A major industrial development zone around Dublin Airport, substantial changes in the public transport network and the development of "village centres" in north Dublin suburbs are among the recommendations of a new report on north Dublin.
The report, launched yesterday by businessman Mr Dermot Desmond at Dublin City University, also calls for the building of a national stadium near Dublin Airport and an industrial advisory board for the north Dublin region. The document was researched and published by the North Dublin Development Coalition (Nordubco), which combines local authorities, partnership organisations and others with an interest in the region.
The document is now to be brought to local politicians, businesses, community groups and others with a view to drafting a detailed action plan for the area. Mr Desmond, who provided substantial financial support for the project, yesterday pledged to continue to support efforts to get outside aid for its aims.
At the official presentation yesterday, he said he believed a number of the flagship projects in it would come to fruition. He said Ireland should not accept its high position in the poverty stakes as outlined in the recent United Nations Development Programme report. In a small state such as Ireland it should be possible to deal with that problem.
The Democratic Left leader, Mr Proinsias De Rossa, said he had often had disagreements with Mr Desmond, but he congratulated him on his foresight in supporting the preparation of this report. He called on public representatives from all political parties in north Dublin to come together to support the report.
According to Nordubco's chief executive, Mr Odran Reid: "North Dublin is a tundra of local authority housing, and in that area you will find the deepest deprivation of anywhere in the country. You will find ghettos, a poor environment, high unemployment and drugs and all the problems that go with that."
Many northside communities were working to tackle these problems, he said, but a major problem was the lack of a "village centre" in many north Co Dublin areas of housing. While on the southside, Ranelagh, Rathgar and Rathmines were genuine villages where people lived, worked and shopped, many northside locations acted simply as dormitory towns for the city centre.
The report identifies Darndale, Coolock and Ballymun as being in particular need of the creation of village centres, but also suggests that Donnycarney, Cabra, Artane, Whitehall and Kilbarrack would benefit from such development. Planning the positioning of post offices, citizens' information centres, financial institutions, shops, pubs and restaurants was crucial in the development of such centres, according to the report.
Specific areas should be designated as "positive development zones" for the purpose of industrial development, the report says. These zones would receiver positive discriminated in the location of industry and employment training schemes. The report calls for an airport enterprise zone such as exists in the Shannon Free Trade Area, a new institute of technology in Finglas and an industrial advisory board to promote industrial development.
On public transport, more bus routes should run "orbitally" - curving around the region along the M50 motorway - rather than simply "radially" - running in a straight line in and out of the city centre.
According to the editor of the report, Mr Deiric O Broin, the 17A bus route is a prime example of the lack of integration and planning in north Dublin public transport. That bus stopped 500 metres short of the Kilbarrack DART station, even though it made perfect sense for it to continue and become a "feeder bus service" for the DART.
Mr Chris O'Malley, a member of the project's steering committee, said: "If there was a major public amenity at, say, Dunsink, such as a science museum, if you have some major industrial development zones, a new national stadium, and you turn Ballymun into an interchange point for transport rather than it have remaining as a place at the edge of something, then you can see the possibilities."