republicofcork

radioactiveman it is true that most developers are well meaning but there are a few that consistently drive their projects in a worryingly self serving way. With this well maening could be a description for a psychopath too so it doesnt abslove people of responsability. The difference with what is occuring now and the past is in the scale of what is happening now. Before good and bad buildings were built and the majority of the fabric could have absormed the odd small scale misconceived building. Now developments are huge and act like an oil spill that is just too big for the environment to take without serios intervention. We do need to look at what architecturally makes up our city and we need to educate ourselves about it and respect it. Like it or not the two Victoria cross buildings that so many people hate have much more in common with the Civic Trust House in terms of design than almost any recent building in the city. They have a clay applied facade and flush windows and a severe minimalism based on careful proportioning of elements. All also use the best of known technowlogy of their time. U may hate them but these buildings are intellectually very similar to that tradition which is admired throughout the world as IrisGeorgian architecture and design. A quiet version of these buildings on Lavits Quay designeed by this Architect would be very welcome. Perhaps we could argue about the scale or location of the Victoria Cross buildings but given teir incredibly minimal detailing and proportions they are some of the best and most contextual buildings in the city. Their quiet simple form is Irish and it is humble and without overt devices or decoration. In all nature form does follow function. These buildings and the Civic Trust House are beautiful. 21 Lavitts Quay is a mutant. It is cheap and nasty and ignorant of its surroundings. It could barely be worse than it is. It is like the cheapest christmas decoration I have ever seen. That it sits in the same vista as St Mary’s Church is a crime. The development at Jurys is only marginally better though lets face it how could it be worse. The architectural expression here is remarkably similar to that of the ESSO garage next door. Have a look at it. Perhaps O’Callighans are trying to be contextual after all!!!!! Ha Ha.

@kesey wrote:

republic of cork, please give examples of the recommendations of planners which were ignored. The City Manager has attempted to drag the planners out of the 18th century. They haved kicked and screamed and want to stay as unambitious and as unexciting as possible. The planners sadly have no wish to help in the creation of an exciting vibrant city. The cats’ vomit at Victoria Cross – from the Victoria Mills to the excremental trident at the Kingsley – give no grounds for hope of imagination from our most illustrious planners.

Lets face it the planners are only ok. the education of a planner doesnt really give a true appreciation for urban design or architecture and current zoning policies are creating enormouse social and transport problems. But the regeneration of the city is something they have been trying to work on. The city owns much public space and like it or not the regeneration of Patrick Street and the Grand Parade will help Cork. The repair and reinforcement of areas of public space is a tried and tested form of regeneration of cities. In combination with this simple buildings like Soho Bar on the Grand Parade will help to regenerate life and interest in the city. Thats what we are trying to do? Isnt it? Aren’t we trying to reinvent the cist like Bristol or Newcastle or Barcelona? To give it new life?………….but we are not, we are handing it over to developers.

Look at the file for 21 Lavitts Quay. The recomendations of the planners and public professionals were to reduce the height of the building and relook at the architectural expression. This building has seriously damaged the continuation of the quay, the setting of listed buildings and the riverscape as a whole. It did not need to be that way and a sensitivly designed building here could have greatly contributed to the environment of the city and equally to the pocket of the Developer and the CV of the City Manager. In his wisdom though the City Manager ignored the appointed Government Professionals and in the interests of nobody but the Developer, who stood to make huge profits either way, granted permission for the building. Therefor the opportunity for the city generally to have a positive influence from this building has been missed and the protection we get however frustrating and even inept it might be from paid professional public servants is lost. So we have nothing but the taste and stupidity of a developer combined with the ego and self promotion of a Manager………and the City will suffer long term. What a missed opportunity for the city and in reality a greatly missed oportunity for the developer. In the long run this crude building which is all vulgar show and no substance will not hold its value. This is example number One.

Here is number Two:
Railings went up in front of 51 Popes Quay in Cork City Centre, enclosing a piece of public ground. It is a wedge shape created by the straightening of the river which used to run at an angle. It is an exciting public space of huge potential to the city. The railings went up over Chrismas of 2005 while the Planning Dept was closed. Planning was sought to retain them and was reccomended for rejection for many reasons: style, planting, suburbanisation of the space, bad design etc and the fact that it enclosed public land for the private use of only one individual! This area is right in the centre of Cork.

The City Manager makes many mistakes by ignoring valid comment and professional recomendations on particular sites. The City council go along with this. It would be like the Government allowing the President to overrule one bill after another.

Sean Keohane is the owner of the property that railed off public land for his private car parking. He is a developer and is trying to develope other areas of the city.
The Civic Trust house is next door. It is an exceptionally rare building of about 1740.
The Civic Trust has not notably been active in Cork recently. It is run by John Miller. John has no training in architecture or history and is an Accountant. John likes to park his car in front of the Civic Trust house when he arrives at work. He might say the buildings are vulnerable and his experience is limited to the idea of providing railings. Railings and a car park for his car.

An application for planning to retain the railings at 51 Poes Quay and add them to the Civic trust house at Number 50 the Civic Trust house was made. It was approved by the City Manager ignoring the recomendations not to do so by the planning department.
The decision was appealed so the application was withdrawn by Mr Keohane and the Civic Trust. No doubt all parties knew that Bord Pleanala would not allow the transfer of public space to private use or the inappropriate design of the railings in proximity to an 18th C. building.

A new tack was presented……………the manager proposed to sell the land to Sean Keohane of 51 Popes Quay first, to presumably strengthening his situation in terms of planning to retaint the railings.
The manager argued to the Council and against protest…………..it was voted to sell the land to Sean Keohane for….1 euro.

Having investigated the land from historic maps and from local people i am positive this area was always public space and used as such. When the civic trust house was being developed a few years ago it was left unfinished by the City Council.

This would not happen in say…..France, because they have a democracy, they do things in the interests of the greater good not the exploitation of public assets for individual people at the expense of others.

This situation is rotten to the core. It is entierly undemocratic and demonstrates the flaw in the City Manager system in Ireland and also the lack of any serious Civic Trust in Cork. Cork is being ripped to shreds at present. The sise of the city may limit it intellectually. We also have no free press as the local papers often have development issues themselves.

At the very least these actions are dishonest and are related to influence peddling? At worst they are much more and we may only imagine what else is going on. When will the government intervene as it has done so before on realising that the system is not working in Cork?

Lavitts quay has an extremely rare building that was once the Lavitt Gallery. Watch as the City Manager allows it to be destroyed. We are nearly the richest country in the world and we cant build well in an urban environment and we cant integrate our heritage with development. We are limited here to the single cow farm ambitions of a few unqualified people. It is a crying shame for our City and this Country and it will ensure the development of this country as a one City State and Cork as a place of provincial mediocraty. So many of us are ashamed of this City and those who represent us. We are ashamed because they don’t represent us. They represent themselves.

Corruption is described as dishonesty.
Dishonesty is a term which in common usage may be defined as the act of being dishonest; to act without honesty; a lack of probity, to cheat, lying or being deliberately deceptive; lacking in integrity; to be knavish, perfidious, corrupt or treacherous; charlatanism or quackery.
Dishonesty is the fundamental component of a majority of offences relating to the acquisition, conversion and disposal of property (tangible or intangible) defined in criminal law.

corruption (uncountable and countable; plural corruptions)
The act of corrupting or of impairing integrity, virtue, or moral principle; the state of being corrupted or debased; loss of purity or integrity; depravity; wickedness; impurity; bribery.
Political corruption, corruption of a political system through bribery, intimidation, extortion, vote buying, destabilization, or influence peddling

the economic redevelopment ot the lanes and the recognision of the architectural character of the city are compatable. almost everything you say makes sense lexington but you seem to have no confidence in the compatability of considerate urban design and the regeneration of areas and the sucessful economic development of individual sites.

let’s all be clear. the city needs better design to further the aims which we are all putting forward and which many of us agree on. what is difficult to swallow is the fact that we want development of the design standard of barcelona and we are being served up the standards of a buisness park in baisingstoke. we all need to respect the city centre environment and raise our standards and expectations.

@lexington wrote:

:rolleyes: How long has this thing been going on??? 😮 Finally, the Cork School of Music (CSM) designed by architects Murray O’Laoire, looks set to roll. Originally, the 110,000sq ft + project was proposed back in 1999 and has since suffered a number of severe setbacks from planning to funding to contractual misendeavours. Jarvis had originally been appointed to the PPP educational project – at one point in 2004, movement looked set when Jarvis signed a contract with John Sisk & Sons Construction to build the project on their behalf, however, when Jarvis ran into financial difficulties, its PPP wing was sold to German-firm Hochtief. The Dept. of Education has since been in negotiations with the firm about commencing work on the belated building – now, an agreement would seem to have been reached. If all goes well, a construction date is set for sometime in September of this year with an 18 month build-period. The project should be functional and open to the college’s 3,000+ music students in time for the 2007 semester.

This indeed, is another positive development (following yesterday’s announcement regarding Eglinton Street) in Cork’s architectural and educational wilderness. It is believed Sisk Construction will still remain appointed to the contract.

Any opinions on its design?

the design of the school of music looks good…..however…. it would have taken more talent to integrate the previous school building which was an incredible and rare structure from the post war period in cork. shame on all involved in this destruction. no argument can justify this level of disregard for the work of others and the sustainabiliyy of maintaining an existing high quality building in use. we say lay your egos off our environment. some humility and respect was called for here. you missed your chance. we can only hope that this new building may be finished to a high quality and not full of unresolved finishes that wont last half as well as its now destroyed predecessor.