March 1998

REGENERATION NEWS
Phase 3 housing plans
November 2000 Issue 19

INSIDE
• Local children
help design
playgrounds

• Phase 3
housing plans

• Minister
and residents
impressed with Alderman Maurice Ahern, Lord Mayor of Dublin, paid his first official visit to Ballymun in August. Members of the
five Area Forums, the Ballymun Housing Task Force , the Board of Ballymun Regeneration Ltd and local politicians
Phase 2 designs joined the Lord Mayor for lunch in Stormanstown House to mark the start of Phase 3. (see back page)

• Oral History Project JUDICIAL REVIEW

gets started

• Save the
WITHDRAWN IN
• 1-56 Shangan Avenue

T HIGH COURT
he Lord Mayor of Dublin, Alderman Maurice
Ahern, visited Stormanstown House in August • Ceannt Tower environment
for the announcement of Phase 3 Housing • Connolly Tower and
plans. and earn £350

B
• 373-468 Silloge Road. uilding of the remaining 57 housing units in Phase 1 is now going
• 556 flats will be demolished and replaced by a mix of It is hoped that Phase 3 residents will move into their ahead following the withdrawal in the High Court on 3rd October of
two, three and four-storey homes, similar to those in new homes in 2003. • Law Centre Action an application for Judicial Review against An Bord Pleanála's decision
Phases 1 and 2. to uphold the planning permission granted by Dublin Corporation, for the
A series of Information Meetings have been held for Plan launched new homes in Balcurris.
• Approximately 2,000 existing residents from Coultry the residents of Phase 3 flats. Residents should also
Road, Ceannt Tower, Connolly Tower, Balcurris Road, 'I am delighted that the way is now clear to go ahead with bulding the final
refer to the green Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) units in the first phase of the largest regeneration programme in the
Shangan Avenue and Silloge Road will be rehoused in book for more information - available from Ballymun
Phase 3. We are delighted to welcome country," said Cíaran Murray, Managing Director, Ballymun Regeneration
Regeneration. Ltd.
three new directors to the
The following blocks have been identified for Any Phase 3 resident who has not returned their Phase Board of Ballymun 'Despite the fact that we were confident we had no case to answer, the court
demolition in Phase 3: 3 survey form to Ballymun Regeneration should please Regeneration: case inevitably delayed the process of tendering and appointing contractors
• 289-416 Balcurris Road do so immediately to be sure their household Mr John Lamont, Health to build these 57 new homes by about six months. We'll now be moving at
• 187-282 Coultry Road information can be given to the Phase 3 Architects. Board Representative full speed to get the building process underway without further delay," he
Mr Aidan Smith, Ballymun said.
Ballymun Regeneration Ltd (BRL) Stormanstown House Ballymun Road Dublin 9 Housing Task Force The application was withdrawn by Robert Guillemot, Ballymun resident.
ph: 8421144 fax: 8421443 E-mail: [email protected] http://www.brl.ie Community Representative Friends of the Irish Environment were Notice Party to the proceedings.
and Supt. Albert Treacy, Costs, expected to be in the region of £100,000, were awarded to An Bord
A Dublin Corporation Initiative An Garda Siochana. Pleanála, Ballymun Regeneration Ltd and Dublin Corporation.
 Minister and residents impressed with Phase 2 designs Local children help design playgrounds

display that the architects have a lot of experience in

planning unique housing developments,' said Minister
Dempsey. 'They have also demonstrated their
understanding for what the residents want and require in
their new homes."
Phase 2 involves demolishing Clarke Tower, McDermot
Tower and flats at 1-96 Balcurris Road, 97-192 Balcurris
Road and 49-72 Silloge Avenue.
Phase 2 homes will be located in:
• Santry Avenue
• Balcurris Park
• Balbutcher Lane
The Minister for the Environment. Mr Noel Dempsey, TD, tried out the new
• Silloge equipment with local children when he officially opened the first of Ballymun's twelve the community. Ballymun will have the best play facilities in
• Poppintree. new playgrounds in Shangan on 10th September. Dublin when the playground strategy is complete.
Pictured at the Phase 2 exhibition were Rita Cahill, Pearse Tower, Ballymun with the

A
Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Mr Noel Dempsey, TD, Mick 'Depending on the planning process, families should be s part of the regeneration Programme, twelve new
McDonagh, Senior Architect, Ballymun Regeneration and Cíaran Murray, Managing moving into their new Phase 2 homes sometime during specially designed playgrounds are being built in
Director, Ballymun Regeneration Ltd.
2002,' said Cíaran Murray, Managing Director, Ballymun Ballymun at a cost of over £1 million. Four

O
ver 650 residents came to Stormanstown House Regeneration Ltd. playgrounds are being provided for older children and eight
for the launch by the Minister for the for younger children.
Phase 2 homes were exclusively designed by ten leading
Environment and Local Government, Mr Noel The first two new playgrounds are open and are being
architectural practices with input from residents, the
Dempsey, TD, of architectural designs for the 671 new enjoyed by local children. Shangan Playground is designed on
Ballymun Housing Task Force and the five Area Forums.
Phase 2 homes on Sunday 10th September. Drawings and the theme of trains and has colourful red and green play
computer generated images of the new homes were on "All Ballymun Regeneration homes will be designed and
equipment and soft permanent ground surface. Silloge
display and architects were on hand to explain the plans built to achieve Lifetime Home standards facilitating the
playground is designed and built with themes of the sea,
to residents. Children were treated to a party with needs of older people and people with disabilities, with
earth and sky.
Pokemon, Barney, magic shows, balloons and face high standards of insulation, double-glazed timber
painting. windows, individual central heating boilers and high- A number of temporary playgrounds, are being provided and
specification finishes for ease of long-term maintenance,' will be relocated to their permanent home when building
'It is obvious from the high quality of the designs on sites are finished. All equipment can be safely relocated to
said Cíaran Murray.
another area during construction, where necessary. Play areas
are fitted with safety surfaces.
Ballymun Oral History Project Gets Started
course, or perhaps as part of a council overseeing the work

A
re you interested in the history of Ballymun?
Would you like to become involved in developing a of the project. Central to the success of the project is that
project which hopes to record the history of local people themselves identify ways that they could
Ballymun, as experienced by local people? Are you become involved. The idea is that local participants in the
interested in doing a training course in oral history methods training course will go out and interview other local people,
(free of charge) through which you can gain new skills and thus creating a genuine 'people's history' of Ballymun, by
a certificate from the National College of Ireland? If the and for local people.
answer to any of these questions is yes, then read on… Community ownership, participation and control at all
Oral history uses interviewing techniques to record the levels of the project are essential. Pat and Laurence's
lives, experiences, activities and memories of ordinary involvement ceases after 12 months, and the project will
people. Most 'official history' is a history of great men, war
and parliamentary politics. Oral history focuses on finding
out about ordinary people's lives, work and knowledge. The
pass to community control. Meetings with local people and
groups are currently underway and active community
consultation will be ongoing.
Local children helped to design the new playgrounds.
Ballymun Regeneration's playground consultant Lisa
O n 8th November Fergal Foley
from the Bar Council
launched the Action Plan for
the Community Law Centre, the
centre will go ahead despite the lack of
Ballymun Oral History Project aims to bring together local If you would like more information about the project, if McKnight, brought fifteen 7 to 12 year-olds from Ballymun
people to decide what themes in Ballymun history to you have any questions, comments or suggestions, or if you to visit other Dublin Corporation play facilities where she financial commitment from
highlight, who to interview, what questions to ask, and observed while they played and listened to their views. Their Government. The next step is to
think you would like to get involved, then please get in employ a project manager to begin
what to do with the results. Pat McBride and Laurence Cox touch! You can contact Pat by phoning 086-8486877, or responses contributed to the design of the new playgrounds
(who are working on the project) need local people to implementation using funding from
by calling into Stormanstown House on the Ballymun and to the choice of equipment provided. existing sponsors, local groups, Katharine Howard
'come on board', either as participants in the training Road. Foundation, Dublin Corporation and BRL.
The new playgrounds are public facilities for all children in