Further €2.5m to be spent on Dún Laoghaire Baths
Sarah Slater
A further €2.5 million is to be spent on the recently re-opened Dún Laoghaire Baths.
The new construction work which starts this month, includes the provision of accessible ramps, steps, seating and public lighting is expected to take 35 weeks.
The contractor carrying out the works is Cumnor Construction Ltd.
A spokesperson for Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council explained that at this point in time “we are unable to provide final costings but the cost of the required accessibility works will be in the order of €2.5 milion.”
The Baths pavilion including café and bathrooms, access to the lower levels from Newtownsmith carpark direction and the coastal mobility route will remain active during the works.
Access to the lower levels will not be available via the current installed temporary ramp between mid and lower levels for the duration of the works, as this area is now being upgraded and will form part of the permanent works.
“All construction work, including works compound, will be contained within the hoarded off site area (including part of the pleasure gardens at the top of the east pier), so there will be no disruption to the traffic along the Queens Road, Windsor Terrace or the Coastal Mobility cycling route,” spokesperson noted.
However, the Queen’s Road footpath along the site will be reduced in width. Four parking bays will be used for site deliveries and a crossing point will be manned.
The works include accessible ramps and steps with seating at intervals along the routes, paved areas, associated drainage works and public lighting.
The existing promenade nearest sea level will be raised, and will include extensive seating and railings along with soft landscaping started in Phase 1 being continued.
The Council added: “Throughout the duration of Phase 2 works an extended area (towards the east pier) will be closed for public access and will be hoarded for safety.
The €18m baths were officially reopened last December of the historic facility, dating back to 1843.
The baths were due to open in the Spring of 2020, however the Covid pandemic and other factors pushed the opening date back. The Winter opening is four and a half years since development on the baths began in 2018 and was first mooted 18 years ago.
The incident hit project was affected by a spillage of plastic shards used in construction work into Dublin Bay, storms, the reinforcement of marine walls not envisaged along with the pandemic.
The cost of the clean-up and investigation into what caused the spillage of more than a million plastic shards into the sea, has been estimated to have run into hundreds of thousands of euro.
Costs spiralled from an original figure of €13.5 million by €4.5 million to €18 million as a result of the delays.
The new facility has a 35-metre jetty with built-in seating, a changing shelter, toilet facilities, a Roger Casement statue, refurbishment of the Edwardian gazebo in the beach garden and a new walkway from Newtownsmith.
The former pavilion building has also been refurbished to provide studio space for artists, as well as a gallery and a café with a view of Scotsman’s Bay.
However, there is no swimming pool, an amenity highly sought by campaigners.
