FaulknerBrowns Architects, working with developer Ballymore, has submitted a planning application to Dublin City Council to open the gates of the historic St. James’s Gate brewery to become the ‘Guinness Quarter’ – a world class, modern, and dynamic urban neighbourhood in Dublin 8.
The plans include 336 new homes, hotels, a 300-seat performance space, a food hall, marketplace and commercial space. The plans aim to encourage a collaborative community of residents, visitors and innovators, while retaining the site’s unique built heritage.
The site has been freed up by modernisation of Diageo’s St James’s Gate brewing campus and will be opened up to the wider city, with more than two acres of landscaped public space. The proposals also include the refurbishment, repurposing and extension of heritage structures throughout the site, retaining key historic features.
The 336 new homes will include apartments for sale, rent and social housing. At the heart of the masterplan, a new destination food hall with open kitchens will showcase the best of both Irish and international food. A new marketplace is also proposed, for local, regional, and national makers, alongside a sustainable mix of commercial workspaces for large, medium and small businesses.
A network of fixed and flexible inside and outside spaces for culture and community use will be created, including a multi-use space seating c.300 people.
The Guinness Quarter aims to create Dublin’s first net zero operational carbon district. Should planning approval be granted, it is expected that the development will be completed in 10-15 years.
Niall Durney, partner at FaulknerBrowns Architects, said:
“We are so pleased to have reached this milestone. Our masterplan is designed around the powerful heritage and historical significance of St James’s Gate; existing buildings, structures and surfaces that carry the history of brewing will be repurposed, extended and imbued with new life. The Guinness Quarter will be shaped around streets and squares which retain the character and identity of the site while knitting together with the surrounding city.”
Seán Mulryan, Group Chief Executive of Ballymore, said:
“This is modern, sensitive and highly sustainable urban design at its best and Ballymore is honoured to be a custodian of the site’s heritage, while adding the next layer of history and legacy to this important area of Dublin.”
“By balancing new and carefully considered interventions with heritage buildings, which are being repurposed and given a new lease of life, our vision is that St. James’s Gate will be among the finest examples of sustainable urban development, protecting the cultural, community, social, and industrial legacy of this part of Dublin 8 and the Liberties. It will be a development that everyone in Dublin will be proud of and enjoy.”
Barry O’Sullivan, Managing Director, Diageo Ireland said:
“The history and heritage of Guinness and St. James’s Gate for Dublin and the local community is hugely important. It is a unique and special place. The plan that has been created respects this historic community while also transforming it into one of the most dynamic neighbourhoods in Europe.”
“This allows us to continue our centuries old brewing operations in Dublin 8 while also developing the area into a truly modern place to live, work and play. We have engaged extensively with the local community to develop this plan and look forward to further conversation as we take the next step on the journey towards creating the Guinness Quarter.”