Docklands Publish Tender for Economic Report

By Denise Calnan

November 2, 2011. 

CORK City Council has published a tender to complete a major report on the Cork City Docklands development as a 'global economic investment'.

The Economic Proposition Report will be delivered to the Cork City Council by June 2012. The budget for the document will be €193,000, excluding VAT.

The publication will identify the key employment sectors to be targeted for the Cork Docklands project and develop a marketing brand and strategy for the area.

It will also contain a phased implementation strategy for an initial five to ten-year-period and consider key funding and financial issues for the project.

“We're trying to look at the situation again in the economic circumstances we find ourselves,” Director of the Cork Docklands Directorate Pat Ledwidge said. 

“We have still seen Foreign Direct Investment in Ireland within this recession, now we're looking at how to attract different sectors to Cork, how to develop our marketing strategy and how to brand Cork Docklands to attract foreign direct investment.”

The Irish Government agreed to part-fund the docklands development in August 2011 and are actively involved in the process and proceedings.

“The selection process will be finished by January 2012 and we will have the final report completed in the June of that year. This is a multiple of any previous modern Cork development.

“We are targeting 23,000 residents and 27,000 jobs with this project. There are huge opportunities to be taken from this and our plans are very rounded,” Mr Ledwidge said.

“We are focusing on the recreational and cultural features in the development as well as the residential and economical aspects of the project."

The Cork Docklands Directorate consists of five people and Mr Ledwidge said it will not necessarily expand as the development nears commencement; “Our main focus is coordination,” he said, “other implementation can be done through the Cork City Council and private sectors.”

The Cork City Council first promoted the redevelopment of the docklands area in 1998 but the idea was not given statutory recognition until 2004 with the publication of the Cork City Development Plan.

The Cork City Development Plan viewed the docklands project as a means of combatting recent population decline in the inner urban area of Cork. It aimed to provide new opportunities for business, attract foreign investment and become a centre for culture and tourism.

The docklands cover an area of 166 hectares.The Cork Docklands Directorate's aim is to regenerate the area to create a 'new high density urban quarter of Cork'.

The development value of the docklands is estimated at €8 billion and the cost of infrastrucure is estimated at €800 million.

High quality design, employment and leisure opportunities and a 'superb' quality of life are only some of the aims mentioned in the Cork Docklands Development Strategy, published in 2001.

The report describes the Cork Docklands development as 'a priority' for Cork City Council. Since then the council have worked with its various stakeholders in the Docklands.

Several setbacks for the Docklands Directorate meant that this working relationship progressed at a slow pace.

The reluctance for the Irish Government to fund the project stalled the development plans as Mr Ledwidge describes the government funding and the Cork City Council's Economic Development Fund as the two primary financial sources for the project.

However, Mr Ledwidge is certain the development will attract foreign direct investment and bring employment and money to the area:“Cork has been attracting foreign direct investment for over 50 years,” Mr Ledwidge said.

“We have companies still here from the '60s that recognise the value in Cork,” Mr Ledwidge added.

“They may have changed the nature of their business but they stayed here. Cork has a very good story to tell for an urban centre of its size.”

“We had previously identified our sectors to target and our functions to fulfil in our previous study in 2007,” Mr Ledwidge explained, “but the current economic climate calls for us to research this again.”

The economic sectors suggested in the Cork Docklands Economic Study 2007 included business services, government/public sector services, culture, leisure and tourism and 3^rd/4^th level education.

The study also included retail and headquarters functions for research and office functions for pharmaceutical companies, medical devices, digital media and financial services.

Regarding the architectural features of the development, extensive plans for the river include walkways and pedestrian plazas for the waterfront. A walkway on the marina is planned to connect the development to the city.

There will be a strong correlation between open spaces and their uses for the arts. The former Odlum's building will house the Events Centre. Mr Ledwidge is optimistic that this will develop Cork culturally and attract more tourists to the area.