GrahamH
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The fact that O’ Connell Bridge House is barely even mid-rise Andrew is the very problem.
It is neither tall enough to distinguish itself from the surrounding area, nor small enough to integrate into the neighbouring stock. It just shoves itself mercilessly into the streetscape, as if shouting at the WSC terraces to move over more to accomodate its fat self.
As I trot out every time this issue comes up, it creates the impression of a mid-rise city, ruining the low-rise character of the riverscape.
It’s partially the old chestnut of high-rise, and I’m not going to shrivel up under the stairs for taking the view that anything over five storeys is grossly inappopriate for this, the most important junction in Dublin, taking into account Westmoreland St, D’Olier St, the Bridge, the Liffey, the four quays and O’ Cll St.
This building also completely and utterly destroyed the view of
D’ Olier St from the bridge and Bachelors walk, eating up nearly half of the WSC terrace, creating a canyon in its place. It also set precedent for D’ Olier House next door, consuming further original stock.
This distinctive street, that looked so beautiful from the other side of the river, and that fitted in so well with the quays and Westmoreland etc was wrecked.Architecturally, it’s not the worst of buildings, although one can think of many a better one, but location location location is the stickler.
Regarding Liberty Hall, at least an effort is made at distinguishing itself. It needs five more storeys though to make it slenderer and less squat. And I’ve always liked its roof – so distinctive.
More than can be said for O’ Cll Bridge House.Only now Clerys of all people have plastered the front of their store with those horrendous temporary signs. Why these are allowed under planning regs I do not know – thinking of Liberty Hall not to long ago…
I agree about the view of O’ Cll Bridge House from Earl St, or even from the Savoy; it looms over the finest terrace on the street – the post-1916 reconstructed terrace from Eden Quay to Abbey St.
It looked even worse when the mast was even taller until it’s recent cropping. It’s so so alien to the vista, so inappropriate.
And the view from the Millenium Bridge and Ha’penny is destroyed by it too. Instead of just having the comparitively slender profile and interesting roof profile of Liberty Hall to one side, you have the horrible leaden lump of O’ Cll Bridge House intruding – also destroying the general impression of a low-rise city from this point.Phil – I agree about replica and pastiche being precisely the same thing, just that replica doesn’t carry the baggage of the woefully inadequate mock-ups of the 80s as you say – resulting in marginally less confusion!
As always there’s two issues relating to Georgians, one – their architecture, and two – their history or posterity etc.
When we talk about being fooled by a replica, we’re referring not to the architecture or asthetics, but honesty and history etc etc.
I fully accept this as a viable arguement when talking about new-builds like housing estates, or some farcical office development.
But when you build a single structure that will unify a terrace, that will bring a whole together, it’s a different issue in my view.Suppose it’s a matter of taste with regard to being fooled or not. Certainly I’d be the last one to brush history aside and to deem the’originalness’ of the 18th century housesof no great importance – to see even a broken original pane of glass makes me fume! But to build a replica not only makes an area architecturally true, it also reconstructs it as the developers intended – so you’re being as considerate as possible to both the age of the buildings, as well as the present day appearance.
That’s my view anyway – something I think applies also to the likes of O’ Cll St with the likes of Dublin Bus and the shoe shop place.Just on the subject of Georgians, I was looking (again) at the corner buildings of O’ Connell & Henry St.
It appears, even from the engraving of Gardiner’s Mall from 1750, that Joe Walsh Travel and the one beside it were always retailers, from the moment they were built, even though they existed on an otherwise exclusively residential street.They never had the long plots of garden all the other houses had, just narrow back yards. They also have very crude squared-off backs to them.
In the engraving from 1750 as pictured below, they’re the only buildings without proper doorcases, and Joe Walsh even has a big display window – and in the picture from 1818 it even has a flat roofed porch over the entrance!
These buildings also appear to have been carved up a few times into different properties over the centuries.I’m really only raising this again because I took a picture of the side of the building the other day with what may be the original windows (below) – and that it’s facinating that such an old building, not only for the street but for Dublin in general, lies right in the midde of what is percieved a completely redeveloped street.
(sorry the pic’s a bit big)
It was partially that, but mainly just to make the place look better and stopping the river from stinking to high heaven once the tide goes out.
It’s only then that the river looks awful, with green slimey walls and the seaweed on O’ Cll Bridge, and the wheely bins and trolleys and traffic cones, and as for um, womens secret things lining the bed outside the Civic Offices – how absolutely disgusting…To be fair to the CC, the street is still on schedule – albeit 20 years late. I’ve no doubt that the central section will be finished by then.
And to defend the indefensable – RTE – they had absolutely no other option but to depend on a studio format for the millenium night as a result of that other farce – nothing but a little get-together in Merrion Square happening in the capital – so insignificant that the international broadcasting collective established for the day refused to accept it as Ireland’s contribution the inter-nation switching come midnight.
I agree that there is nothing worse than bad pastiche, and that yoke on the corner you speak of Phil is such an example, as are some the Zoe Dev ones on Mountjoy Square, complete with ground-to-attic exposed chimney stacks tacked on the side.
‘Replica’ I think is a better word to describe an accurate, faithful reproduction of the original, down to the bootscraper; such building in strictly limited circumstances such as this can work better than modern interpretations if they unify an area, which I think will happen on Parnell Square.
That building is interesting, but the stock of Kildare St is so jumbled that the limestone cladding desn’t stand out or its lovely windows.
Parnell Square is entirely red bricked, and entirely in the same style. This should be reinforced here with an appropriate replica (some of the original doorway remains as a guide at least)
I think it’s claimed as being the longest mid-eighteenth century terrace in the city – scraping the barrel there a bit perhaps – but whatever about facts, it’s the appearance that matters. Anything other than Georgian would look ludicrous here, especially considering the rythmical stepping up of the area.Indeed what’s annoying on Kildare St at the moment is the replacement of all the windows in the Setanta centre with cluttered cumbersome grey PVC. The streamlined nature of the original 80s windows of sheer expanses of glass is gone now, and the way they used to act as a modern interpretation of the surrounding sashes, mirroring their proportions.
Good points.
I’ve never liked the way one is faced with the dilemma of whether to keep walking along the narrow quay, or veer off down onto the boardwalk. It’s silly having two segregated pavements/routes running side by side and neither serving the other – essentially wasting space.
And the view of the boardwalk from Grattan Bridge is not pleasant; in contrast to the bridge’s solidity and mass, the boardwalk is light and flimsy and looks like its clinging onto the quay wall for dear life.The quays are the better for not having it integrated into the bridges – including the Millenium Bridge, they are features on what is a narrow and otherwise featureless river, and should not be interfered with.
And under no circumstances should the opposite quay walls be touched. the classical nature of the whole setting would be ruined.The Boardwalk’s really pleasant to sit and walk along, but it would have been far superior to have developed the quays properly with wide promenades after the Port Tunnel and other traffic measures implemented, leaving the solidity of the charming granite wall as the boundary between the river and the city
With the CC acting as the Pied Piper of Hamelin 🙂
Praising the seediness of Talbot St, now there’s a first!
But I agree about the place becoming ‘too nice’; the idea of O’ Cll St as Oxford Street’s offspring is less than pleasant.
I don’t think it will ever be though, even if the CC put every resource they have into trying to make it so, the place wouldn’t change to that extent.There’s always going to be a certain shabbiness to the place, and indeed the city centre in general.
I was on Lower Baggot St, Ranelagh and around that general Victorian township/suburbia the other day, and the contrast with the condition of the bustling areas here and that of those directly across the canal was so marked, from the condition of buildings above ground level, to paving to the cleaniness of the streets – so different.On another matter, does anyone know what’s going onto that huge site opposite Jurys on Parnell St? It’s a massive space.
There’s a fantastic view of the grimey rears to all the Georgians on Parnell Square from here, with their vast chimney stacks straddling across the roofs. Remind you of photos of the tenements, and rare aul times…I was there only yesterday, it’s a great shame so many of the stones are illegible as they’re stacked against each other, so all those in the middle and at the back are completely hidden.
And the ones in the ground are facing the wall rather than the park.If this happens with Mount Jerome it would be a great shame.
But surely the headstones on the plots are private property, and presumably many of the larger monuments are protected?The concert the BBC are holding is part of a music festival they’ve been running anyway, so that’s still going ahead.
Despite the smart quips in the media about the state of O’ Cll St and its appropriateness, I think it would have been a great location, given the whole plaza and Abbey-Henry stretch would be fully completed.
Is this why the stretch from the quays to Abbey St was tarmaced over – in anticiaption of 15,000 people attending this event? Has all this expense and time been wasted?
Most bizarre.
The BBC say they’re pulling out because they ‘only want O’ Connell Street’.
???And RTE refused to comment last night.
The problem apparently was no one knew until Monday that the street would have to be closed for 9 days to prepare for it, and hence ‘traffic chaos’ would ensue – rather than the works themselves being the issue.
But sure only buses and taxis use O’ Cll St! (or are supposed to)
And even if there would be a problem – nobody thought of it beforehand???Banana Republic or what.
On that GPO pic, it should say the stone turns black in the rain!
The Luas wires crossing the street went up on Monday and Tuesday, feels very European now!
Unfortunately the wires passing by Mansfield Chambers/Clarks and the way they’re attached to its corner is less than sympathetic.
