4.3.3 Linear Park Strategy
It is important that a balance is struck between the city ‘River Garden’ concept, and the protection of the natural habitats at the rivers edges. There is value in having formal gardens, but it must not be at the expense of the riverside wildlife and habitats. At present swans are nesting on the River Nore west bank at the Smithwicks’ bottling plant, and there have been kingfishers nesting at the same location in very recent years. Exiting trees should be retained if possible.
For safety reasons there should be separation of pedestrians and cyclists in the riverside park.
The skatepark location will be vital to getting buy-in from young people to the whole diversity and integration of the site. Their views should be sought on location, design, and facilities.
4.3.5 Public Park
There is a dearth of large trees in the city centre and this park should be designed to incorporate trees (e.g. oak, beech, horse chestnut & Scots pine) which will grow to a much larger size than the linear garden may be able to accommodate.
4.3.8 New Building Strategy
We note the commitment to ‘Compile an Architectural Design Guide specifying the building design requirements for each plot within the masterplan area’. Good architectural design is desirable for all structures onsite, as its absence in the recently constructed Lady Dysart pedestrian bridge is obvious.
We are concerned that it is proposed to put all Community Housing on Plot 1. If this is done we urge that the houses be arranged in groups around communal green spaces that may be used as safe children play areas and garden production units, with only pedestrian/cycle circulation allowed. Vehicle access roads and communal parking spaces should be provided to the rear of the dwellings (see example from 1973 at Newpark Lawn Estate designed by Burke, Kennedy and Doyle). The recent tragic Jake Brennan case has highlighted the risks associated with poor design of housing estates in Kilkenny. The design for social housing provided in Section 5.3 (Stage 3) does not address this issue at all.
The value of shared garden production units (much smaller than allotments and thus suitable for the city centre) for social integration of the resident community should be recognized – ‘Without common land no social system can survive’ (C. Alexander, Appendix F).
City centres can be very suitable places for sheltered residential accommodation especially for the elderly. Consideration should be given to the provision of this, possibly on Plot 2 of the site, if the noise and nuisance of the CAS can be effectively mitigated.
4.3.9 Urban Grain Strategy
While we welcome the change from mono block to mixed block design, it is important to be restrained and have some common thread running through the design in a block.