GrahamH
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Noooo!!!! I was always facinated by the fact that Dundalk had such an early Victorian structure, now my perspective on the station has changed completly!! Now that you mention the old station, about a 1/4 oof a mile outside the current is a long brick, and much overgrown platform, close to the impressive, but sadly neglected GNR engineering works.
Still, the present station it is still spectacular, and, surprisingly for Ireland, is genuinly appriciated by it’s long suffering commuters/users. It has the best facilities in the country as well, beautiful & immaculatly kept toilets, large cafe, and a snazzy ticket office. All original windows are intact and restored (interestinly, the old first class waiting room has plate glass windows, while all others are comprised of cheaper multi-pane, wavy blown glass). The brickwork is beautiful, the cast iron canopy spectacular (no corrugated plastic here), and interestingly, one of the first examples of the use of concrete in the country in the form of the platforms surfaces, which are still intact.
They certainly planned ahead with this station considering it’s scale, and is a joy to use, over a century later.
I quite like the Clery’s side facade, it works quite well with the contrast between the brown brick and the new white cut stone sign with silver lettering, although yes, it does gauge a massive hole into an essentially uniform and attractive Edwardian street.
All of those ghastly blocks around Tara St, Pearse St etc are all strong contenders, Oisin House and the like…
Now now alastair, don’t be harsh, it was the 80s.
We fared a pretty well considering the plans Michael Scott had for the site in the mid 70s.
It appears Malton’s Collection is quite hard to come by, one man in a shop told me he hadn’t seen it in years. I managed to get some decent prints from the Ntl Gallery Shop of Trinity & Sackville St, and so City Hall is not needed, but still none of the Parliament House (BOI), although I have seen it before.
I suppose the extention to the river is irrelevant, and so I take from your comments
J. Seerski, that the Champ Elysees was not a proper boulevard until the 1820s.AAAAAARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!
Went into the shop this morning, the book was sold only a few days ago!!!
As a result, I have just spent the past 3 hours trudging around the city centre in the p*ssing rain, going in and out of every musty, foul-smelling second-hand bookshop in this God-forsaken hellhole, trying to speak to eccentric Anglo Irish accented middle-aged women with wavy grey hair, above classical music blasting from their 1970s tape recorders, looking for another copy, all to no avail.
Back to square one.
Theres no draw, or focus to Sth King St, to attract people down, something that will change with this development.
Interesting to note that although attractive Georgian buildings were lost on the site of the Stephens Green Centre, it is impossible to think of the area without it, it totally revitalised the Stephens Green/Grafton St South region, acting as a magnet for people in the city centre in a way that was previously unimaginable.
I agree totally. Even the very finest of buildings in this country, both old & new are often offset with the most basic, indeed often non-existant landscaping. Its always dealt with as a mere after-thought and is simply unacceptable. It cannot be overstated the importance of well designed public spaces and well thought-out hard & soft landscaping.
Greenarch, do you know when these works are scheduled to begin? I can’t belive this is being proposed! At last! All railings to the front of Leinster House must be removed in order for the plan to work, and I think the plinth should go as well, although paving following the line of it should be laid in its place. It has always been a national disgrace that those ghastly 60s benches and crappy concrete plant basins have been kept on top of the plinth, leading to the entrance of the national parliament building. A suitable home should also be found for the cut stone sentry boxes and the Victorian railings & piers.
Presumably though, nothing will be completed for Ireland’s hosting of the EU presidency next year, when all state institutions & the capital as a whole should be looking its best.
Brilliant! Thanks.
Just about the Champ Elysees, its widely regarded that Dublin thought in terms of a boulevard before London or Paris with O’ Connell St, work on which began in 1777 (to extend to river). Was the Champ Elysees widened/structurally adjusted in 1828 into a boulevard, & not just the aforementioned gas lighting etc installed?
(I need to prove that O’ Connell St (not Gardiners Mall) predates the Champ Elysees boulevard-wise)
It was a water main on the first floor that burst. It has utterly destroyed the interior of the corner part of the bldg, it is severly water-damaged. There was so much water that, when looking at the building yesterday, I could see large patches of water on the ceiling of the entrance porch outside, which is clad in stone! The cost is expected to be 2-3 million.
Its interesting to note that all the pavements around Merrion Sq, Government Bldgs & Kildare St are all immaculate. Indeed all pavements on the south side are spotless (with regard to chewing gum)
Chewing gum on Grafton Street?! Didn’t you know d d dallas, the upper middle class don’t eat chewing gum!
The top part has been genuinely restored and looks really well. Don’t know what the false front to the bottom is for though, or whats going in there, if anything.
Grafton St is’nt that bad, the red brick pavement makes it the warmest street in the city, even though it is a bit naff. Grey granite would be too dull & drab (also the paving outside Trinity just happens to be 250 years old) Similar sizes blocks today would cost millions.
A warm & sophisticated tan/beige/sandy colour would look really well, maybe highlighted in areas with granite.
