city centre.
It has been described, ironically, as the most unhealthy public building in the country.Recent attempts to engage in a property swap have proved unsuccessful.
It was hoped that a developer would offer office accommodation at a separate location for the 500 or so staff in return for possession of Hawkins House.
However the offers received did not match market expectations, with the result the Office of Public Works is now planning to put on the open market.
I read reports (possibly on another thread) which stated that staff were unhappy moving into a ‘modrin’ open plan style office. All those grades having to share the same space…ugggh.
I think this site is a great opportunity for a true Dublin landmark building/s that is greater than 32 floors like Éire Tower for example. Then same should be done with Apollo House and the former An Post building behind Pearse Street Station (cant remember the name of it)
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