Grangegorman
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GRANGEGORMAN NEWSLETTER SEPT 09
NOTICE: NOV 21 2008
GRANGEGORMAN UPDATE SEPTEMBER 2010
Planning Phase:
The main body of construction work will not start for some time. At present the emphasis is on the planning and design of individual ‘building packages’. To date, the GDA has recruited specialist technical expertise in the areas of planning design and engineering. Such expertise will continue to be required throughout the project.
Public consultation on the draft Strategic Plan for the project is currently underway. This plan sets out how the project will progress. Once the Strategic Plan is adopted, we then move into our formal planning process. It is expected that a Strategic Development Zone planning route will be taken and a draft planning scheme for this will be submitted to Dublin City Council by early 2011. Recognising that this process can take some time, we would anticipate a decision by early to mid 2012.
Design work:
In tandem with the planning process, detailed design work will be ongoing during 2011. This means that once a planning decision is received, construction can begin on the first buildings within a very short time. Design teams are employed through the public procurement process.
Construction work:
The enabling works for the HSE Mental Health Replacement Facilities have just gone on site and are being carried out by Pierse Contractors. The main building contract is currently out to tender and due to start at the beginning of 2011. Each of the main DIT buildings - such as facilities for Business, Tourism, Science and the Library building - will be tendered as separate packages. The main body of work is expected to start on site at the end of 2012.
Because of its scale, the Grangegorman project will be ongoing for at least the next ten years and is still dependant on the funding model attracting private funding and philanthropy It is the success of the Funding model that will determine the pace at which the build programme will be achieved.
Further information and updates can be got at www.ggda.ie.
BACKGROUND
Grangegorman has long been an integral part of the geography of Dublin's north inner city. The site of 'Houses of Industry', or refuges for the poor, in the late eighteenth century, Grangegorman has been the home of diverse buildings throughout the years, including a penitentiary, an asylum and, most recently, a psychiatric hospital.
In 1984, a government report entitled 'Planning for the Future' detailed the future development of psychiatric care in Ireland, and as a result, the number of patients cared for at Grangegorman, the oldest public psychiatric hospital in Ireland, was steadily reduced to under one hundred by 2005.
Meanwhile, a Government Interdepartmental Working Group published a report that, in April 2002, resulted in the then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern's announcement that Grangegorman, an Eastern Region Health Authority (ERHA) site, was to become the location of a major education and health services development. A portion of the land was earmarked for health facilities, which would share the site with a new campus for Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT). Phase I of this development project, to begin in 2003, would see the transfer of all DIT campuses, excluding those at Aungier Street, Kevin Street and Bolton Street, to Grangegorman at an estimated cost of 262 million. Phase II, involving an examination of the financial viability of transferring the remaining DIT campuses to Grangegorman also, would begin later.
In March 2005, the Dublin City Development Plan 2005 – 2011 came into effect. This established a planning context for the city of Dublin, and designated Grangegorman and neighbouring land as Framework Development Area (FDA) 8, defining objectives for the site that included the creation of a DIT campus that would be integrated with the historic character of existing buildings on the site, and also with the communities that surrounded it.
The Grangegorman Development Agency Act, 2005, established the Agency that would be responsible for the development of the site as a location for health, education and other facilities. This Agency was charged with procuring the diverse elements necessary for the success of the site, for establishing a communications strategy involving the relevant stakeholders and for preparing a strategic plan for the development of the site, including the provision of a range of facilities and services.
The Agency would comprise fifteen members, including representatives of the Health Service Executive (HSE), the DIT and local residents. Project Working Teams would be established in respect of each building project on the site. A Consultative Group, composed of two members from each of the stakeholder groups, would meet at least once per quarter in order to maintain an effective communications strategy regarding the development of the Grangegorman site.
The stakeholder groups were recognised under the Act as:
The Residents of the Grangegorman neighbourhood
Public Representatives from the Constituency in which the site is located
Patients and Providers of Healthcare Services, on or near the site
Dublin City Council
DIT
DIT Student Body
DIT Staff
HSE
The Minister for Health and Children
The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government
The Minister for Transport
The Minister for Education and Science
Any Other Body the Agency or Minister for Education and Science considers as relevant
The Grangegorman Development Agency Act mandates the creation of a Strategic Plan to direct the development of the site, and so the Agency advertised for written submissions to guide it in the production of this document. A draft of this Strategic Plan was submitted to the Minister for Education and Science.
In November 2007, the Taoiseach announced the appointment of Moore Ruble Yudell, Architects and Planners, as the masterplanners of the Grangegorman site. Along with other consultants, they were assigned the task of drawing up a masterplan for Grangegorman. This plan would develop the site cohesively according to the requirements of the Strategic Plan, which included the provision of health, education, recreational and research and development facilities, services such as roads and transport, and the availability of these facilities and services to the local community. The refurbishment of listed buildings is also an important element of the plan.
The design process began in January 2008, and in February, Moore Ruble Yudell presented their developing Masterplan to the Grangegorman Project Team. A dynamic document, the Masterplan evolved as the various stakeholders expressed their often disparate needs. In May 2008, the planners presented the changing plan to local Grangegorman residents, and in June, a presentation was made to the DIT Foundation, Governing Body & the Grangegorman Project Team. By September 2008, a 95% iteration of the completed Masterplan was presented to members of DIT Management Forum and Grangegorman Project Team.
The Masterplan envisions a space that marries a variety of forms and functions: availability to Institutions and the Public, urban and landscaped areas, historic and contemporary structures, all within a site that can be termed 'walkable'. DIT and HSE presences have been created, along with a community library, primary school, student residences, gardens and sports and social spaces.
The 'mini-budget' of October 2008 allocated 7 million to the Grangegorman development. While this figure was an enormous reduction in the 25 million that had been requested, these funds were sufficient to continue the project's development. Importantly, the Grangegorman Development Agency did not suffer amalgamation with other government agencies, allowing it to continue in its work of developing the site.
Construction in Grangegorman on the HSE phase 1 is scheduled to begin in 2010, with work on DIT infrastructure due to start later in that year also. The new HSE buildings are scheduled for occupation in late 2012, while 22 of 27 DIT schools should be relocated to their new Grangegorman buildings in 2014. From 2015, further HSE and DIT facilities will gradually be rolled out.
So where is the Grangegorman Development now?
The Masterplan for the development is now complete.
The Draft Strategic Plan, as required under the Grangegorman Development Act, has been completed and submitted.
A Draft Cost Benefit Analysis for facilities for both the HSE and DIT has been completed and submitted.
A detailed design brief for the HSE's Phase I facilities has been completed.
A planning application for the HSE's Phase I facilities has been submitted.
A planning application for the temporary primary school to be located on the Grangegorman site has been approved, and construction of the school is underway.
A brief to underpin the design of DIT core educational facilities is underway and heading toward conclusion. This will be a broad strategic brief, including schedules of accommodation.
Agreement has been reached with Dublin County Council (DCC) regarding the provision on-site of a DCC library as part of the DIT library complex.
An employment study, Joining Up the Dots, was completed in March 2009, exploring the job opportunities arising from the Grangegorman Development.
Consultation regarding the preferred route for the Luas line has been completed.
The Strategic Development Zone (SDZ) planning process is now underway.
A Cabinet decision regarding the Grangegorman Development is anticipated by the end of July.
As the representative organisation of the students of DIT, DITSU is clearly an important stakeholder in the ongoing Grangegorman planning, design and construction processes. The Students' Union has, and continues to, work hard to direct the input of our students into the development of SU facilities at Grangegorman. Students helped inform the development of the Masterplan by participating in a Consultation Workshop held in DIT, Aungier Street in November 2007, facilitated by Nurture Development and designed to help students articulate their vision for the new campus. DITSU's membership of the Grangegorman Development Agency strives to secure a presence on the site that will be most conducive to the needs of our students, and we cooperate with DIT's Student Services and Campus Life, who have recently completed an audit of their services, towards this purpose also.
As a result of the engagement of both DITSU and DIT students in the Grangegorman Development, the following will be an intrinsic part of the new DIT Campus.
The Draft Report produced by Holohan Leisure was presented on the 19th June, establishing the significance of the provision of high quality recreational facilities at Grangegorman. Such facilities will be of the utmost importance in attracting and retaining students to DIT. The report recommends the housing of all recreational facilities in one location, or a series of linked buildings, in contrast to the layout iterated in the Masterplan. The report recommends, however, that there also be spaces where smaller groups can congregate within this location. The importance of the use of temporary structures, such as tents and marquees, is also noted. It was recommended that a food business be incorporated in the structure, and that there exist a bar/venue with a club licence.
The Holohan Report estimates an operating deficit of 250,000 Euro per year for the commercial element of the development, and suggested that the imposition of a student levy would bridge this deficit.
Initial figures for the provision of student accommodation on the Grangegorman campus have declined, and there are, at present, no definitive numbers regarding on-site dedicated student housing.
While some DIT staff are now located at Grangegorman, there are, at present, no DITSU staff members or offices on the new campus.
Ultimately, the moving of DIT campuses to the central location of Grangegorman offers DITSU, and the students we represent, a wonderful opportunity to enhance both the student experience and the services we offer as a part of that experience. The development process is an ongoing one, requiring dedication and steadfastness, and the Masterplan upon which the process is based is a constantly evolving document. As an important stakeholder in this process, DITSU continues to work diligently to ensure that the facilities and services afforded our students on the new Grangegorman campus will be of the very highest quality.
To this end, DITSU has made full submissions to the report being prepared by Holohan Leisure. An interim report by strategic design consultancy DEGW was issued in July 2009, and is currently under review by DITSU.
Towards a brief for detailed design of buildings- Directorat
Grangegorman- The future home of DIT
Grangegorman is the site of the proposed new DIT campus. All of the DIT sites, from Kevin St. to Portland Row, Templebar to Cathal Brugh St., Mount St. to Rathmines Road, will be moving to a brand new campus on the site of the old Grangegorman Mental Hospital on the Northside of the city, fifteen minutes walk from Bolton St.
