urbanisto

All the courtrooms are accessed from the balconies of the Great Hall

The quality of the finish throughout is very high. It feels like a building that will last. Also a good balance struck between functionality and need for gravitas.

The interior of a courtroom…Mr Justice Carney’s I’m told although the original intention was that judges would alternate the use of courtrooms. Each Courtroom served by a small annex holding judges chambers (not seen) and separate staircases for the arraigned and juries.

And reported in today’s Irish Times

COUNCIL TO ACT ON 200 DERELICT SITES

AN INITIATIVE to put some 200 vacant, abandoned or derelict sites in Dublin city back into productive use is being developed by Dublin City Council.

Planning experts from nine different European countries are in Dublin this week to advise on how best to address the capital’s growing numbers of “brownfield” sites which have become a blight on the city.

Brownfield lands – commercial and industrial sites which have fallen into disuse or become derelict – had become a major problem in the city up to the 1980s when tax incentives were introduced for their redevelopment.

Such incentives were instrumental in the renewal of Temple bar and the Dublin Docklands. The economic boom years also increased development of former industrial sites in the centre of the city.

However, the abrupt end to the boom has left a legacy of new brownfield sites as properties were bought and often demolished by developers who then ran out of money to build on the land.

City planner John O’Hara said site owners and the council needed to take a step back from the grand projects of the boom which were no longer practicable and look at realistic short and medium-term uses of the land.

“We have seen the large plots that were granted permission in the excitement of the boom that are now vacant or underused sites. In places where le grand project has fallen flat on its face everything has ground to a halt.”

The larger the site the bigger the problem posed as banks were unlikely to release substantial funds for their redevelopment. However, smaller-scale uses were an option for these sites such as “hot desking”, where sole traders and start-up businesses can rent short-term office space, or the use of vacant plots for markets or arts and events spaces.

“The idea is to keep an area buoyant, to put a space back on people’s mental map, maybe through small-scale shops or residential use. It’s not to say that all big projects are bad, but we need to kick-start the use of the land if confidence is to be restored. And that includes the confidence of the banks,” said Mr O’Hara.

The council would be approaching the owners of all 200 sites and offering to write design briefs for them, with which they can then approach banks or estate agents.

The council had fallen foul of the hubris of the boom with grand plans which were no longer achievable.

“Newmarket Square is a failure. The Liberties Local Area Plan had in mind offices and a hotel and residential development for the square. That isn’t going to happen now, at least not in the immediate future,” said Mr O’Hara.

However, he added that the square did offer opportunities for smaller more considered development, such as the Sunday flea market which had already started, and potential for collaboration with the nearby National College of Art and Design.

The square is one of the brownfield sites which the European planners will be asked to consider this week.

Other prominent locations identified as needing intervention include the former CIÉ site on Upper Abbey Street, the Fishmarket at Mary’s Lane and an Office of Public Works site at Hammond Lane.
Irish Times

I wonder if the 100 buildings at risk mentioned last week are included in this list? Or is there some overlap at least? What do you reckon our planner cousins from Europe will think of the declining quality of Dublin city centre?

I met a DCC planning colleague recently who is stressed out working on LAPs for areas such as Pelletstown and North Fringe…but this area (previously designated as HARP) and the Liberties must surely be the development priorities for the city as confidence returns to the construction sector. I am not talking about wholesale landbanking, demolition and shite rebuild as shown in your post exene1 but rather something approximating to regeneration that maintains and restores the essential character and quality of the area. Yet, to my knowledge the Forward Planning team in DCC don’t have this area on its radar. The Liberties has its unimplementable LAP of course (after a suggested €1m spent devising it!) but as yet there is no up to date ‘action plan’ for Smithfield. Things will just happen as they will. A h.uge amount of NAMA sites around here I’d warrant

Looks like they sold a jobs lot…

and then popped around to Capel Street

Both these locations are ACAs – whatever that means. I spotted a senior DCC planning official looking quizically at the signs on Capel Street.

Completely agreed Cathal. Just thought they were interesting links etc. And planning (or acting to be more specific) is subject to interminable delays in this city.

I did mention a few posts back that €1m has been set aside for the Markets project and that work had started in Feb. I had a nosey in today (couldnt get inside as it closes at 3pm – that will have to change) and its creeping along. It is fair to say though that the building is a working space but cant imagine there is too great a fire under DCC on this matter.

Yes, fully agreed. Some simple actions:
Remove traffic from Mary Street Little and resurface to make its an attractive walking route. I think Fade Street shows what might be achievable in a cost effective manner.
Add new street lighting – the same as Capel Street
Add a few box planters
Agree a colour scheme and facade treatments with the building owners along the street
Add a post to the wayfinder unit directing to the market
Dare I say it…do a bit of Marketing! and advertise the market, give it a makeover

Its not rocket science

A great little video doing the rounds yesterday on Twitter..even after all these years it chimes with what another Civic Trust has been suggesting http://www.eafa.org.uk/catalogue/304

Interesting thread here….especially the Raider of the Lost Ark store house. Turns out Dublin Civic Trust have the artefacts from the Irish House Pub, while much of the interior was kept by the pub’s owners. There appears to be a storage yard in Cherrywood that holds many items f interest from around the city. DCC must have a yard…eg where have they stored the 3 Fates statues that used to sit in the small park beside City Hall.

Ah yes, recently posted on the Westmoreland/D’Olier Street threads. I thought about objecting but its a waste of my time. The truth is it is resented..by the City Council which views public interaction as a nuisance and by the city business community which just wants to do whatever it wants to buildings such as these…public comment not welcome.

Having observed how public comments to the proposed Mountjoy Square ACA were dealt with – ie not one submission taken on board – I have lost faith.

Let the crap accumulate…

(I am only this grumpy because of the rain)

@StephenC wrote:

The An Taisce Dublin report/complaint published in 2010 that highlighted the degree of unauthorised development and the plethora of crap facades and shitty signage along this and other street in the heart of the city centre went unanswered and un-acted upon.

http://www.antaisce.ie/Portals/0/submissions/atdublinshopfronts2011.pdf

From 2011..sorry.

Following up on yesterday’s story about the former Bewleys, its interesting to note all the works being discussed for these protected structures…without a grant of planning permission as yet. Which perhaps explains why a planning enforcement officer is involved. Is this the new way to do it now…bypass the planning system, undertake the works and then “work with” the planning enforcement officer to “resolve any issues”.