Bike Storage Solution

Effects

I know there was a recent discussion on this, but can't seem to find it. Just wondering what other peoples thoughts are on this.

I came across the bike storage below, while out for a walk recently. In two minds about it, as I know people need somewhere to keep their bikes, but I also think this one is pretty ugly. The house is a protected structure, so planning should definitely have been applied for ahead of putting down the concrete slab and bike store. Easy access to the rear of the property as well, but it would be dark at night, which might be an issue.

To be honest, if it was me, I'd have built a more bespoke storage solution that didn't stick out as much, and detract from the houses on the road.

They have applied for retention, which I think may have come as a result of complaints from neighbours. Or maybe that's just the way the wanted to apply. Ask for forgiveness, rather than permission in the first place!

cletus

I think it's ugly as sin, but if the owner's happy, no skin off my nose

WOT

Bike is missing a chainstay

BAEA2BC7-C51B-4AA2-AA78-2F5E12C9954E.jpeg

magicbastarder

bloody stupid idea too, announcing that it's a bike shelter that way.

Etc

The great thing here is that the owners have made the right decision for their property.

Jonesy101

bike safety storage with a giant picture telling everyone theres bikes inside. dumb as sin as well as ugly as sin!

ridelikeaturtle

No more or less ugly than the bins outside, and I'm guessing there are dozens of cars parked on footpaths outside each house which certainly clash with the period-correct nature of the "protected structure".

Cabaal

It's a little ugly but I'd see it as a temp structure and no more or less ugly then bloody wheelie bins

Effects

There's a house not too far from it, and they have a bike store that's bespoke, made from corten steel, with planting on top. Similar style of houses but the solution looks so much better.

I've seen wooden ones built that also look better.

That plastic one is just really ugly.

I completely agree on the wheelie bins, which is why I like to see them tidied away in bin stores as well.

ridelikeaturtle

Just wait for 5 years from now when there are EV charging cables strewn all over the place.

o1s1n

Christ that's an absolute eyesore alright, the material it's made from looks like a giant wheelie bin! There are far more elegant solutions they could have gone for - you'd imagine someone who owned a house of that stature would like to put in something less garish.

Cabaal

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118331192#Comment_118331192

There's going to be so many bloody cables across footpaths from houses its not even going to be funny!

DaveyDave

Personally I'd have something nicer and less obvious. I imagine it's fairly difficult to have something big enough for multiple bikes, secure and durable without being noticeable.

No issues with it personally as it's none of my business and not my property. I guarantee there's a lot more people in the area neglecting their weeds/bushes and paths and driveways desperately in need a pressure wash.

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118331870#Comment_118331870

Fancy a quick walk, dear?

https://www.insulatedtools.co.uk/product/insulated-cable-cutters/

blade1

Is that not just a giant moisture trap?

ted1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118330805#Comment_118330805

It’s hedious.

Etc

This thread is ridiculous. Why bring bins, EV cables and cable cutters into it (including links to cable cutters). It’s bike storage outside a house. Live and let live….

Effects

It's made of plastic, so there's a good chance of it will last a long time. But so would brick, similar to what the houses are built from.

Planting would made it blend in, but is that even something that can be enforced by planning?

Effects

Application makes a lot of sense to be honest. And at least the ugliness will be hidden by planting.

Mercian Pro

Ignorance of the (planning) laws is no excuse. It's a gross looking thing and IMHO does detract from the attractiveness of the house an surrounds. Hard to believe upgrading the security of the garage and even installing an external light wouldn't have been a more economic and attractive solution.

Mercian Pro

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118616359#Comment_118616359

The logic of that is that anything is permissable once there is on-street parking!

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118616442#Comment_118616442

Or that the ugliness of anything outside of a property has any bearing on permission for an item within the property.

'I don't like the look of this extension as it goes against the aesthetic of all the houses on the road.. but it's no uglier than that old man standing on the street outside the house - APPROVED'

positron

Not commenting on the green yoke in picture, but if I were compelled to find a bike storage solution in the front lawn - I would dig into the ground - 2m long, a meter wide, and deep enough to take a bike or two. Concrete the sides with some 6 inches sticking out of the ground and put a solid lid and nice lock to secure the lot. May attract grave robbers, but it will make an awesome prop for Halloween.

Wishbone Ash

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118616359#Comment_118616359

In fairness, cars are everywhere so they don't 'stick out' as such. If that plastic storage shell was in each front garden, it would probably not look as bad. I certainly wouldn't be impressed if I lived next door. (Nor would I like to live beside someone who stores a boat or caravan at the front of their house).

Effects

It seems to have caught the attention of the Sunday Times. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/city-puts-brakes-on-undesirable-bicycle-shed-wfdt968qw

magicbastarder

seems to have received the attention of some councillors too, i saw a comment that they fully intend to address this.

as was pointed out on twitter, you could buy a secondhand transit and park it in your driveway for use as a bike shelter and the council wouldn't blink an eye.

loyatemu

place we were staying in in Belgium recently had one of these in the front garden - great yoke, designed for 4 bikes but you'd fit 6 at a squeeze.

Effects

Just had a walk around the road. So many other issues with cars and bins. Yet this is what they clamp down on. One house has two car entrances on either side, and two cars parked in them.

The one house that lodged an observation to the planning retention has their bins right beside their front gate, nothing obscuring them at all.

JimmyVik

I thought our coial bunker out the back was ugly. This is a whole new level.

magicbastarder

How easy is that for a kid to use? Looks like half of it rotates. Given the price of the one from Belgium posted a few posts back, affordability is key here I'd say; between pouring foundations and the installation cost and the cost of the shed itself, you'd be in for a few thousand.

loyatemu

this from Trimetals is cheaper than the Belgian one but is also smaller and the bikes are on top of each other (Asgard do a similar model, but I don't think they'll ship it to Ireland).

the door on the Belgian yoke was heavy enough but it had gas struts so once you lifted it the initial bit it's easy enough to open fully, a 10 year could certainly open it (whether they could then close it is another question). Anything big enough to fit a few bikes and secure enough to put out the front is going to be expensive (and probably require a solid foundation).

Cheaper option might be to put in a sheffield stand and then build a wooden shed around it; but you'll run into planning issues again if it's in front of the house and your neighbour is a jerk. You could also cover over / shed-ify your side passage if the house has one.

Effects

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118974459#Comment_118974459

“We live in a protected structure but I had no idea I’d need planning for a small bike store in the front garden. Apparently there had been a complaint.”

I just don't believe these statements. They knew full well they'd need planning for something like that. Being a protected structure, you would be well aware of what you can and can't do. More likely it's a case of try and get away with it, and then apply for retention if anything happens.

“We have a back lane but it’s unlit and isn’t paved, so it’s dangerous, particularly at night."

The back lane is concrete. But I fully accept that you wouldn't want to be using it at night, in the dark, by yourself.

Effects

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118974857#Comment_118974857

I'd family in London who had one of those Trimetal ones in their front garden. They had sunk it a bit as well, so it was lower. They seem a lot more accepted in London.

The Clontarf house doesn't have a side passage. Just the rear lane access. But if they had a side passage they wouldn't have an issue, as they could bring the bikes safely through to the back that way.

Despite having rear access, the objecting neighbours bins don't seem to be a problem in their front garden.

loyatemu

get a really big wheelie bin and store your bike in that - problem solved!

JimmyVik

Lock it to the railings. Been good enough for people for decades.

magicbastarder

would be curious as to how many people on this thread store their bikes outside and not under some sort of cover. in their front garden.

Effects

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118975041#Comment_118975041

I don't have a front garden but do store two of mine outdoors, as I just don't have space for them indoors. They aren't covered but are under an overhang, so avoid the rain. They still get rusty in parts though. I keep the rest of my bikes at work. Which can be a pain when I want to take one out for a spin.

I'm working on a bespoke shed for them, that'll blend in, materials wise, with the rest of my house, with a sedum roof.

loyatemu

I put an awning on the side of the house and usually throw my road bike under there for easy access (my shed is down the bottom of the garden). It's by no means completely rainproof, but the bike is over 10 years old so I'm beyond caring about some rust on the bolts etc. My even older shopping bike just sits out the front.

Just came across this as another option (no idea of the quality) - you could plant a hedge around it to shield the neighbours' eyes from the horror of bike storage.

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118974349#Comment_118974349

wouldn't it be gas if the council started allowing or blocking things based purely on looks? you wouldn't be allowed park a suzuki baleno on the street or in your driveway without covering it. or a nissan tiida, or most ssanyongs.

Dr_Colossus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118975041#Comment_118975041

I used to for a couple of years in Dublin 8, house had a back yard but no rear or side entrance so used to lock the bike to railings on private driveway and bike was beside the house in from the road/entrance. That was all well and good until one morning when leaving for work to only find by lock cut in two. Was an old Raleigh Activator bike but in great condition and suited by short commute. Not only can you not have nice things in Ireland/Dublin but you can't even have old but functional things.

Replacement bike then had to be brought through the hall and kitchen and out into the yard which was a pain especially and wet/miserable days traipsing muck through the house.

JimmyVik

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118975368#Comment_118975368

Its called planning. You can put whatever ugly structure you want at the side or back of your as long as its less than 40sq m and doesnt go too high.

Effects

There's more to planning than that.

cletus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118977641#Comment_118977641

There is, but the essence of what he's saying is right. The shed is not being taken down because its for bikes. If it was a shed for motorbikes, or dogs, or storing work tools, it would be subject to the same rules.

Talk about bins and old transits aren't comparable, because they are not permanent structures

Effects

Plenty of people on the street have similar structures built in their front gardens. Just not for bikes, and not as visually obtrusive. They all seem to get away with it.

DaveyDave

That bike storage isn't any more ugly than most estates where people park their second or third car on the road.

There's no driveway in that picture so that road probably has cars parked on the road which is one of the worst offenders visually. Must be some serious curtain twitchers on that road.

Cycled by this recently on Lawrence's Road. Doesn't look any worse than the contents of other people's driveways. Bins, skips, cars, vans, overgrown gardens.

Some residents of that road have form. They came together before to launch a legal challenge about a house for homeless people on the road.

Pretty sure I've seen a similar bike storage in Marino before, where the neighbours clearly don't have notions. If I was this resident I'd be complaining to the council about every house on the road storing their wheelie bins out front, and try to instill a bit of cop on amongst the residents and council alike.

loyatemu

it sounds like the local councillors are going to try to change the bye-laws to allow bike storage, in which case we should send this nosey neighbour a thank-you card from all us cyclists. If the bye-law approach doesn't work they should promise a bike bunker for this road and stick it outside the gaff of the objector.

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118977500#Comment_118977500

my post was a joke, FWIW.

Effects

Yeah, there's one on a corner house in Marino. Different style of house, so not the exact same kind of issue. It doesn't stick out as much, visually.

I think the residents were opposed to an over concentration of DCC accommodation in the area, and a lack of consultation. But definitely some NIMBYism for sure. There was a murder at a house on the street owned by government agency just a year or two ago.

Sorry not having that mate. DCC either allow these in gardens in the jurisdiction or they don't. There's not one rule for Clontarf and another for Marino.

Too many residents of that particular road are living on another planet, absorbed in their own bubble. If they were so concerned about the appearance of the road they wouldn't allow parking on both sides from top to bottom.

Seth Brundle

Too many residents of that particular road are living on another planet, absorbed in their own bubble. If they were so concerned about the appearance of the road they wouldn't allow parking on both sides from top to bottom.

The worst part is that it is a gorgeous road with impressive red-bricked houses coupled with the overhanging street lamps but completely ruined by the cars sandwiched end-to-end along both sides of the road.