Ambitious plans aim to make Cork "the 15 minute city"
During public consultation for the City Development Plan, efficient public transport was highlighted as a key concern, as well as a sufficient supply of housing, job opportunities and excellent amenities.
Cork reflects an essential truth that cities are living, evolving entities that necessarily embrace continuous change.
In every sense, our city is changing. Cork will be the fastest-growing city in Ireland over the next 20 years with a population that will grow by 50% to 60% in that period. It will also host the largest regeneration project in the country, the most ambitious and transformative metropolitan transport system, the facilitation of a huge quantum of housing, the most rapid roll out of new cycling and walking infrastructure and ambitious urban renewal. The ambition behind this growth and evolution is reflected in government policy of recent years and this confidence in Cork at both national and international level is backed up by some of the most significant funding packages bestowed on the city by the national exchequer.
How that change and growth are managed and received will determine not only economic development but also quality of life for all those who live and work in Cork. It is against this backdrop that the City Development Plan 2022 – 2028, which came into force in August, this year must be seen. The Plan sits within a suite of Strategic Plans like the National Planning Framework, the National Development Plan and Project Ireland 2040, which recognise Cork’s status as an emerging international city of scale and a national driver of economic growth. That Government recognition has meant a commitment of Exchequer funding into the future, ensuring the delivery of many of the major projects envisaged for the city.
Cork people have a very clear idea of what they would like their city to be; from the children and young people who provided us with images of their “city of the future” through the Glucksman Gallery in UCC, to those who participated in research undertaken for the City Development Plan, who were amongst those who made 1,800 submissions during its public consultation phase or the elected members who met dozens of times on the Plan. All spoke to an ambition to have a continually improving city, with efficient public transport, a sufficient supply of housing, job opportunities and excellent amenities.
In a very real sense, the City Development Plan sets a framework to achieve the people’s ambitions for Cork City, based on core principles such as sustainable development, health, compact growth, the creation of liveable communities, amenities, services and green spaces. These core principles of the Plan influence all of Cork City Council’s strategy and policy.
A key emphasis in the Plan is on compact growth which is focused on supporting housing, job creation, public realm renewal, transport, amenity spaces and community services in existing built-up areas. Cork is in a position to avoid the damaging mistakes of other cities through the integration of land-use and transport planning to achieve this compact growth, thereby facilitating the “15 minute city”.
The Development Plan’s use of appropriate zoning will facilitate the development of 21,200 homes by unlocking the city’s capacity to do so in the City Centre and the Docklands, along with strategic growth areas in Blackpool, Ballyvolane, Ballincollig, Glanmire, Douglas and Blarney. As a result of the city’s boundary extension, this single statutory development plan will, for the first time, encompass the city’s previous footprint, unchanged for over fifty years, and new areas which are now key to the delivery of housing for the city. Cork will become a “City of Neighbourhoods”, pre-empting the worst excesses of urban sprawl and interminable commutes for those who work in the city.
Cork’s designation as one of 100 European “Mission” cities targeting carbon neutrality reflects the premium placed on climate change in the Development Plan. Reduction of carbon footprint and climate change mitigation are crucial priorities for Cork City Council. The positives of meeting our responsibilities in this area are sometimes underestimated. A cleaner, healthier city that encourages biodiversity and attracts new “green” investment is a substantial dividend for everyone living here.
The role of public transport in achieving climate action goals cannot be emphasised enough. In the coming years, the phased implementation of the €3.5bn transport, the Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy (CMATS), will see a comprehensive Bus Connects programme which will deliver improved bus services throughout the Metropolitan area. There is no question that the changes implicit in this will be challenging for some and the public consultation process involved must be comprehensive and sensitive. The positive impacts of Cork having reliable, efficient public transport which also includes the overhaul of our suburban rail system, are key to Cork’s future in connectivity, social, environmental and economic development terms.
Another manifestation of substantial change to Cork city will be seen in the City Docklands which will ultimately host 20,000 new homes and almost 25,000 jobs. The project is still at an initial stage but already some 6,000 new jobs have been created by development in North and South Docks, a quantum of employment not always known or acknowledged. The pipeline of planning applications and permissions, the flow of State infrastructural funding and Foreign Direct Investment interest, confirm the potential of this 146 hectares to create a wonderfully energising new resource for Cork, a driver of economic development and jobs and a unique waterside amenity redolent of a rich maritime history. Indeed, embracing and opening up riverside amenity wherever possible is a corner stone of the Council’s public realm focus.
There is significant emphasis on the Development Plan on Blue and Green Infrastructure and the essential protection and encouragement of biodiversity. Phase 1 of the Marina Park project sets the bar for the quality of amenity and biodiversity projects envisaged throughout the city.
In the short term, changes to the city centre will be very evident. The €50 million “Grand Parade Quarter” project will see a complete renewal of the area around the southern gateway to the medieval city, connecting the Grand Parade and a series of historic lanes, streets and Bishop Lucey Park with the south channel of the River Lee and the city centre business core. This project will be completed by the end of 2023. The nearby Event Centre and a new central library project will transform that area of the city.
Changes to planning regulations for St. Patrick’s Street will facilitate the re-purposing of buildings, helping to make the area a neighbourhood in its own right and make city centre visits more experiential. The whole MacCurtain Street area is set for comprehensive renewal as are the Crawford Art Gallery and Emmet Place.
These are very significant changes which are now guided by the City Development Plan. It will influence how we live with one another and experience all that the city has to offer. It will accommodate more homes, more jobs and be a better and more attractive place to live and work.
Cork has wonderful new opportunities and some key challenges ahead but it’s clear that the people of Cork have a shared vision for the city that is progressive, dynamic yet sustainable, and which is, with goodwill and dialogue, achievable.
To find out more, visit www.growincork.com.
