urbanisto
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The view down New Church Street – smart but a little sterile perhaps. I think more trees would have helped here. The cobble setts set so firmly in cement have lost all their charm and colour in my view.
The welcome return of a little curiosity
Planting on the square to be provided by these guys….beech hedges in concrete pots. There’s loads of them…must have cost a fair packet. They are currently arranged rather haphazardly pending completion of works.
The ‘competed’ section of the square is looking a bit worse for wear in places. These bollards were unsuccessful.
The grassed terrace at the northern end of the square. The terrace of 4 Georgian houses languishes in the background.
Another one of those forgotten streets – with the attractive name Friary Avenue. The housing here is starting to look like a ghetto.
Some recent snaps taken down Smithfield way where the public realm works are substantially completed. Recent developments such as the reopening of The Lighthouse and the new Generator Hostel are to be welcomed. Hopefully the area can start turning the corner. There’s a long way to go though.
Some issues of course…the all important red line boundary means that this whole section remains unresolved. Quite when this (potentially attractive) lane will get some improved paving and lighting is open to question.
And quite right too…. its amazing the degree to which this institution got to advertise so heavily about the city. I must keep my eyes peeled for finger post signs. Thee were 10s of them at one stage but in fairness to DCC there has been an good followup to remove brown signs now that wayfinder is in place.
Now whats happening with Abercrombie & Fitch….dead in the water. I would imagine so…retailing is moribund in the city. If it was coming then surely the time is before Christmas.
And lastly, I know we are all only back from holidays but..bets on how long it will take to complete the lighting scheme and repair the pavement on College Green.
worthwhile reading it in tandem with other article
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0104/1224309779091.html
I saw those!…how curious. I bet they result from OPW (which owns the pavement) refusing to let Dublin Bus (which thinks it can put its stops wherever it wishes and who’s to tell them otherwise) place stops on the Green. The fitting in the pavement holds the new stop signs. Very odd.
Draft Public Realm Strategy is out boys and girls…. Submissions by 25th Jan. Your City: Your Space is the title….yeah right.
Also an Outdoor Advertisement Strategy
And also a workshop on Mon 5th Dec with DCC Roads on a best practice manual/policy etc for Dublin’s historic street surfaces.
The Market has been rebranded Mary’s Lane Market by Dublin City Council and is being promoted as “an authentic Victorian shopping experience”. They should put something up on their website…all I saw was an advert in the Civic Offices.
The capital investment programme for Dublin announced by DCC today includes the refurbishment of the Market Hall despite the cuts elsewhere. It well worth it. I think with some clever collaborative thinking this area could really take off.
Fade Street is the next little space in the city up for a “revamp”. This time its a cheap and cheerful temporary surface, prototyping these types of materials for other streets in what is now the Grafton Quarter. The works are the first for the new Public Realm team.
As with the Palace Street proposals above, I reckon simple is all thats required here. Some well laid and generously wide pavements. Keep the kerbs and features. Add some lice lamps area trees and smoothen out the road surface. Or even pedestrianise? Is that possible?
I havent any snaps yet but its looks worrying so far. The older granite kerbing which lines the street is now to be encased more or less with tarmac on one side and cheap gutter bricks on the other. The new kerb is a cheap pour concrete that looks awful at the moment. I bet the surface will be just plain old tarmac….might look okay if its covered but have to see. Shame about the kerbstones though.
Works being executed by Sierra, those champions of the public realm.
17th November, sees the next “Thursday Lunchtime Conversations in darcspace”
Dublin Civic Trust will lead a discussion on their recent report ‘Parnell Street East: A Vision for an Historic City Centre Street’ with Dr Sandra O’Connell is the ‘host/facilitator’. The lunch event coincides with the current exhibition at darc space, which marks the publication of the Trust’s thought-provoking report, setting out a vision for Parnell Street East. The exhibition runs until the 18th November and was opened on 3 November by Dublin City Architect Ali Grehan.
The lunch-time discussion (1-2pm) will explore how one of the city’s most central yet most forgotten thoroughfares could become once more a vibrant commercial and residential centre. However it will also raise wider, important questions on how, in light of major government cutbacks, individuals and organisations can bring about positive change on all levels – from small interventions to the large city scale.
The event is freebut as places are limited please contact us to book in: info@darcspace.ie
Lunch is kindly sponsored by Carrolls Gift Stores, who have also sponsored the exhibition and, with the DCBA, also sponsored the report.
Yet another drawn out scheme by DCC Lighting. The majority of the standards are in place but works seems to have stalled for now.
Perhaps add to a range of other not fully completed lighting schemes about the city:
-Pearse Street
-Ringsend/Irishtown Road
-Dorset Street towards North King Street
-Drumcondra Road
-South Quays in DocklandsI think the point is they aren’t!
Yet the Council are extraordinarily sensitive to criticism. When elements of the “heritage lobby” (hate that phrase) raise their heads above the parapet about these matters they come down on them like a ton of bricks.
Where best to put this….
Dublin’s latest high quality retail attraction is currently being fitted out on St Stephen’s Green. EuroGiant, a brand of the UK 99p Store chain, looks like it will open its doors this week (its store fitout being of the cheap and cheerful variety). What a great pitch! Juts across from Dublin’s swankiest hotel and fronting onto salubrious St Stephens Green North and KIldare Street, the store is set to attract punters of the high flying shopper variety as well as politicos and top civil servants. Rumour has it that EuroGiant beat the likes of Louis Vuitton and Prada for this prime pitch. We wish them well…
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/property/2011/1013/1224305702360.html
Interestingly the store opening spurred a rare foray into the world of “what we put on our streets” by a Failte Ireland Director, Ciaran O Gaora in y’days Sunday Indo Business Section http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/failtes-warning-over-pound-shop-2907505.html . “I dont believe its going to be an enhancing, positive move for the area in terms of the nature of the character area or the tourism experience”, he says. Fair play to him..its rare enough to hear aparatchiks of the system with some clout actually raising these issues.
Where is DCC on this matter? Well as it happens the unit EuroGiant have taken was already in retail use so no planning permission needed. Permission is needed however for signage and there is no record of an application as yet. No doubt it will be ignored unless someone complains to enforcement (not nextdoor neighbour Lisney who thinks its a great idea…business is business). Maybe poor old Adams auction rooms. Anyhow, we have long given up hope of a proactive planning enforcement section at DCC. They have been eviscerated with staff cuts and one suspects told by their masters to occupy themselves with more worthwhile things.
So any joy with the various Plans for the area – the St Stephen’s Green ACA? Sorry there isn’t one. The Grafton Street and Environs Special Planing Control Scheme…must have a gander through that dusty document but I cant imagine it extends this far. Besides it hasn’t done much good for Korky and co and their full building advertising.
This scheme was adopted in 2007. The extent of the Area of Special Planning Control is identical to the ‘Grafton Street & Environs Architectural Conservation Area’. The purpose is to reinvigorate Grafton Street as the South City’s most dynamic retail experience underpinned by a wide range of mainstream, independent and specialist retail and service outlets that attract both Dubliners and visitors to shop, sit and stroll, whilst re-establishing the area’s rich historic charm and urban character.
Maybe the retails group in the city DCBA cares about the quality of city streets and has greater aspirations for this site and for the northside of one of the city’s finest squares than a EuroGiant. Perhaps the have been proactively working with the building owner to target suitable high quality tenants for this site while also working with 99p Store to ensure their shops go in appropriate locations where they blend in.
Alas I fear those chaps have neither the clout nor the imagination.
The roll-out of this scheme is almost complete. The new map panels are all in place and the final few finger signs are being installed.
All in all it must be said the signage is a great addition to the city streets. Its smart, functional and finally gives some consistency to how we navigate our city streets. Combined with the Dublinbikes, the new Dublin Bus stops and (it must be said) the advertisement panels, the scheme now gives a modern branding to the city centre.
In terms of its physical installation it has been first class – hats off to Wallace. The works have all been well executed and not a tarmac lump in sight.
For the most part the signs are well located (the College Green map panel being my personal gripe as well as the lack of panels or signs around O’Connell bridge). The Phase II works have sought to correct finger post signs which were pointing the incorrect way. The anticipated removal of myriad brown finger signs has begun. At some spots, such as the junction of Nicholas Street and High Street and at the bottom of Crown Alley, the difference is noticeable. The process of removing signs is probably far from complete and I remain skeptical as to how much will be removed.
However consistency is the key to the long term success of this scheme. Already a number of signs are out of date! Amazing how fast it happens (signs pointing to Lighthouse Cinema). There have been some omissions…for example no signage to the “City Markets” from Capel Street, despite the planned development of this buildings as a retail spot. And one only has to look to Docklands to see how lack of maintenance affects the signage. Already this once exemplary scheme is looking worn and uncared for. And despite the opening of the National Convention Centre last year, no one has got around to updating the maps and signage – and this being a major institution in the city.
Curiously, given all the palaver about the language issue, I wonder of one could now approach the Language Commissar and complain about the lack of equal prominence given to English on the new signage. And on what basis is white lettering considered to give more prominence than grey? It all appear like a load of bureaucratic nonsense to me. Its also worth pointing our that the separately installed (though complementary) signage scheme around the Aviva stadium happily uses the old format…and without any of the attendant redtape. Curious that.
Now whats next…of yes, a plan to install 3,000 new signage poles about the city so that traffic signs attached to lampstands can be given their own poles…Anyone have any news on that!
Thats interesting Morlan – councillors don’t usually “get” these things.
He is always welcome to support Dublin Civic Trust which has long advocated for measures to improve our streets.
And it doesnt end there. Say you want to introduce a map panel and wayfinder signage as part of the city scheme. Where do you put it?
Do you take out the crappy phone kiosks which no one uses on the pavement in front of the cigar shop?
Or do you take out some of the many telecom cabinets which litter this space, put them underground and use that space?Naww..you stick it beside Mr Grattan and his two lovely lamps (and a new heritage standard) (and assorted busgate clutter)
Photo opportunity anyone
