CIT director to unveil plans for art college

A COLLEGE boss will signal the end of Cork’s landmark Crawford College of Art and Design building today.

The director of Cork Institute of Technology (CIT), will unveil a vision for the development of a national centre of excellence for architecture, art, design and media in a speech during conferring ceremonies later today.

Crawford art students have been campaigning since 2003 for college bosses to invest and redevelop their historic but dilapidated college on Sharman Crawford Street. They want to retain an art college in the city and have vowed to fight possible relocation moves to CIT’s Bishopstown campus.

Dr Murphy will outline a joint long-term vision by CIT and University College Cork (UCC) for a national centre using a public private partnership (PPP) model to replace the Crawford.

The statement is seen as the ruling out of a redevelopment of the Crawford.

The art college was established in 1979. However, the striking building is not included on the city council’s list of protected structures. It could fetch millions on the open market.