urbanisto
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Hmmm Im getting a bit depressed about this whole mess. I agree the cleaning job greatly improves the Spire but all those streaks. And the light is still out of operation.
The loss of the trees here (and is this juts hearsay or an actual decision) is disasterous. At the time I wondered why the Plaza could not have been used to erect the crane on and the opposite side left undisturbed. I am quite sure a little imagination would have prevented this. As it is the gapping space here knocks the whole median effect off. The trees should be replaced as soon as possible. If they have been permanently removed it also spells the end of the planned kiosks here….remember those. I reckon they have been binned though after the disasters on Grattan Bridge and Smithfield Luas. All in all its looking as if the original IAP is unravelling before our eyes,,,,,if it ever really got off the ground.
I would have thought there are a lots more problems on the street than that but I agree with the condition of the Batchelors Walk corner. Its become very rundown. I year on from the competion of repaving the IAP team seem to have run out of energy though…in fact since the IAPs are now defunct I imagine no one is charged with completing the 1998 plan.
Walking down camden Street for the first time in a while the other day and i was really struck by the vibe on the street. Its surely one of the most successful modern streets in the city. A great range and diversity of shops and other services, apartments, pubs and restaurants. Its the real 18hour city street. It lokks well after a repaving a few years back and the market stalls add life and vibrancy to the street. Highly successful. Surely a model to be replicated in other areas of the city.
🙁
Rain Rain go to SpainNo cranes today….although its not that windy. Easy for me to say…Im not 120m in the air!
@GrahamH wrote:
Beautiful cycle lane. These cyclists have it too good.
Has to be one of the worst stretches of roadway in the city as well. Its littered with potholes. An absolute scandal.
I have added my voice to others with an email to the Heritage Officer…I won’t hold my breath…..:(
I see buried away in the election coverage of the Indo an “annnouncement” by the Deputy Mayor that the City council are to redevelop the Ambassador as the new Central Library for the city replacing the Ilac. Its not clear whether its a proposal or a solid plan. Sounds quite interesting though.
Wonder why the Parnell Square plans have disappeared into the ether……..
Parkgate Street is a bit of a dump at the moment, and various parties have called for improvements to the entrance to the Park and its connection to the rest of the city for many years now. I think this new building is an impressive new addition. It has the potential to radically overhaul the whole area.
As for the Four Courts – perhaps taking out the Criminal Courts will allow the building to be renovated back to its former glory and allow for some of the architectural disasters of the last few decades to be undone….Aras Ui Dalaigh for the hammer anyone (sorry Cearbhall!) ….and the mess at the rear.
The very same. They have taken land from the Department of Defence including a protected structure known as the Red House. Thats being demolished. The new building is a circular drum which will face out onto Infirmary Road and Parkgate street.
There was a picture in Saturdays Indo. Looks pretty impressive. Will certainly dramatically change this part of town.
I read a piece last week in the Irish Times that the portico will finally be restored later this month once the pavement works have been complete. Eh what pavement works? I hear you say… Exactly….can’t see any sign of them and surely the widening of the pavemnet along Dame Street is not something that can be done in 2 weeks….seeing that its taken 1 year to do just a section of Capel Street! Meanwhile the surface of Dame Street must be the worst in the city as any cyclist or driver that uses it will know. Another great maintenance job by DCC
This rash of new litter bins is reaching pandemic proportions! I just passed the corner of Talbot Street and Amiens Street and there were 3 in a row, not 1m from each other. There seems to be a new philosophy afoot that if you provide enough bins then Dublin’s litter problem will disappear.
These new bins must be costing a fortune but as with every other piece of street furniture they are being installed without any thought (bike stands and signage poles spring to mind, and of course the new JCDecaux projects). The case of O’Connell Street is awful and you would have to question what is wrong with the original design (which fits in with the stainless steel image adopted for the street), but its not the only case. Grafton and North Earl Streets are also getting the bins even though the cast iron look fits in with their street design. The new bins look crap here. The bins are all over the central city now. Variations of them on Capel Street (in black) as part of its makeover (another 3 year job!). Its such a waste of money!
Our city is quickly turning back into a dump.
From today’s paper
Ad space exchanged for 500 bikes
Olivia KellyDublin City Council has granted one of the world’s largest advertising companies permission to erect some 130 advertising panels across the city for 15 years, in exchange for 500 bicycles and four public toilets.
The bicycles are to be available for the public to rent, at a fee yet to be decided, by the end of the year, subject to approval of the planning permission for the advertising by An Bord Pleanála.
The contract with advertisers JC Decaux will see free-standing panels ranging from 2sq m (6.5sq ft) – approximately the size of a bus shelter advertisement – to 7sq m (23sq ft) placed on prominent sites, including Henry Street, Liffey Street and Smithfield Plaza.
JC Decaux had originally applied for approximately 150 panels, including several on O’Connell Street, but withdrew a number of applications including all those on O’Connell Street, following a large volume of objections.
However, it is likely that a number of permissions approved by the council will be appealed to An Bord Pleanála, particularly those in the high-footfall shopping areas of the city.
The details of the contract have not been disclosed, but it is estimated that the advertising space sold on the panels would be worth at least €1 million every year to JC Decaux.
The council will receive no money from the advertising, but in addition to the bicycles and toilets, will get a number of signposts, freestanding maps and “heritage trail” posts. The council also has a commitment from JC Decaux that it will remove its large advertising hoardings from the city.
While it was a “small victory” that the company had withdrawn its application for the O’Connell Street panels, Labour councillor Emer Costello said she was very disappointed that permission was granted for most of the panels.
“It is particularly disappointing for Smithfield, where the whole point was to have an open plaza. It will deface the civic space to have the beautiful vista littered with these polls.”
The deal struck with JC Decaux was not properly presented to the councillors before it was agreed, she said.
“This scheme wasn’t properly debated with the city councillors and I will be a lot more mistrustful of proposals like this in the future. We have sold ourselves short for 500 bikes and a couple of toilets and I don’t think it was worth it.”
However, fellow Labour councillor and long-time proponent of a city bike scheme, Andrew Montague, said the bicycles could make a substantial impact on city traffic.
“I’m delighted that the council granted planning permission, it’s the first step to getting this up and running.”
JC Decaux was operating a similar scheme in Lyon in France and it had proved extremely popular, he said.
“In Lyon, the traffic in the city reduced by 10 per cent after the bike scheme was introduced. If we got half of that or and significant reduction in traffic, from my point of view, it will have been worth it.”
© 2007 The Irish Times
@shed wrote:
Can anyone explain to me though what the stairs going under the plaza lead to? a public toilet perhaps? The stairs are in the steel feature on the right hand side of ake’s first photo?? (obviously not to clear from such a distance but anyone who’s been down there should know what im on about)
Theres an undeground carpark under the square.
I mean that decisions are being made….. a number have been granted. Among the conditions are that a number of the large billboards be removed.
