John Dolan: MacCurtain St can be the city’s new Pana, we must protect it

‘Doing Pana’ is still a major part of the Cork lexicon, but is it even a thing any more?

Do people, young or old, still meet up with a friend (or go solo for that matter) and stroll slowly up and down the bending Patrick Street, stopping to chat to a passing friend (or even stranger) and glancing at the goods in the shop windows?

I would suggest the tradition died out decades ago.

There was a time when ‘doing Pana’ was so common that a photographer used to position himself halfway along it and snap friends, couples, and families as they ambled along the pavement.

Since they were usually clad in their finery (dressing up to walk down a street... notions!), they often purchased said photos, which now can be found yellowing at the backs of their grandchildren’s drawers and in their attics.

Patrick Street remains an important thoroughfare for the city, but in recent times it has lost some of its lustre.

Yes, it has recovered a little since the pandemic, when it seemed to become half-deserted and saw an influx of vape shops and mobile phone units. Urban Outfitters and Seasalt are among businesses to have recently located there, while we eagerly await the next iteration of the former Debenhams/Roches Stores building.

But Pana will have to go a little further to match its halcyon days of yore.

Friends in England recently asked me for recommendations on where to go in Cork city to eat and drink as they were heading here on a break, and my response was instructive. I didn’t mention Pana (The Long Valley doesn’t count, pedants!)

Instead, I directed them to Oliver Plunkett Street, South Mall, and Grand Parade, Opera Lane too. But I said the best place to go to sample a real slice of Cork life and heritage would be MacCurtain Street.

In the space of a generation, the street has gone from a backwater with a few grubby spots dotted about to a flagship city thoroughfare.

The recent €4.5million regeneration was a rare case of public money very well spent. In the process, it transformed it from a traffic-choked place you drove very slowly through to get somewhere else, to a destination in its own right.

Pubs and restaurants piggy-backed on this, and the place has become a pedestrian-friendly social hub with a welcoming atmosphere.

The majesty of its previous incarnation as King Street has been restored, and grand old venues like The Metropole Hotel and Isaacs have benefited hugely.

You can get a clear insight into the thriving metropolis that was King Street in a 1902 film that used a camera placed at the front of a tram to record its journey down it. As it carries its passengers toward Bridge Street, we see bustling streets busy with cyclists, pedestrians, and horse-drawn carts.

Ironically, it is the proposed return of trams to MacCurtain Street after a 90-year gap that now poses a threat to the rejuvenated thoroughfare.

The Cork city Luas is an eagerly-awaited public transport scheme which really has begun to look more than a government pipe-dream in recent times.

The conclusion of the public consultation on its preferred route last month was another step closer to the project reaching fruition, perhaps as soon as within a decade.

However, concerns are rightly being raised about the tram route going through MacCurtain Street as it winds its way to its natural conclusion of Kent Station.

Was that €4.5m regeneration, only completed three years ago, all in vain? Are roads and pavements going to be ripped up all over again? Are we going to see MacCurtain Street revert to its previous incarnation as a place to head through on the way to somewhere else?

Those are real concerns which have been raised by some of the businesses based there.

It simply won’t make sense to a lot of people to tear up a precious success story in the recent history of Cork city and jeopardise its rapidly-earned reputation as a place to sit outside, under the sun or a canopy, and dine and drink a few hours away.

Politicians and businesses are keen to spell out that a Luas will be great for Cork - but the route needs to be carefully thought through as it will have a huge impact on business. This is not nimbyism, it’s common sense, but sometimes, public bodies do not show that in abundance.

Social Democrats TD for Cork South Central Pádraig Rice told The Echo that he maintains “full support” for Luas Cork, but added his concerns the Luas could hamper MacCurtain Street and reduce its capacity for outdoor dining.

“I do share the disappointment of business owners that the proposed route still plans to rip up the recently completed regeneration of MacCurtain Street,” he said.

“We must be clear that investment in transport infrastructure should be encouraging the provision of outdoor dining, not limiting it.

“Every effort must be made to protect the vibrancy of the street environment and to ensure the efficient operation of Luas services.”

There is an important point to be made here: city centres, not just in Ireland but worldwide, are changing. Yes, they remain hubs for businesses and consumers, but they also have a vital role for the leisure and pleasure industries. Cork people want to go to a city to relax and dine and socialise, not necessarily buy a pair of shoes or, indeed, a new vape product.

MacCurtain Street has followed this course, and succeeded greatly.

So what is the alternative?

Seán Gargano, owner of the MacCurtain Wine Cellar on the street, made a good suggestion: the quays running parallel would provide an ideal stop-off point for people without tearing up the infrastructure already in place.

“We have an opportunity [to go down the quays],” he said, “I’m just saying, ‘why aren’t we looking at this?’”

Why not indeed.

“As a business owner, the ideal would be if you’re adjacent to a travel corridor,” said Mr Gargano, adding that he remained supportive of the Luas, and that criticisms of “nimbyism” were frustrating.

Luas Cork and the National Transport Authority are now processing submissions made in the consultation period, and will publish their report in the coming months.

“Any concerns raised by stakeholders along the route will be considered during the design development process,” stated a spokesperson for Transport Infrastructure Ireland.

I’m sure they will have plenty to ponder regarding this valuable project - the fear that a new bridge will damage the flow of river traffic in the Docklands is also a major concern for many.

But running the Luas route down the quays instead of along the beautifully restored MacCurtain Street strikes me as a no-brainer.