Dublin's old Carlton Cinema to be redeveloped

After sitting idle for decades, the site of the old Carlton Cinema on Dublin's O'Connell Street is finally going to be redeveloped. The company behind Dundrum Town Centre has named the architect it wants to develop a vision for that space that will be known as Dublin Central. Six acres - from Upper O'Connell Street to Parnell Street to Moore Street & Henry Street - are going to be turned into a high-end retail centre. ACME Architects have been told to protect the sites connections with the 1916 Rising, while promoting economic and employment opportunities.

Read the full article @ The Irish Examiner

Moore St houses 'the Irish Alamo'

“THE IRISH Alamo” is how the Moore Street houses where 1916 rebels spent their final hours before surrender are being described by those campaigning to preserve the site.

Matt Doyle, secretary of the National Graves Association, made the comments before a public meeting of the ‘Save 16 Moore Street’ campaign last night.

Due to their historic significance, the houses at 14 to 17 Moore Street were designated national monuments by then environment minister Dick Roche in 2007. Number 16 Moore Street is said to be where Irish rebel leaders made the decision to surrender to British forces after the 1916 Rising.

However in March this year, An Bord Pleanála approved planning permission for a major redevelopment of the 2.7-hectare Carlton Cinema site on Upper O’Connell Street. Developer Joe O’Reilly was granted permission for an 800,000sq ft development to include retail and residential units, restaurants and car spaces.

While the facade would be preserved, campaigners say the work will infringe on an area of national interest. James Connolly Heron, a great-grandson of James Connolly and a member of the ‘Save 16 Moore Street’ committee, said: “We’re calling for the terrace to be taken out of the development plan altogether and for the creation of a holistic cultural quarter.”

Mr Doyle said: “We welcome regeneration of the area but we’re concerned the development will be an infringement on the national monument site. Next year is the 95th anniversary of the Rising and politicians will be banging their chests. They’re not interested until it comes to an anniversary. . .

“This site is the Irish Alamo, there should be a national monument to it.”

The campaigners have also expressed concern that Mr O’Reilly is one of the first 10 developers going into Nama.

A statement issued by Minister John Gormley’s office yesterday reiterated the national monument status of the Moore Street houses.

Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

Campaign to preserve Moore Street buildings

THE CAMPAIGN to protect the historic Moore Street area of Dublin will be the most important campaign since Wood Quay, said James Connolly Heron, great-grandson of James Connolly.

Mr Connolly Heron was one of a group of relatives of the 1916 leaders who met politicians from the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Environment, Heritage and Local Government yesterday to inspect the site around the GPO and Moore Street which is due to be redeveloped.

Last month An Bord Pleanála approved planning permission for a major redevelopment of the Carlton Cinema site covering a 2.7 hectare site taking in most of a block of Upper OConnell Street and fronting on to Henry Street, Moore Street, O’Rahilly Parade and Parnell Street.

The area covers much of the route taken by the leaders of the 1916 Rising after they left the GPO, as well as their final headquarters in 16 Moore Street.

Developer Joe O’Reilly, who built the Dundrum Town Centre in south Dublin, has been granted permission for the 800,000sq ft development which will comprise 98 retail units, 69 residential units, 4,500sq m of restaurants and coffee houses and some 700 car parking spaces.

Mr O Reilly is one of the first ten developers going into Nama. He was also named as one of the Anglo Irish so-called “Golden Circle” – one of 10 Anglo Irish Bank customers who borrowed from the bank to buy a 10 per cent stake in the lender.

Speaking to Oireachtas committee members and local TDs yesterday, Mr Connolly Heron, a member of the Save 16 Moore Street Committee, said the State needed to take a proactive role in the preservation of the area, as the issue was “too important” to be left to a private developer.

Numbers 14-17 Moore Street is a designated National Monument. Under the plans, the facade of the buildings will be preserved and a commemorative centre built in number 16. However, campaigners are proposing that the interior of the buildings be preserved in their original state.

“This is the last surviving building where the leaders actually met,” Mr Connolly Heron said. He called on the Government to establish a museum which would resemble the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam which preserves the original structure and contents of the house.

Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

O'Reilly using building licence to buy Moore St site

Dublin City Council is using a building licence agreement to sell developer Joe O'Reilly a building at 24-25 Moore Street for €12m.

Building licences have been used by some developers to avoid paying stamp duty upfront and legislation was brought in against them but a commencement order was never signed.

"Local Authority disposals of major development or urban renewal sites have traditionally been by means of building licence, agreement to lease and then grant of long term lease. In some instances, as in the present case, an option to purchase the fee is made available following the full completion of the entire development," said Declan Wallace, executive manager in Dublin City Council's economic development unit.

"The primary objective … is to ensure that development of the site, if ultimately approved by the planning authority or an Bord Pleanala, is completed in an efficient and timely manner. Title is transferred only when the development reaches a certain stage, for example to eaves level. In the circumstances pertaining, and particularly in the current difficult climate for developers, it would be wholly inappropriate to transfer title at an early stage in the process prior to certain building targets being achieved. Taxation liabilities and issues are dealt with as they arise, in accordance with the relevant legislation applying at that time."

Chartered Land said it had no comment

The building will form part of O'Reilly's €1.25bn Dublin Central scheme for which he is currently seeking planning permission using his company Chartered Land. The scheme includes plans for 110 shops, 17 restaurants and 108 residential units.

Sunday Tribune

www.buckplanning.ie

Council to sell Moore Street sites

DUBLIN CITY Council has agreed to sell its properties on Moore Street to Chartered Land for €12 million, paving the way for the redevelopment of the former Carlton cinema site.

Chartered Land, the company behind the Dundrum shopping centre, has applied to the council for permission for a €1.2 billion development of apartments, shops and restaurants within a 5.5-acre block bounded by O'Connell Street, Parnell Street, Moore Street and Henry Street.

The site is centred on the former Carlton cinema and adjacent derelict site, which are owned by Chartered Land. However, the company, owned by Longford-born developer Joe O'Reilly, also requires council-owned properties to complete the scheme.

The lands are at 24 and 25 Moore Street and were formerly used for storage for the traders on Moore Street. The buildings are now vacant and the traders have been compensated for the loss. The compensation sum could not be disclosed for reasons of confidentiality, the council said.

The council has agreed to dispose of the just under 100sq m site for €12 million. However, the sale is contingent on Chartered Land being granted planning permission for the development.

The disposal cannot take place until it has been ratified by the city councillors. Councillors in the central area have already agreed to the proposal and it will go before the full city council next week. The council is likely to ratify the decision of the local councillors.

Despite having applied for planning permission for the development last April, Chartered Land is still waiting for a decision from the city council.

The council planners last June sought further information in relation to 14 aspects of the scheme including proposals for a sloping public park at roof level with panoramic views over the city. The developers have been asked to supply more details to address the "inherent design challenges" posed by the height of the public space and the need to ensure public access.

They have also been asked to address the concerns of the council's conservation officer in relation to the protected structures in and around the site. Chartered Land has until December to respond to the council.

The Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

Carlton site redevelopment

Madam, - The Moore Street Traders Committee represents all the street's market traders and is elected annually.

We were disappointed to read Matt Doyle of the National Graves Association (May 27th) suggesting that the proposed Carlton site redevelopment would spell the end of one of Dublin's most famous streets.

We have been working closely with the people behind the Carlton project for the past 18 months because our future and the market's future depends on this development going ahead. The current Moore Street is dilapidated and unattractive and, contrary to what Mr Doyle thinks, ordinary Dubliners and tourists are getting fewer and fewer.

We treasure our national monument but we also welcome development. We have seen the plans for the development and the monument has pride of place in a newly rejuvenated Moore Street market. This is good for the city. - Yours, etc,

MARGARET HANWAY, ERNIE BEGGS, TOM HOLBROOK, MARY LEECH, Moore Street Traders, Moore Street, Dublin 1 .

The Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie