Business school will add ‘vibrancy’ to Cork city

A NEW multi-million euro Cork University Business School (CUBS) which has been granted conditional planning permission will bring “great vibrancy and activity” to a brownfield site at a strategic location in the city centre, the CEO of Cork Chamber has said.

Planners in Cork City Council recently approved an application lodged by UCC in December seeking permission for the €106m business school at the former Brooks Haughton site on a block facing South Terrace, Copley Street and Union Quay.

The development will primarily consist of the demolition of the former Brooks Haughton buildings, structures and boundary walls and the construction of the new CUBS building, ranging in height from three to six storeys.

The development description stated that the new building would include lecture theatres, academic offices, study and teaching areas, a restaurant and coffee dock, service rooms and bike storage.

The application also sought permission for the renovation of 18 and 19 South Terrace for a cafe and study space and also included proposals for landscaping works, works to the public realm and the provision of a new pedestrian laneway from Copley St to South Terrace.

Speaking to The Echo following the grant of conditional planning, the CEO of Cork Chamber, Conor Healy, welcomed the development.

“The plans for the university business school in the centre of the city are really important both in terms of meeting the needs of the growth and development of the business school but also it will be a very welcome addition to the city centre and will bring great vibrancy and activity to that part of the city once completed,” he said.

These sentiments were echoed by Independent councillor, Mick Finn.

“Development of such a large site as Brooks Haughton is welcome and the new UCC business school will bring a new lease of life to the area,” he said.

“It’s all the more important that the flood and public realm works at Morrison’s Island are carried out to a high visual and functional standard as there will be increased demand for outdoor spaces.”

There are 60 conditions attached to Cork City Council’s approval of the development.

One condition stipulates that, prior to any development, UCC must submit for approval by the planning authority, proposals incorporating further measures to enhance biodiversity into the development, additional to the proposal to install four bat boxes.

Plans for the new business school have been in the pipeline for years, with the State committing €25m towards the costs in 2019.

CUBS was established in 2014. It does not currently have a dedicated building; instead staff and students are dispersed across UCC’s campus and a number of its research centres are located in the city centre.

In the planning statement submitted with the application for the new business school, the proposed development was described as a “flagship project for UCC” aimed primarily at accommodating growth in student and faculty numbers and to fulfil UCC’s ambition for a “world class business school”.

Following the grant of conditional planning UCC said: “UCC notes the council’s decision and will comment further when the planning process comes to its conclusion.”