DUBLIN CITY councillors, including the lord mayor, have said they will block plans to site a waste facility in part of the old Daisy Market which had been earmarked for urban renewal before the property slump.
The council’s environment department is seeking to locate a waste depot and recycling facility at the Daisy Market, a former clothes market, which was to be part of the regeneration of the Markets Area between the Four Courts and Capel Street.
The council in 2005 unveiled a €425 million urban regeneration plan, the Markets Framework Plan, for the north inner city area encompassing the Victorian Fruit and Vegetable Market, the former Fish Market and the Daisy Market.
Under the plan, the wholesale fruit market was to be converted into a high-end retail food market, retaining some wholesalers and introducing restaurants. The Fish Market site would be turned into a civic square surrounded by shops, offices and apartments, and the Daisy Market would be developed as a three-storey sports, leisure and community centre.
In 2008 the council announced it had selected the Markets Regeneration Consortium as the preferred bidder. The consortium involved Blackrock International Land and developer Paddy Kelly. However, agreements were never signed, and Mr Kelly’s property empire subsequently collapsed.
The council’s waste division said it needs the site as a depot for its street cleaning services following the sale of its depot at O’Rahilly Parade to Chartered Land for the Carlton development between O’Connell Street and Moore Street.
Local councillors, including Lord Mayor Emer Costello, said they will oppose the plan. “This is an insult to the residents of this area . . . I will have nothing to do with this proposal,” she said.
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