First look inside €2m Clontarf Baths redevelopment

An Irish-owned firm based in Dubai, Serendipity By Design, has been awarded the design contract for a €2 million redevelopment of the Clontarf Seawater Baths in Dublin 3, which will include a cafe, bar and restaurant.

The company is headed by Rebecca Gernon, who has been based in Dubai for 24 years, and has worked on several landmark projects there, including the Burj Al Arab hotel.

The Clontarf project was recently granted a declaratory order for a seven-day drinks licence, provided it is completed in accordance with planning permission. However the mid-September opening date mentioned at the Circuit Licensing Court session now looks unlikely.

Family-friendly

“The interior fitout of the project is due to get under way in August and the design, that plans to open in late 2017, will include a family-friendly restaurant, cafe and bar, and complete redevelopment of the baths and changing facilities,” Serendipity By Design said in a statement.

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David Cullen is co-director, with his mother Mary Cullen, of the company that has owned the baths for more than 25 years, and that was granted planning permission in 2012 to restore the amenity and add the food and beverage facilities.

He said: “We anticipate a fantastic mix of people from the local area and beyond. We’ll be providing a place for family gatherings, business lunches, evening dinner and cocktail drinkers. We want to make the location a focal point again, and bring it back to its former glory.”

The Clontarf project is a first in Ireland for Serendipity By Design, which plans to open an office in Dublin later this year, according to the company's commercial and marketing director Paolo Cafolla, who is a graduate of IADT, Dún Laoghaire.