Grangegorman Matters – December 2018

GRANGEGORMAN PROJECT UPDATE

– SITE PROJECTS UPDATE

• Major New Access Opens: Grangegorman Links with Constitution Hill.
  The new pedestrian/cyclist link between Grangegorman and Constitution Hill was officially opened on 16th November. As your LOCAL Councillor, I was delighted to join Finance Minister and local T.D. Paschal Donohoe in opening the new link as it is the first access through the east side of the Grangegorman site. This public connection opens up a major connection between the site and the north inner city. It now takes about 9 mins to walk from the Grangegorman campus to DIT Bolton Street. This new link in its current format is temporary until site development in that area is completed. It will also become the link with Broadstone Luas Stop once the Broadstone Plaza is developed by Transport Infrastructure Ireland which is expected to take place next year. The initial opening hours for the link are Monday – Friday, from 7am – 4pm and on Saturdays, from 7.30am – 2pm. I have been advised by the Grangegorman Development Agency that it intends to expand these opening hours soon.
• DIT Central and East Quads (PPPs).
  Work is progressing on schedule for both quads which will bring 10,000 students to Grangegorman once completed.

– UPCOMING PLANNING APPLICATIONS

• DIT Academic Hub and the Energy Centre
  The GDA is hoping to submit two planning applications to Dublin City Council before Christmas; one for the DIT Academic Hub, and the other for the Energy Centre. The Academic Hub will form the centralised library for DIT and include the protected structure known as the North House as part of the build.

D7 EDUCATE TOGETHER SCHOOL BUILDING – UPDATE
Construction on the new school building is anticipated to commence on site early in the New Year.

NEXT PHASES OF DEVELOPMENT
Work is starting on the designs for the HSE Residential Care Neighbourhood (formerly Community Nursing Unit) and the DIT West Quad (for the College of Business).

DUBLIN WINTER SOLSTICE FESTIVAL
The Dublin Winter Solstice Festival will take place in Grangegorman again this year – the third year in a row – on 21st December, the shortest day of the year. Smashing Times Theatre Company and Slí an Chroí run the event in partnership with DIT with a wide range of activities taking place on campus before the annual festive parade to Smithfield. It is a family friendly event and everyone is welcome. The event kicks off from 4pm on 21st December. The parade starts at 5:40pm.

NORTH INNER CITY POLICING PLAN 2019 – CONSULTATION
An Garda Síochána has commenced a consultation process in preparation for the development of the Garda Síochána Policing Plan 2019. You are invited to forward any policing issues you think An Garda Síochána should be prioritising in 2019, in order to meet the needs of the public we serve. The consultation will thus be based around the key pillars of the strategy:
• National and International Security
• Confronting Crime
• Roads Policing
• Community Engagement and Public Safety
• Organisational Development and Capacity Improvement
As part of this process, the Dublin Central Policing Committee, of which I am Chairman, is also seeking your input and suggestions with regards the preparation of the North Inner City Policing Plan 2019 and specifically, a targeted Policing Plan for the north-west inner city based out of the Bridewell. Therefore, please submit your feedback on what you think should be included in the 2019 Policing Plan nationally and locally by emailing DMR.NorthCentral.Community@Garda.ie.

FINE GAEL COUNCILLORS OPPOSE CITY COUNCIL BUDGET
Myself and my Fine Gael colleagues on Dublin City Council voted against the City Council Budget for 2019 at last night’s Budget meeting. We opposed the Budget primarily because the SF / Labour / Green / Independent coalition, despite securing approximately €10 million in Commercial Rates buoyancy, wanted to stiff our local businesses with another €4 million in extra charges.

Following the 2014 Local Elections, Fine Gael walked away from joining a Governing Coalition on Dublin City Council because we could not be sure that your Local Property Tax would not be increased by Sinn Fein and their supporters in Labour and the Greens. Secondly, we would NOT countenance any increase in business charges given our role in cutting commercial rates between 2009 and 2014.

Despite this, we have taken a prudent approach to Council Budgets since 2014. We opposed the 2017 Budget as it included an increase in Commercial Rates. We supported the 2018 Budget because Sinn Fein and their partners in Labour and the Greens actually brought forward a draft Budget we presented the year before! However, with this year’s Budget, we said that we would not vote to increase charges for businesses in the city. We would not and could not support a hike in charges for those and small local businesses that are at the heart of Stoneybatter, East Wall and the north-west inner city for example.

Secondly, we could not support a Budget that was increasing waste charges on Council tenants while at the same time, reducing almost €800,000 in spending on:
• The operation of our Recycling Facilities
• Litter Warden Service
• Provision and improvement of Litter Bins
• Enforcement of our Waste Regulations
• Implementing Waste Management Plan
In 2019, Dubliners will be tasked with electing a new City Council. Fine Gael candidates for Dublin City Council will put forward our vision for the city over the next five years, including a Budgetary strategy that WILL NOT adopt a ‘Tax and Spend’ approach employed by Sinn Fein and their current coalition partners.