alonso

yeh and yer one on the left in the 1st pic is wearin a Gah jersey at a Rugby game… I mean like WTF were they thinkin. I woulda refused it for that alone 😉

An ACA is not a designation for a building. It stands for Architectural Conservation Area. Protected Structure status applies to single buildings. ACA does not mean things can’t get changed, they just have to do so in a responsible manner (in theory anyway)

3.10.2 Where it is proposed to demolish a structure that
contributes to the character of an ACA or to
demolish behind a retained façade, the onus should
be on the applicant to make the case for
demolition. The planning authority should consider
the effect both on the character of the area and on
any adjacent protected structures. When it is
proposed to demolish an undistinguished building
in an ACA, the proposed replacement should not be
of lesser quality or interest than the existing one
and should not adversely affect the character of the
area.

The applicant and the planning authority should
consider the material effect that that proposed
demolition may have on the character of the ACA:

a) Does the structure (or part of the structure) to
be demolished contribute to the character of
the area?

b) What effect would removal of the structure have
on the setting of other structures in the area, the
balance of an architectural composition or the
setting of any adjacent protected structures?

http://www.environ.ie/en/Publications/Heritage/ArchitecturalHeritage/FileDownLoad,2204,en.pdf

so in the case of OC st, do Quirkeys and FCC contribute anything to the ACA status of the street? If not then demolish away. You have to ask yourself WHY does OCS have ACA status? What are it’s attrubutes? and how would demolition affect that? I would offer that the relation between width of the street and the building heights is a key attribute, the early 20th century rebuilds, the GPO itself, the statues and monuments, the Gate/Ambassador, the Bridge etc etc – none of which will be adversely affected by demolishing these buildings

@paul_moloney wrote:

Can’t say I have noticed a difference in either of this myself. “More people” is not necessary a good thing and has certainly not translated into better shops anyway.

true but activity is always better than desolation. The northside of town in my younger days was an empty hostile collection of surface car parks and a few shops thrown in between the dereliction

As I said in my original post, these have happened and have improved it, but we’re talking about 15 years of an economic boom. In that time, we’ve gotten trees and a pavement. This doesn’t inspire much confidence in the future.

I agree and this can be applied right across the board to Docklands development and Transport investment. However in relation to O C St i don’t think it’s possible to overstate the impact of the ongoing neglect and legal wrangling over the Carlton etc sites. To leave an entire quadrant in limbo at this location through the boom for any reason was sinful.

O’Connell St certainly has nowhere near the same welcoming atmosphere as, say, Grafton St. I mean, I’m from the inner city myself so not exactly unused to rough areas, but apart from tourists, the average Dubliner does not saunter up O’Connell St to window-shop or enjoy a coffee/brunch. And Abbey St is downright intimdating these days with gangs of junkies hanging out at the Luas stops, occasionally attacking the tram with a golf umbrella like I saw a while back.

Maybe not but uses that have enlivened the street through the boom such as the Ambassador venue and cinema etc on Parnell St west have brought Dubs up the street. Plus the random, chaotic yet thriving Parnell st east with it’s hotch potch of pubs and restaurants has given the area another dimension. From my teenage years through my early 20’s the only reason me or my friends ever ventured up O C St was to go to Fibbers. I think there’s more there now. Yeh Abbey street is a bit f’n rough alright but 20 years ago there was zilch on it apart from buses and the theatre – at least there’s a few decent pubs on Middle Abbey St nowadays… only a few mind you

Well, as I said in the my original post – it’s now been 15 years, when the country was swimming in money. For the forseeable future, the country will be paying billions in interest to artificially prop up property prices for our developer overlords. O’Connell St was shit when I was a student, it still shit (with trees) now that I’m (almost) middle-aged. There’s a difference between pessimism and realism, and I think I’m being realistic here.
P.

That’s all fair but to be specific about it, if Arnott’s and Chartered Land (??Carlton site developers??) and the the RPA are able to carry out their plans, regardless of what’s going on in the wider Irelandworld, O Connell Street will undergo major positive changes in the next 10-15 years. Obviously we all agree that this should have happened or at least started happening in 1998 when the IAP was released but good ol institutional inertia and government idiocy prevented that.

maybe when you reach middle age and old age itself you will finally get the main street you want – enjoy the stroll with your zimmer frame in 2040!!!

I thought Graham;s main grievance, or the straw that broke the camel’s back, was the use of tactile paving at the entrance to a BoI car park that has only a handful of users every day. I’m not sure if his letter stated that particular occurence or just comprised a general complaint but there is a middle ground where heritage and mobility needs can both be met. As with most things, i’m sure there are blind people in Copenhagen and Vienna etc etc where they don’t destroy the urban fabric for them…

Maybe if blind people had to actually look at this shit every day, they’d change their tune

Jaysus…

@gunter wrote:

That is a good point, this would be original!

. . . what other city has a clothes line running down it’s front lawn?

Barcelona has one across it’s port and up to the Olympic stadium? i know it’s not quite the same but y’know

rumpelstilstkin does have a point in fairness. I abhorred this when i first heard about it. now i won’t be too quick to condemn it until i see the full impact on renders etc. Although if i recall correctly the pylons required to support this were brutal and it was their impact on the footpaths in their vicinity that really got me annoyed – although if they pedestrianised the quays around them it might be ok. The clothes line didn’t really bother me from what i remember. Anyone got any pld pics?

gimme a minute

k from good ol’ archiseek

call it aging, call it time, or call it the recession, but i dunno. The initial lunacy I tarred this project with has morphed into a more considered why not? But God those pylons are truly truly horrific. If they can’t do anything about that then it just has to be trashed…

cycle lanes would be nice there. In fact a full route through Thorncastle Rd to link Ringsend village to the Point Village and the north quays would be very welcome

@Cathal Dunne wrote:

Would you not use the on-screen keyboard? They would have the S and W on it.

the vhat novv? Onscreen keyboard? the S is back novv but no double u

bollox….Dublin city i$ my capital too and I vvould like both language$ di$played. I’ve heard it $poken in the city and i ain’t 104

(orry the e$$ and double u are broken on my keyboard)

and eh trinity?

ah i thought you meant it was in it’s final position, not merely on the axis. Went past tonight in my glorious naivety and miscomprehension and saw it facing the same way and was disappointed…. ah right…