Dublin City Development Plan 2005-2011
The Development Plan mission is to ”set out an overall strategy for the proper planning and sustainable development of the area”.
Objectives of the Development Plan:
- Zoning of land.
- Provision of infrastructure
- Conservation and protection of the environment.
- Integration of planning and sustainable development with the social, community and cultural requirements of the area and its population.
- Preservation of the character of the landscape including views and prospects.
- Protection of structures of special architectural, historical, archaeological, artistic, cultural, scientific, social or technical interest.
- Preservation of the character of Architectural Conservation Areas.
- Renewal of areas in need of regeneration.
- Provision of traveller accommodation.
- Preservation, improvement and extension ofrecreational amenities.
- Control of establishments under the Major Accidents Directive.
- Provision of community services, including schools, crèches and childcare facilities.
The City Development Plan 2005 - 2011 proposes a sustainable and vibrant city in the context of the strategy for the development of a Greater Dublin. It focuses on intensification of the core area and protects the future of Dublin City Centre as the heart and pulse of the Dublin Region. One of the main aims of the Dublin City Development Plan is to provide and efficiently manage a wide range of services essential for the urban development and health and safety of people in Dublin and to accommodate and co-ordinate continued growth.
During the past 6 years Dublin has seen a major extension in its urban renewal programme. In the inner city, this includes the implementation of six Integrated Area Plans (IAPs), the consolidation and expansion of the Docklands and the development of major Land Use and Framework Plans for the Markets, Heuston, South Bank and Digital Hub.
In the suburbs, the implementation of the Ballymun IAP, the largest regeneration programme in the State, and the commencement of early phases of the North Fringe, Pelletstown and Park West Framework Plans indicate how the achievement of more sustainable densities can be combined with the creation of new urban places.
This expanded urban renewal programme has took place in the context of strong economic activity, high demand for housing units and major developments in the provision of a wide range of critical new infrastructure for the city, including Luas, the Port Tunnel and the Dublin Bay Project.
A Flexible Framework
The City Development Plan allows for a smooth transition to the next stage of our urban renewal programme.
The Development Plan proposes a flexible framework to:
- Draw together the many diverse regeneration initiatives taking place in different locations
- Nurture the development of a modern knowledge economy and work with its capacity to develop economic clusters in local areas
- Embrace the emergence of cultural clusters which are seen to be increasingly important in underpinning quality of life and developing depth in our international profile
- Foster a sense of place and develop community identity in the city core and suburbs.
Such a framework must also respond to the weave of new infrastructure which offers new opportunities for how we use and move about the city especially in the manner we enjoy public space. Dublin now looks to major international cities for reference inspiration and to share experience and acknowledges the need to achieve excellence in a whole range of critical performance areas.
Core Approach
The core approach of the Development Plan focuses on the creation of a coherent and legible spatial structure. The Plan looks at the need to integrate an economic, cultural and social vision, while achieving necessary and sustainable densities within co-ordinating development frameworks. This approach responds both to the National Spatial Strategy and the Regional Planning Guidelines for the Greater Dublin Area, which recognise the critical importance of Dublin as a national and international economic driver and call for consolidation in the physical growth of the city.Managing the city infrastructure in a sustainable manner is a key challenge for the next 6 years.
Critical elements within the proposed global framework for the inner city include:
- A series of character areas geared to promote diversity, build local identity and facilitate a focused area management approach
- Exploiting valuable elements such as the river, major urban spaces and key pedestrian routes geared to create unity in how we use the city
- Development frameworks aimed at major regeneration that will deliver sustainable density and a compact city linked to public transportation
In the suburban city, the identification of a series of Prime Urban Centres e.g. Finglas and Rathmines, combined with major redevelopment frameworks like North Fringe and Park West, represents a first step in the move towards a more strategic approach in the suburbs.
Urban Renewal in most cities is such a gradual process that it is sometimes difficult to see the big picture changes occurring over a number of years and even over a decade. By any international standards, Dublin has experienced an intense level of renewal and expansion exceeded only, among existing European Union capital cities, by Berlin. The spatial challenge is nothing less than the creation of a twenty first century heart for metropolitan Dublin. In this regard the Development Plan outlines the importance of embracing a sound urban philosophy.