Green light for council’s City Centre Action Plan
Cork City Council has voted to approve a new action plan for the city centre, which seeks to revitalise and regenerate the area over the coming years.
A number of measures will be explored as part of the plan, including encouraging the development of residences over commercial units in the city centre, the expansion of the English and Marina markets, and involvement in the delivery of infrastructural projects such as Bus Connects Cork, the Cork LUAS, and the Northern Distributor Road.
The plan, which covers three different approaches – revitalisation, regeneration, and accessibility – will be in effect until 2030.
Revitalisation
Under the plan, revitalisation will aim to “enhance the vibrancy of the city centre by adopting a people-focused approach, fostering a lively and sociable environment”.
A major outcome that the council hopes to see is an increase in residency in the city centre. As part of this, it will be advancing an over-the-shop living lighthouse project, which will aim to give information and answer questions around the development of residential units over shops.
As part of revitalisation efforts, the city council has also announced the release of €200,000 in funding for St Patrick’s Street.
Up to €10,000 will be available to owners and will cover two key elements.
Painting and minor external works are intended to improve building façades, with supports available up to €5,000, or 25% of the costs of the work (excluding VAT), whichever is lower.
The Shopfront Grant Scheme is focused on helping to upgrade and restore shopfronts at street level and will “encourage businesses to adopt traditional designs that enhance the historic streetscape”. Supports will similarly be available up to €5,000, or 25% of the costs of the work (excluding VAT), whichever is lower.
Regeneration
For those areas that require more effort than simple revitalisation will allow, the plan commits to several more comprehensive regeneration efforts.
Some key projects under consideration include the events centre, new library for the city centre, and regeneration efforts for North Main Street and South Main Street.
The development of a new city library is also a key element of the plan. Social Democrats Cllr Niamh O’Connor said a “litmus test” for the ambition of the plan will be the construction of a new city library, which she said could be a “jewel in the crown” for the city centre.
“The people of the city deserve a purpose-built, state-of-the-art library and whether that can be delivered will show the extent of the council’s ambition for Cork. It will show clearly whether we intend to strive for the best for this city or settle for ‘good enough’,” she said.
Cllr O’Connor also highlighted the importance of green spaces to any regeneration plan, citing the discourse surrounding the newly unveiled Bishop Lucey Park.
“The controversy surrounding the park really underlined that the people of Cork are literally crying out for green spaces in our city so it’s encouraging to see green spaces referenced in the plan, we have to listen to people when they tell us what they want.”
Accessibility
The final pillar of the plan looks at how to get people in and around the city. The council has highlighted a number of large ongoing projects which it will look to promote the efficient completion of, including Cork Bus Connects, the Cork Luas, and the Northern Distributor Road Project.
Last week, the Cork Independent reported that all three projects received commitments of significant capital funding from the Department of Transport and National Transport Authority with the announcement of the Sectoral Investment Plan for Transport.
Smaller accessibility measures being looked at in the plan include provision of car parking spaces for longer hours, the increase of pedestrianisation, and improved signage and direction.
This article was produced with the support of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme funded by Coimisiún na Meán.