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OT I know, but very quickly …
I continue to have the biting sensation that fossil fuel based power sources are not the way to go in this country. Sustainable alternatives like wind, tidal and geothermal to me continue to be the preferred option.
Sustainable techs are undoubtedly the way forward (particularly once we get at least one functioning interconnector up and running) , but due to the small size of each project it takes time to get a lot of capacity on to the grid. And with the economic growth we’re seeing, we need several new power plants in the very near future (before 2010) and at least one of them has to be in the South if the Cork harbour area is to keep the current rate of growth in high end industry. Combined Cycle Gas Turbine plants are the most efficient power generators available, and, per unit generated, are significantly cheaper than wind right now, which is why the government has to subsidise wind power. Equally, and because of this, there is also a huge amount of wind power about to come on stream, to the effect that we’ll probably beat our 13.2% target by 2010. But to use this power, we need a matching amount of power from conventional plants, like this one. Its not a case of either or, we need both.
Anyway, back to Cork …
The clock face will indeed be illuminated. I saw the bulbs being put in when they were installing it. Funny the way 1920s art deco and early 19th century classicism can go so well together.
of course people can apply for planning in these areas – the council cannot freeze applications or decisions – if they are not decided within the time periods under the Planning and Development Act the applicant will get a default permission…we are really blessed with the integrity, intelligence and foresight of our councillors in cork – aren’t we?
For this;
Hence, Aidan, it is very reasonable to argue that the cars sitting in Dublin’s rush-hour traffic jams are causing as much if not more damage to the environment than those cruising fluidly along the nation’s regional and rural roads.
See this …
however when people commence journeys in recently suburbanised rural areas with a destination in urban areas the mode of transport is generally single occupancy cars / Chelsea Tractors so there are certain cross over externalities as well as higher fuel consumption on a national basis.
In otherwords, those journeys starting in urban areas are much more likely to occur on public transport, if you start your journey in a one off house in South Co Kildare, or Longford, or Louth, you will spend as much time sitting in traffic at Newlands Cross (or whereever) as you will moving fluidly ‘anywhere’. Its the same cars that do both. Whether you like it or not, job creation is primarily a function of urban areas right now. Many people have to get to centres to work, very little traffic, relatively speaking, goes from point to point in rural Ireland.
Crticially, it is possible to serve people in urban areas with public transport as is happening (slowly) in Dublin and Cork. The same cannot be said if you live in a one off house. With an urban (or at least nucleated settlement pattern) such a development is possible, without it, you are effectively locked into a pattern of development premised on low fuel costs. Not such a good idea,
I used to live in a one off house in the countryside. It was a pre-exisitng bungalow which I bought in the late 1980s. Not the most lovely of structures, but I have planted native trees on the site, restored the hedgerow that was destroyed (by order of the planners) to create parking at the front of the site, and now the building cannot be seen at all from the road. All that is there is a gap in the hedge. I still live in that house but now the area has filled with new dormer bungalows. Each one is a short few metres from the road, There is no screening planting in front of the houses, and indeed many have uplights to make sure we can’t miss their palaces even in the dark of night. Almost none of these houses were built by individuals who wanted to live in the countryside (3 miles from Moycullen, 10 from Galway City.) The houses were built by the farmers that owned the land to make a fast buck. These people are now extremely rich. They continue to build rows of identical houses on 0.5 acre sites, and the roads are turning into streets. The people that live in these houses are rarely seen in their gardens, or walking the roads, or even socializing locally. They are townies that can’t afford town houses. It is all very strange. Planners should demand that individual houses are built by individuals with a demonstratable reason for country living, Such houses should be completely invisable to people trying to enjoy the countryside, No one goes driving in west Galway to look at my house therefore I should make it as unobtrusive as possible. I feel you shouldn’t tar all owners of bungalows with the same brush. Many people do have a need to live in a rural areas If planners don’t like what they live in then up the standards, don’t accept rubbish. Having said that the latest lot of houses to go up are quite attractive, and alot of the old bungalow stock is being rebuilt into attractive looking dwellings,
despite the fact that it has as much relevance to say inner-city life in Dublin
Nope, our spatially dispersed population base, made worse by the spread of one off housing is directly related to our dependence on cars, and thus fossil fuels, for transport. Critical masses of population facilitate more environmentally sustainable modes of transport that reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. Its not viable to provide such solutions to areas with widely dispersed populations.
circumstantial conjecture
Its not circumstantial or conjecture, its fact. You might not like it, but that does not change either the economics or the physics of the subject.
stereotypical association
Actually no. The main focus on one offs on this site has primarily been the landscape effects of this phenomenon (as you might expect on an architecture forum), with a secondary emphasis on planning (mainly from non architect types). The energy policy implications of wilfully dispersing ones population across the lanscape is a relatively undiscussed facet of this problem. The article belongs as much here as it does anywhere else.
Seriously PDLL, are you just trolling for debate, or do you actually believe what you’re saying?
Well this was proposed not just to provied a new HQ for Aer Lingus per se, but as a commercial means of income for the airline. When the airline is privitised I can only see this as a extra attraction for speculative investors.
Hello all (I’m new here),
I am also interested in the Century Homes ECO house. This morning I had a meeting with one of their sales guys to go through the options. There is a standard and a high-spec version. The “standard” uses blocks of wood between the internal plaster board and the “high spec” uses an I beam, and the whole thing is sealed. It looks to me as if the standard is just as eco-house shaped regular timber frame. But perhaps that trivialises the solar gain aspects of the design. Neither the heating system (I’m interested in a aerothermal SWECO.IE jobby) or the ventilation heat-exchange system mentioned in the Century blurb come with it. The sales guy did give me some contact numbers of reputable suppliers. Also unlike some other energy efficient houses the windows don’t come with it either. The plans fo cost €2830 or so but that does form a deposit on the house frame as well.
The internal layout for the couse is customizable to some extent though there might be additional costs depending on what you want to do.
So far only one such exists (in Tallaght) and there are plans in train for a few more. So there is no show house to have a look at .
As it happens I know the passive heating house (I pass it everyday.) It has hardly any windows at all, and looks very dull. It faces south west and is shaded somewhat by trees. Also it’s very small looking. I don’t like the look of it.
I’m going to be talking tro other suppliers in the very near future, I’ll bring those discussions here if folk are interested
I’m very intesested in your opinions in these issues.
There are Regional Authorities
As far as I can tell, the only thing these ‘Authorities’ are actually used for is as additional subheads in statisical publications.
My take is that it is the both the institutional strength of the planning body (both in terms of the number and quality of planning staff, and the abilities of management) and the relative strength of officials vis politicians operating at a local and national level.
They look very familiar Devin – no idea where they are, but I can show you hundred of ‘developments’ very like that one …
Question.
Is there a correlation between the size and population on the catchment area of local authorities and their ability to plan properly, or is it just plain politics?
Given that Cork CoCo is one of the larger in the state, and that it works very well with the City Council in terms of planning, is it really surprising that, given the total population is around 490,000, they are a relatively strong body? Is there an instituitional critical mass that smaller local authorities cannot muster? If so, is there an argument for reform of local government along super authority line, amalgamating smaller CoCos into joint bodies with single planning areas?
Even in the case of Dublin, is there an argument for having a single planning body covering the entire GDA, out to Greystones, Dundalk, Naas and Maynooth?
The rate at which one offs are being constructed varies across the country also, so some areas (like Clare and South Kerry) are much worse affected.
Quick point, landscapes change, even rural ones, and I don’t think anyone is arguing that we need to purposively slow the development of rural areas so they can be used solely as recreational facilities for urban dwellers. The idea that planners generally want to hold rural areas in suspended animation is not true (although some individuals may). Rather, the debate is calling for a balanced perspective on rural development and national policy imperatives. At the moment, the gloves are off and, in some counties, people are apparently allowed build what they want, where they want. In the long term, that is unsustainable, for a variety of obvious reasons.
Personally, I would have no problem with a limited amount of ‘one off’s being constructed, so long as very strict design criteria are met, and the numbers are kept to a minimum (the idea of a formal ‘link with the land’ and a ban on resale or letting of the property for say 5-10 years is a good one). The real focus of rural development should be on the creation of vibrant villages and towns however, with appropriate levels of services. Cork country council have done some very good work in this regard (even if some of the one off housing decisions are puzzling), with the tax incentive schemes for ‘ring towns’ in the harbour area. As a policy, it works, and delivers significant benefits. Other local authorities have a lot to answer for in this regard.
oh ya there are talk of a brand new sudent centre… and a swimming pool next to it… reiterate… talks of a swimming pool.. same talks that have been going on for years probably..
Some fotos of how the campus redevelopment when finished.. dont know when.. is meant to look. u can see the new realigned fosters avenue on the right
Just checked, there are some granite formations south of the river, but they’re not very substantial until you get as far south as Blackrock. Most of the city sits on a heavy glacial till, which is not particularly difficult to bore through.
There have been fairly extensive studies done on the geology for this purpose;
http://www.irishscientist.ie/2000/contents.asp?contentxml=046as.xml&contentxsl=insight3.xsl
Of course it would make sense to create the possibility of extending the metro in the future, thats how these systems are ‘grown’. Brussels is still developing its metro system ‘at the ends’, many years after the initial two lines were bored out in the 1960s. To do otherwise just creates a stranded asset. This idea of ‘restarting’ the existing TBM years later is clearly a red herring.
Why are the RPA not considering this? Who knows, at a guess its probably the results of an attempt to keep costs down so as to get D/Finance to sign off on it.
Are there not geological issues with boring south of the canal?
From memory, the rock type changes to igneous formations (Wicklow granites etc) – as far as I can remember, that was one of the reasons behind the original Luas/Metro design in the mid/late 1990s – tunnelling under the southside would be much more expensive and slow.
Then again, the Eastlink tunnel that keeps cropping up would have this problem along some of its alignment also. Whatever the case, it looks very much like the RPA (and Govt) have no intention of ever extending the Metro on the southside.
Another engineering question. Just how practical is it to suggest that the Interconnector can be built /after/ the Metro is operation? It would mean that, for a start, they’d have to bore under the working Stephens Green station, lay track works and build a station, all while Metro was working away. Unless of course the plan is to horizontally separate the two stations, which would mean a bloody great hole in Stephens Green from the period 2009-2015. Thats something to look forward to.
I don’t agree with Alek Smart’s assertion that nobody will be convicted on the basis of CCTV footage. Video evidence is used to support prosecutions every day of the week in the courts. If someone is reasonably identifiable on video committing a crime, they will be convicted.
Stop being so anti rural!
Its the right of everybody in rural Ireland to have a McMansion, complete with jeep parked outside. Its what Davitt would have wanted, honest!
It has to be the ultimate irony. People spend their free time campaigning about the need for investment in the WRC ‘to encourage tourism’, .. and then go off and build all kinds of monstrosities scattered around the landscape, seemingly designed to scare tourists off and cause the maximum damage to the landscape. I was in Co Mayo recently, and it was quite an education. These houses may become tourist attractions in years to come, but only to gape in astonishment that this stuff was actually allowed!
Proper guidelines on the conservation of energy alone would rule many of these houses out.
Isn’t there a fairly prominent (and ugly) postmodern office building on the corner site at the Custom House end of Abbey Street? Across the road from Irish Life?
