Cork Kent Station revamp plans back on track [Article]

[comcor]

Station revamp plans back on track

CIÉ confirmed yesterday that its stalled multi-million-euro plans to regenerate and expand Cork’s dated Kent railway station are back on track.

CIÉ Group Property said it hopes to lodge a planning application for a new 3,000sq m, carbon-neutral transport hub facing the River Lee and complete with bus links with the city centre within months.

If cleared by planners, the new station will be almost the same size as Dublin’s Heuston Station.

The reconfigured station will have its concourse facing the city and the waterfront, together with integrated bus connections and overall improved public transport facilities. Its new customer facilities will include:

* An improved concourse area.
* A new ticket sales office.
* A new left luggage area.
* New toilet facilities.
* Upgraded mobility-impaired facilities.
* New shops and retail areas.
* Improved car parking facilities over the main concourse area.

The application will be made alongside another application by Manor Park Homes for the first phase of the wider development of the CIÉ-owned Horgan’s Quay site.

A previous application by Manor Park Homes to develop apartments on a portion of the site — a crucial area in the city’s multi-billion euro docklands regeneration plans — was flatly rejected by city planners earlier this year.

They cited major deficiencies, including serious design issues, among 13 reasons for refusal.

The application for the eastern side of Horgan’s Quay included 276 residential units, eight retail units, two commercial units, three showroom units, a crèche, and a temporary access road to the railway station.

But planners said it did not address the council’s overall goal of redeveloping the Horgan’s Quay site.

They highlighted serious urban design issues and a lack of a comprehensive approach by the applicants and landowners.

Failure to provide for the design for a new Kent Station and square was one of the main reasons for refusal.

It was not clear yesterday how planners will view this new application, which includes plans for the revamp of the railway station.

Planners also cited unacceptably tall buildings in the Manor Park Homes project which they said were contrary to the city development plan, and an unacceptable impact on views towards Montenotte and Tivoli and others areas of special character.

Manor Park Homes appealed the council’s decision to An Bord Pleanála.

The board confirmed yesterday that the matter is still with an inspector and the decision date has been pushed back until October.

And with an image gratuitously nicked from Archiseek



Probably just another false dawn for Kent Station.

[Thomas J Stamp]

Looks like Birmingham.

Nice to hear its Carbon-Nuetral. No concrete then?

[Dkettle]

That looks unspeakably bad, the whole North of England from 1955 - 1990 springs to mind, and not in a good way!

One positive aspect is that the proposed third bridge from the south docklands is shown. On the Cork South Docklands LAP this bridge has been included, it is an addition to the original strategic docklands plan. This bridge is supposed to accommodate buses / Light Rail (as if) connecting the south docklands to this "major new transport hub". It's one small step towards integrated transport, if it's ever built.

Does anybody know the contract status of the Midleton line, the weeds appear higher than ever around Carigtowhill.

[richards]

Is Cork Kent Station not a protected structure! It should be as its one of the finest railway stations in Ireland....

[Mark Gleeson]

Ask anyone and they will tell you Cork is one of the worst stations

[richards]

While I agree that the station in its current guise the station is not very passenger friendly, the building itself is a fine example of the 19th railway station. While I fully expect that the railway station requires expansion and a major upgrade, I would be very cautious of IE involved in a PPP with a developer where the developer gets to build 000's of apartments and in return builds a railway station as part of the deal for IE. I can guarantee that the railway station would be an uninspiring building which would would age very quickly and passagners expections would fall short.

[PaulM]

Originally Posted by richards

While I agree that the station in its current guise the station is not very passenger friendly, the building itself is a fine example of the 19th railway station.

Let's move into the 21st century shall we? Railway stations aren't there to be "nice buildings", they are there to serve the public.

[packetswitch]

They are there to do both! A railway station is a major highlight (or eyesore) in cities and towns across the world, and indeed there is huge importance, in accordance with the accepted policies and laws on protected structures, in maintaining some (but obviously not all) of the existing stations, suitably updated and modernised (or indeed converted into other uses!)

Railway stations are there to serve the travelling public, of course. But Iarnród Éireann/CIÉ, as ordinary developers but also in their capacity as State enterprises, have an additional responsibility to maintain and preserve architectural heritage, and also to build in a way that is appropriate and sustainable...so I think being "nice" is an important factor, although of course it's not the only one...

[Mark]

Originally Posted by PaulM

Let's move into the 21st century shall we? Railway stations aren't there to be "nice buildings", they are there to serve the public.

I would as far as to say thats is true but when a Station like Kent could be a trigger for regeneration of the area, Ceannt too, then it should treated as such.