8 Urban and Architectural Design

Creating spaces for people to live and work requires good design. People will be encouraged to live in spaces that have a sense of place. Urban design is essentially a tool to assist in the craft of creating quality urban spaces; it is about how buildings are put together to shape and enliven our streets and civic spaces. Good urban design includes:

1. Respecting the existing character; 
2. Creating a clear distinction between public and private spaces and ensuring that public areas are suitably supervised by adjoining buildings;
3. Ensuring that an area is easy to navigate and is permeable;
4. Facilitating diversity in terms of uses and appearance;
5. Facilitating longevity, by designing streets and buildings that can be adapted to a variety of uses during their lifetime;
6. Encouraging visual identity and interest and discourage functional anonymity.

The aim of the Council is to achieve the highest standards possible in urban and architectural design whether urban or rural. 

The Council published a Rural Design Guide in 2007 with the aim of promoting the highest standards of design and sustainability and this gives practical guidance for single dwellings in County Kilkenny.

There is a challenge in adapting older buildings for modern use and to accord with modern energy and access standards whilst retaining their historical and architectural integrity.  An inflexible approach to the continued adaptation of buildings in many instances may lead to abandonment and dereliction.