Sandyford Wasteland

This one sums it up for me. Apologies if it’s been mentioned here before.

http://zxcode.com/2011/05/the-mill-apartments-ballisodare/

I’ve walked through the building and I think these photos actually are quite flattering! The only future I see for it is its being burned down some night sooner or later.

Ironically, I think that given the location, transport links etc these buildings could actually “sell” if completed. In particular, the 15 storey office tower would make an high profile and glamourous HQ given its views over the City.

Having walked around the area several of the developments are 95% complete with many apartment occupied and some of the buildings are actually very striking architecturally.

With a bit more work it wouldn’t be too bad!….like alot of places:)

C

I agree, thebig C. I’ve done a bit of work over in Sandyford since the crash and one of the things holding back the area is the unfinished buildings pictured here. They give a very gloomy and failed air to the place which is unfair considering some of Ireland’s best and most dynamic businesses operate there and generate millions in activity. Even if the buildings were just glazed and left idle it would be an improvement. Officeworkers would then not be assaulted by the brutal starkness of exposed concrete. An example which Sandyford should emulate is the mothballed apartment scheme in the vicinity of Islandbridge. There are about 7 finished apartment blocks there with approximately 0 inhabitants but because they have been finished off (minus fit-outs) they do not detract from the visual amenity of the area and stand ready for immediate occupation if and when conditions improve. NAMA should give a few million to the developers to put a bit of glass around these edifices and finish them off. If they can then sell the completed real estate, well and good, if they can’t, at least it’s not an eye-sore.

I stand to be corrected here,but was there not some rather unpleasant disagreement between Dun Laoighre-Rathdown’s Senior Engineers and it’s Councillors regarding water & drainage capacity for the greater Sandyford ara..?

@Alek Smart wrote:

I stand to be corrected here,but was there not some rather unpleasant disagreement between Dun Laoighre-Rathdown’s Senior Engineers and it’s Councillors regarding water & drainage capacity for the greater Sandyford ara..?

Yes, I remember that too. DLRCC said at the time that they have run out of capacity for water and sewerage. In heavy rain the manhole cover opposite Microsoft’s HQ in the Atrium spews sewerage out on to the pavement. They’d probably want to sort that out before they build or finish any more apartments.

The 14 storey ‘Sentinel’ Tower has been sold to an Irish investor. Rockbrook development is listed on NAMAs list of “Properties Subject to Enforcement Action”.

NAMA recently stated that about 200 units in dunlaoaghire rathdown would be leased to the council for social housing. Perhaps some are around this area.

Any abandoned building site is going to look like a wasteland. How will this area progress? There are two supermarkets, some other shops in ‘Beacon South Quarter’, a children’s cultural whatnot, many jobs, a hospital and a hotel. You are 22 mins form Grafton street by luas and there is the aircoach and m50.

Really the thing missing is something to attract a permanent population rather than single office workers. There are no houses, few large apartments and no parks. At this stage, I wonder if it would be an idea to designate a repossessed site as a park.. There is some internal pedestrian access, some built, some not yet. The area is isolated for pedestrians and cyclists from Central Park development and from the outside of the M50 by lack of bridges. Some of these are planned but nobody thinks they’re coming soon.

Sandyford is not to be compared with the city centre, it should be compared with previous attempts at suburban development such as Lakelands or Balally.