Cultural quarter is key to unlocking regeneration sites in Galway City

From this week’s Galway City Tribune – A proposed new cultural quarter for Galway at Nuns’ Island or Earls Island could be the location of a replacement Black Box theatre, councillors were told this week, as the City Council forges ahead with the redevelopment of the Dyke Road.

In a presentation from the local authority and the Land Development Agency (LDA), councillors heard that the site of the Dyke Road car park and Black Box was the last remaining piece of ‘prime real estate’ in the city centre – with planning currently underway for what might fill the four-and-a-half-acre site.

This came as councillors voted to approve in principle the handing over of the Dyke Road and Sandy Road sites to the LDA for development – the LDA is currently awaiting Oireachtas approval to begin large-scale development of public lands across the country.

Preliminary proposals for the Dyke Road and Sandy Road – where there is also a large amount of public land – include social and affordable housing; a multi-storey car park; and potentially a number of commercial units.

Cllr Colette Connolly (Ind) expressed concern that there was a ‘democratic deficit’ in the manner in which projects for both sites were being managed – with plans evolving on foot of meetings with the Council’s ‘Corporate Policy Group’ and without the input of the wider Council.

She said there had been no reference in plans to a long-awaited concert hall for the city, despite the Dyke Road currently housing the Black Box Theatre.

“In fact, there’s no reference to arts and culture at all – the very things that make this city what it is,” said Cllr Connolly.

Brendan McGrath, Chief Executive, said the Black Box would be the ‘last to go’ and that would only occur after a replacement venue was in situ.

Mr McGrath said NUI Galway and Galway City Council were working together to develop a masterplan for the Nuns’ Island and Earls Island areas and were looking at there as the potential site for the Black Box’s replacement.
This is a shortened preview version of this article. To read the rest of the story, see this week’s Galway City Tribune. You can buy a digital edition HERE.