Case Studies   Urban Regeneration in the City of Dublin: Partnership structures and integrated area planning

Provision of neighbourhood public services

The public services provided by Dublin City Council have to be tailored to meet the specific requirements of each area because of demographic, spatial and historical differences. Refuse collection takes place weekly by Dublin City Council. Refuse collection in the flat complexes can be problematic and new initiatives are being examined. An Environmental Liasion Officer is employed by Dublin City Council, in each of the five areas administered by the local authority. There is also an Anti-Litter Officer based in the Liberties-Coombe area. Kilmainham-Inchicore is characterised by a large proportion of terraced older housing. This provides waste management with a difficulty as standard Wheelie bins and Green Wheelie bins, while desirable, are viewed by residents as being unsightly to the front of the houses. It is Dublin City Council’s objective to increase this type of refuse collection and where not feasible to find alternatives such as green bag collections. Currently there are three bring centres within the area. The 2004 target is to provide one bring centre per 800-1000 households.

All the neighbourhoods are well served by public transport in the form of buses, provided by Dublin Bus, a public company. To speed up bus journeys through the area the North Clondalkin Quality Bus Corridor was introduced in 2000. Another three Quality Bus Corridors are planned for completion in 2004 at Con Colbert Road, St. John’s Road West and at Bluebell on the Naas Road, all of which bound the neighbourhood. However, given Kilmainham-Inchicore’s geographical position as an inner-city suburb, with no large commercial base, it is traversed both by people coming into and out of the city on a daily basis. This provides congestion difficulties for people in the area and contributes to the overall traffic problem in the City. Kilmainham-Inchicore will benefit from the development of a rapid transit radial line from the city outskirts to the city centre. This line is due for completing in mid-2004. While it will be of great benefit to people in the area one of the downsides for the locals will be the potential inflation of property prices. At the main tourist attractions in the neighbourhood a number of cycle lanes exist and are well used. Cyclists are hampered however, by the fact that there is no connection to the wider cycle network. This should be partly alleviated when the proposed Heuston Station and environs regeneration plan is completed. This will provide for a cycle bridge over Heuston station connecting the Phoenix Park with Kilmainham. In Liberties-Coombe there are cycle routes along major arteries such as Cork Street and Thomas Street. The new rapid transit radial line will pass along the western extremities of the IAP area, and will be a major factor in the regeneration of Fatima Mansions. The LUAS line will pass adjacent to the complex. It is envisaged that private affordable housing will be built near the Luas line in Fatima, with a mixed development of housing, offices, retail, community facilities and possibly some enterprise units. This will all help with the integration of the residents of the “new” Fatima with the adjacent suburb of Rialto. There are no green routes planned for the Liberties-Coombe area, however two environmental traffic cells are planned :

1. The Tenters (work underway)

2. The Liberties Environmental Traffic Cells

Again extensive consultation has taken/will take place with the community on the implementation of both cells. As part of the Cork Street Regeneration Strategy Framework, greening of the street will take place. A multi-disciplinary team has also been established to work on this plan. The framwework will cover all aspects of the regeneration of the corridor - physical, soft environmental improvements, development potential, community issues. A full consultation process will take place with the community. A multi-disciplinary team is currently working on the plan. Primary, secondary and tertiary education is administered by central government. Schools are historically associated with parish areas as opposed to neighbourhoods. In each of our neighbourhoods there are a mix of state funded primary schools some of which teach through the medium of Irish, girls and boys secondary schools, and Vocational Education facilities. In addition, the campus of the National College of Ireland which is committed to a proactive life long learning programme, has recently relocated to the North East inner-city.

Overall City Strategy    The impact of urban regeneration