Recently completed works to Clarendon Street.

Following on from our series of Blog posts in early 2020, this is the sixth of eight posts reviewing progress made in 2020 and outlining our project targets for this year. This post covers work on the public realm for the Council’s Environment & Transportation Department. Other public realm work in the North East Inner City Area and the DCC Area Offices was covered in an earlier post here.

The public realm plays an important role in how Dublin functions and its attractiveness to the people who live or work in the city. As well as being the main space for movement, circulation and other service infrastructure, the public realm is a key part of the city’s identity and distinctive character.

City Architects is one of the many sections of the Council working to develop the public realm including Traffic, Roads Design, Planning, Parks and Roads Maintenance. The Public Real Team in City Architects together with the Roads Design Division of the Environment & Transportation Department, are the principal designers of many of Dublin City Council’s public realm projects. Projects are guided by the Dublin City Public Realm Strategy ‘Your City Your Space’, which sets out guiding principles to support the delivery of a quality public realm. A further document, Dublin City Centre Public Realm Masterplan, sets out the programme for phased implementation of a series of projects in the historic centre of the city.

Consultation is a key element of the design process when designing public realm projects.  City Architects engages extensively with key stakeholders in the city; including local businesses and communities, the Public Participatory Network and other agencies such as the Office of Public Works, National Transport Authority and Transport Infrastructure Ireland in the process of developing their schemes.

Concept illustration of space in use, looking east along Dame Street towards Trinity College, image taken from Consultation Process on options for public realm improvements to Dame Street as part of the College Green project

City Architects also provides advice and design guidance on a number of strategic infrastructure projects for the Environment & Transportation Department such as bridges, cycle routes and flood defences, and also provides guidance and undertakes work for the Area Offices within Dublin City Council.

COVID 19 has impacted our project programmes, and the resultant delays have varied depending on the project stage e.g. feasibility, design, planning or construction stages. As with construction projects, some public realm works on site have undergone shut downs under public health regulations and have also been subject to delays due to revised working procedures to comply with safe working requirements and protective distancing.

Temporary Covid Mobility Measures: footpath build-out on South Anne Street.

The following is a list of City Architects Public Realm projects by name and location, description, team, and 2021 target. Abbreviations of design team roles are explained at the end of the list.

Note: This table was updated on 13/04/21