€8 million plan for restoration of Mountjoy Square park

Plans to remove a creche, community centre and sportsgrounds from the centre of Mountjoy square and restore the park to its original Georgian design have been published by Dublin City Council.

The council proposes to relocate the non-original facilities to other sites away from the historic square, reinstate the formal gardens and introduce tearooms and a bandstand at an indicative cost of up to €8.1 million.

Mountjoy Square was first laid out in 1790 and the railed park at its centre was opened to residents of the square in 1805. In 1830 those living in the surrounding neighbourhood were given access to the garden for one guinea per family per year.

It is the only “true” Georgian garden square in the city as it is the only one of the five Georgian squares to have four equal sides. It was designed as a “beautiful and refined garden” around a central circular lawn with formal planting and defined paths.

Privately owned

It remained privately owned until 1938 when it passed into the hands of Dublin Corporation. Most of the significant changes to the park date from this handover, with the addition of public toilets, a nursery and a community building. The central lawn was bisected with tennis courts screened by fencing.

Later changes were made in the late 1960s when a park works depot was built. The most recent intervention was about 10 years ago when a new playground was installed.

Today the park is in two distinct halves separated by a tall hedge. The western half remains as an open grass park, with the buildings and sports facilities concentrated in the eastern half. Two years ago Mountjoy Square was designated an Architectural Conservation Area (ACA) by the council, which in addition to preserving the historic buildings, seeks to protect the character of the area.

The conservation plan for the park, commissioned by the council and the Mountjoy Square Society and finalised in recent weeks, seeks to build on the ACA designation by reinstating the historic landscape to its original form and use.

Finest example

The park is “the centrepiece of one of the finest examples of Georgian urban design in the city” according to the report, but has fallen prey to “unsatisfactory” and “ill-informed” interventions. The buildings are generally in poor condition and nearing the end of their lifespan. “In the context of the restoration of the historic garden design, their removal is desirable.”

The park was intended for “passive” and “relatively sedate” enjoyment, and the plan aims to reinstate the original path network and central lawn, “for the appreciation of nature and the historic architecture of the square”, and introduce appropriate uses such a tearoom and a bandstand.

The redevelopment will be carried out in two stages: the western half will be restored first, with the eastern side to follow only after alternative community facilities are provided in the vicinity of “equal or higher quality”.

Costs outlined in the plan are indicative and would be subject to change, depending on the designs and specifications for the work. The restoration and reinstatement of the square is estimated at €4,670,000, while the relocation of the creche, community building, depot and sports courts could cost up to €3,450,000.

The timescale for the project will depend on council budgets, but the work is due to begin in the coming months with the restoration of the railings.