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Our main street

Kermit.de.frog

Or rather our national street.

Had the pleasure of a few hours on O'Connell St the other day.

A national embarrassment the street is with Quirky's or whatever it's called now (had a Chinese flag on it for some reason), junkies quite prevalent, Mc Donalds, Burger King, Spar....all sorts of tat.

Can't the council do something about it or the government? Demand standards maybe?

I can't imagine any other "main street" in Europe in another capital city looking anything like it.

Tourists visibly not comfortable. OF COURSE. When locals feel they might be mugged and they are familiar with the place imagine how visitors feel.

It's so disappointing how we sell our capital city. It's a disaster actually.

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[Deleted User]

Some day a real rain...

RobbingBandit

It went downhill when the Floozie in the Jacuzzi was taken away.

Collie D

What would you do with it, OP? McDonald’s and Burger King have been where they are on OCS for as long as I can remember. And it’s certainly not the only major street in Europe that has them.

You spent a few hours on it according to your post so it can’t be that bad. I’d say you’re exaggerating a bit.

Trigger Happy

It's a dump all right. Grand central for the cities scum.
To fix it though you would need cross agency long term thinking. That is not going to happen quickly.

Working class heroes

Yep, kip alright. Hasn’t been the same since that bunch of gangsters were holed up in the GPO. Only went downhill from there....

mr_edge_to_you

Kermit.de.frog wrote: »

Mc Donalds, Burger King, Spar....all sorts of tat.

Not unlike Grafton St so!

In all seriousness though, sadly I don't think it's ever going to change. Sure there's two major sites available on it as far I know - Clerys and there's another massive site beside Dr Quirkeys (they have it covered over with a mesh curtain). If that was Grafton St, somewhere on the southside or even Henry St, they'd be snapped up and occupied/redeveloped.

I spent a large portion of last year commuting through O'Connell St and during the summer the footpaths were manky. It was like people poured gallons of coke all over the place. Apparently, it was sap from all the trees falling. Either way, it made the place look and feel like the kip that it is now considered.

Doesn't go either that the anti-everything people take over the place outside the GPO with their ridiculous protests.

Yamanoto

Kermit.de.frog wrote: »

I can't imagine any other "main street" in Europe in another capital city looking anything like it.

Las Ramblas, Champs-Élysées , Damrak, Wenceslas Square & outside almost every Hauptbahnhof in Germany are all variations on a scene from the walking dead.

It's planning (or lack thereof) that sets the tone for an area & O'Connell St has long been left to rot. The pity is if you take your eye above the shopfronts on O'Connell, Marlbourough, Henry & Mary streets, you'll find charming detail on many of the buildings which have remained intact since the 1700/1800's.

Allinall

Spar is tat???

McMurphy

Kermie, if you hate Ireland as much as many of your threads suggest you do, go on and emigrate, leave the place, skidaddle, aur revoir, Auf Wiedersehen, feck off.

Don't let the big green door hit your tailless arse on the way out.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

Every main Street in every major European city has fast food restaurants in it. It's to target tourists with reliable brand names before they get a chance to try a local cafe (Heaven forbid!) and get some healthy regional food.

Assetbacked

People have been saying this for as long as I can remember. While I agree, it does have a lot to do with the junkies making the street feel unsavoury but also the people that live around Dublin 1. Not exactly the kind that venture too far beyond Penny's, fast food and off licences.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

Johnny Dogs wrote: »

Kermie, if you hate Ireland as much as many of your threads suggest you do, go on and emigrate, leave the place, skidaddle, aur revoir, Auf Wiedersehen, feck off.

Don't let the big green door hit your tailless arse on the way out.

So the place is beyond criticism, then?

Alf Veedersane

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

Every main Street in every major European city has fast food restaurants in it. It's to target tourists with reliable brand names before they get a chance to try a local cafe (Heaven forbid!) and get some healthy regional food.

Healthy regional food or alternatively poorly cooked shìte thst tastes worse than the awful pictures outside lead you to believe

McMurphy

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

So the place is beyond criticism, then?

No, and I never said it was. Where did you get that from?

ToddyDoody

My favourite is pick and PAY!

Badly Drunk Boy

I was on 'our national street' (#notmymainstreet since there is actually life outside Dublin! :pac:) on Friday, and yeah, it's not great but I'm sure the Irish will always judge it more harshly than visitors. And I probably wouldn't even notice half of things that locals would since I only pass through it a few times a year. I had my own things to do, so an analysis of the my immediate environment at that moment in time wasn't high on my priorities.

Do tourists really look that comfortable while on O'Connell Street or is the OP just projecting his own preconceptions and assumptions onto them? "I think it looks terrible so our visitors must feel the same, and they'll never come back and that's the end of tourism in Ireland!".

As others have said, main streets in other international cities have similar issues but unless it's really bad, that's not what's going to stick with you if you're visiting it fleetingly.

Yurt2

A genuine cultural attraction of national importance on the street wouldn't go astray. The Abbey should be moved to the Carlton site (if there are not any plans on the table for it already).

Mad_maxx

Kermit.de.frog wrote: »

Or rather our national street.

Had the pleasure of a few hours on O'Connell St the other day.

A national embarrassment the street is with Quirky's or whatever it's called now (had a Chinese flag on it for some reason), junkies quite prevalent, Mc Donalds, Burger King, Spar....all sorts of tat.

Can't the council do something about it or the government? Demand standards maybe?

I can't imagine any other "main street" in Europe in another capital city looking anything like it.

Tourists visibly not comfortable. OF COURSE. When locals feel they might be mugged and they are familiar with the place imagine how visitors feel.

It's so disappointing how we sell our capital city. It's a disaster actually.

We have an altogether useless police force

Tails142

Maybe the brits will come back with that gunboat aiming for the GPO again and level the whole street

Harry Palmr

Sackville Street has been in decline ever since the Free State was established.

The Satanist

There's been more rejuvenation attempts at it than I've had dinners. Maybe it's time to tackle the real problem - nuke the north inner city.

Beechwoodspark

Was on OCS on thurs last and first thing I noticed was 2/3 big groups of tourists maybe 50 ppl in all on guided tours around the street.

They looked enthralled and really happy to be on OCS. The guides seemed informative from the brief time I spent near them.

Further up I saw good numbers of ppl talking photos of the spire and the GPO and statues in the middle island of the thoroughfare.

The hustle and bustle of the street is easy to see. The shops seem to be full of contented shoppers and also ppl just browsing

Then of course you have ppl sampling the wide selection of food offerings from venues on the street. Most businesses appear to be thriving.

However further up around where Quirkeys is needs regeneration as a few empty units there. And also would be great to see what was clerys reopened as a department store and if possible employ the old staff from before it closed down.

I saw guards patrolling the street and guards visibily stationed at the GPO.

I saw a good few undesirables yes but no more than is the norm throughout Dublin city centre.

JupiterKid

I'm involved in a group that is looking to turn the fortunes of O'Connell Street around.

We are a voluntary society set up a year ago. We care about our national thoroughfare and want to see it in the shape it was 50 odd years ago when it had respectable, decent shops and was a place to enjoy and not just pass through quickly.

We have drafted a Vision Statement for the street and know realistically that our aims won't be achieved overnight.

Good news is that Clerys is finally being redeveloped and the huge Carlton site on Upper O'Connell St will also see work getting underway later this year - there will be a new retail and mixed use development there that will bring activity and life to that part of the street. We are also lobbying City Councillors and candidateds running in the upcoming local elections to get them onside.

Another issue that needs addressing the the number of drug clinics just off the street - most of these need to be relocated to take a lot of the scummy element away.

We are the O'Connell St Revival Society. Check out our FB page, or better yet...join up!

Pythagorean

Harry Palmr wrote: »

Sackville Street has been in decline ever since the Free State was established.

And even more so since Nelson's Pillar was blown up by our great "patriots":mad:

John_Rambo

JupiterKid wrote: »

I'm involved in a group that is looking to turn the fortunes of O'Connell Street around.

We are a voluntary society set up a year ago. We care about our national thoroughfare and want to see it in the shape it was 50 odd years ago when it had respectable, decent shops and was a place to enjoy and not just pass through quickly.

We have drafted a Vision Statement for the street and know realistically that our aims won't be achieved overnight.

Good news is that Clerys is finally being redeveloped and the huge Carlton site on Upper O'Connell St will also see work getting underway later this year - there will be a new retail and mixed use development there that will bring activity and life to that part of the street. We are also lobbying City Councillors and candidateds running in the upcoming local elections to get them onside.

Another issue that needs addressing the the number of drug clinics just off the street - most of these need to be relocated to take a lot of the scummy element away.

We are the O'Connell St Revival Society. Check out our FB page, or better yet...join up!

Excellent stuff Jupiterkid... FB page looks good. I'm sure our concerned Kermit.de.frog will be joining up because he's not a keyboard warrior that complains about things on the internet but does nothing about them.

Hal3000

JupiterKid wrote: »

I'm involved in a group that is looking to turn the fortunes of O'Connell Street around.

We are a voluntary society set up a year ago. We care about our national thoroughfare and want to see it in the shape it was 50 odd years ago when it had respectable, decent shops and was a place to enjoy and not just pass through quickly.

We have drafted a Vision Statement for the street and know realistically that our aims won't be achieved overnight.

Good news is that Clerys is finally being redeveloped and the huge Carlton site on Upper O'Connell St will also see work getting underway later this year - there will be a new retail and mixed use development there that will bring activity and life to that part of the street. We are also lobbying City Councillors and candidateds running in the upcoming local elections to get them onside.

Another issue that needs addressing the the number of drug clinics just off the street - most of these need to be relocated to take a lot of the scummy element away.

We are the O'Connell St Revival Society. Check out our FB page, or better yet...join up!

Fair play bit of national pride and action. Well done.

Muahahaha

Fair play Jupiter Kid.

I reckon half the problem on OCS seems to be the policing strategy of leaving one Garda at the GPO and often none to be seen anywhere else on the street. What it needs is two Gardai on bicycles constantly riding up and down the street and nipping trouble in the bud. The junkies and alcos would soon get the message and hang out elsewhere. As it stands now apart from the solitary Garda outside the GPO there is next to no police visibility on the street so the junkies know they have free rein.

Only there a few weeks ago on a sunny day I saw a gang of 10 alcos who had completely taken over the steps of the Daniel O'Connell statue and were fighting and generally throwing abuse at each other and other passers by. And right there you have tourists trying to take photos of the very statue. Its outrageous how far the Gardai have let things slide on OCS, if the same crap was going on in Grafton St you'd soon find the Gardai would clamp down hard on it. But on OCS anything goes from what I can see.

Edgware

Any chance we could bring back the gunship "Helga" to improve the kip?

janfebmar

Pythagorean wrote: »

And even more so since Nelson's Pillar was blown up by our great "patriots":mad:

Nelsons Pillar was a great tourist attraction and I believe (well, it was blown up before my time) you could climb the steps and have a great view over the city. Shame it was destroyed. That needle just reminds me now of all the drug addicts around the place: I overheard a guide joking that to a group once too and the group laughing.

Irexit

O'Connell St has become a public toilet.