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SubUrban to SuperRural

Ireland at the Venice Biennale10th International Architecture ExhibitionPublished by Gandon Editions on theoccassion of Irelands participation at the10th International Architecture Exhibition,Venice Biennale. Commissioned by the IrishArchitecture Foundation and curated byMichelle Fagan, Paul Kelly and Gary Lysaghtof FKL architects.

EditorShane OToole

ContributorsBoyd Cody ArchitectsBucholz | McEvoy ArchitectsdePaor architectsFKL architectsHenchion+Reuter Architectsheneghan.peng.architectsMacGabhann ArchitectsODOS architectsdominic stevens architect

Constantin GurdgievFrank McDonald


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Contents

CommissionerShane OToolefor the Irish Architecture Foundation

Deputy CommissionerCiarn Gaora

CuratorsMichelle Fagan, Paul Kelly andGary Lysaght, FKL architects

ExhibitorsBoyd Cody ArchitectsBucholz | McEvoy ArchitectsdePaor architectsFKL architectsHenchion+Reuter Architectsheneghan.peng.architectsMacGabhann ArchitectsODOS architectsdominic stevens architect

Contributing writersConstantin GurdgievFrank McDonald

ExhibitionSubUrban to SuperRural

Project co-ordinationDonncha O Shea, FKL architects

Exhibition designFKL architects

FilmJennifer Keegan, Director/Producer

Ciaran Tanham, CameramanPaul Murnaghan, Editor

ModelsPaul Harrison,City Models(except ElastiCity, made by

Andrew Ingham & Associates)

Information designZero-G

LightingPaul Keogan

EngineeringCasey ORourke Associates

Construction & installationOikos Builders Ltd

Italian translationElena Carlini

Public relationsAnnette Nugent

Internet supportarcheireIrish Architecture Online

PhotographerRos Kavanagh

Presented by the Irish ArchitectureFoundation under the auspicesof Culture Ireland, grant-aided byThe Arts Council and sponsored byThe Devey Group, with additionalsupport from the Royal Institute ofthe Architects of Ireland and Tegraland with the co-operation in Veniceof Nuova Icona.

Published on the occasion of the10th International ArchitectureExhibition, Venice Biennale,September 10 - November 19, 2006

www.architecturefoundation.ie

First published in September 2006 inan edition of 500 by Gandon Editions,Oysterhaven, Kinsale, Co Cork, Irelandwww.gandon-editions.com

Irish Architecture Foundation, 2006All rights reserved. Texts and illusut-rations copyright their individualauthors and owners. Design Zero-G

isbn 0-948037-37-7

8 Introduction Shane OToole/Ciarn Gaora

12 SubUrban to SuperRural Michelle Fagan/Paul Kelly/Gary Lysaght/FKL architects

26+1 Boyd Cody ArchitectsLearning land Bucholz | McEvoy Architectstall house dePaor architects

54 The road to God-knows-where Frank McDonald

Hinterland FKL architects Demographics Henchion+Reuter Architects ElastiCity heneghan.peng.architects

96 An alternative vision of Ireland Constantin Gurdgiev

Tideaways MacGabhann ArchitectsVertical sprawl ODOS architectsFluidcity dominic stevens architect

142 Biographies

144 Colophon/Acknowledgements


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Detached a film by Jennifer Keegancommissioned by FKL architects aspart of the SubUrban to SuperRuralinstallation in the Padiglione Italia,Giardini di Castello, Venice.

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7

Make no little plans; they haveno magic to stir mens blood and probablythemselves will not be realized. Make bigplans; aim high in hope and work, remem-

bering that a noble, logical diagram oncerecorded will never die, but long after weare gone will be a living thing, assertingitself with ever-growing insistency. Remem-ber that our sons and grandsons are goingto do things that would stagger us. Let your

watchword be order and your beacon beauty.Think big. daniel burnham,

Chicago architect (1864-1912)

A quarter of a century ago, Ireland was adifferent placean introverted, monocultural societyand economic basket-case on the verge of a deep recessionthat would lead to widespread emigration. There were nofaxes in 1980, no PCs, internet, mobile phones, CDs, low-cost airlines, dartor luas. On the other hand, beforeour recent experiment in extreme suburbanisation, thefrustration of long-distance commuting by car through

miles of sprawl, with its debilitating effect on the sociallives of so many, was also unknown.

Today, ours is among the most globalisedand successful economies in the world, with an estimated167 languages in daily use. Productivity growth in theperiod 1995-2005 was nearly twice that of our nearest EUcompetitor, Finland, and almost four times that of theEU-15. 40% of our homes are less than 15 years old andwe are building new houses at five times the rate of Italy,six times that of Britain and seven times that of Germany.

The population has increased century and will grow by more tnext 25 years. But the future is halone planned for. While continuing t

rugged individualism that maksociety must come to gripsnall our futures are bound up wdisposition towards the land isthat ditches the old urban-rur

vision that treats our small islanas an integrated entity. How is thachieved? A culture like oufreedom is privileged over socihave much use for visions of utBiennale devoted to Cities, arcglobal call to take stock as the w

when, for the first time in histolive in citiesand a reminder tself-aware. This is precisely whaleaders who tell us what we wancarry on although we suspect th

What might an altin 2030? Architects are not sooneeds to fill the visionary vacuu

the characteristics of success thaa generation hence. Nine arch

who will shape that Ireland haprojects and scenarios, curatedoffer different glimpses of whatnot predictions, however. Theymethodically constructed plotin the conversations they sparkinform. Let the debate begi

Shane OToole andCiarn Gaoraare Commissioner and DeputyCommisioners of Irelands entry atthe Venice Biennale 10th InternationalArchitecture Exhibition on behalf ofthe Irish Architecture Foundation.

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the sprawl surrounding our urban centers isdriven by Irelands obsession with the car and an innatedesire to live on the land. A mono-functional organism,the simplicity of sprawl has become a universal solutionto housing throughout the islanda uniquely success-ful product of our national psyche and the free market,

reinforced by a lack of infrastructure, co-ordinated plan-ning, regulation and political will.

The absence of any alternative develop-ment models or expectations presents the freedom to re-imagine this condition at a time of immense change andevolution within Irish society. According to Eurostat,Ireland has the sixth lowest population density in theEU but this is projected to increase by 25% in the next 25

years1, creating an obligation to propose new models fordevelopment that will be environmentally, socially andculturally sustainable. Accepting our current reality of road-basedinfrastructure and the widespread desire to live in low-density housing, the challenge facing Ireland is how toevolve new living conditions that are not a sub-genre ofthe urban but rather a hybrid of the best aspects of bothrural and urbana super-rural condition. It will require

both an attitude that values land for its intrinsic qualitiesand not simply as a location for housing and an inversionof the fundamentally negative paradigm of less-than-urban to an essentially positive one of more-than-rural.

In curating Irelands participation in theVenice Biennale 2006 we sought to take on this chal-lenge by asking our generation of Irish architects to testthis paradigm shift through the formulation of specificprojects and scenarios that would illuminate a visionof how the SubUrban might evolve into the SuperRural

between now and 2030.

The worlds most globalised econIreland is now the most globalisa situation that places it fiscallcloser to Boston than Berlin. Won high-end, high-tech manufa

vision, it is the largest exporter

OECD figures show that the ec

highest growth rates in the EU foThis unprecedented economicto 70,000 immigrants annuallyaltering our understanding of wand has given Ireland the fastes

Europe. Immigration is driving accelerating the urbanisation ofsome catching up to do as we hapopulation. We became a prsociety only within the last ge

boom appears to be sustained bproviding housing for the growfactors that are substantially ointerest rates set in Frankfurt annationals attracted by low corpo

ubUrbano SuperRural

Michelle FaganPaul KellyGary Lysaght

KL architects

1 Immigration Council of Ireland:Background information and statistics onimmigration to Ireland.June 20052IDA: Website of the I rish IndustrialDevelopment Authority 2006

3Data courtesy Marc Imhoff of NASA GSFCand Christopher Elvidge of NOAA NGDC.Image by Craig Mayhew and Robert Simmon,NASA GSFC.

This image of Earths city lights was createdwith data from the Defense MeteorologicalSatellite Program (DMSP) OperationalLinescan System (OLS). Originally designedto view clouds by moonlight, the OLS is alsoused to map the locations of permanentlights on the Earths surface.

4OCo-

Michelle Fagan, Paul Kelly andGary Lysaght are directors ofFKL architects and curators ofIrelands entry at the Venice Biennale10th International ArchitectureExhibition.

Earths City Lights (Detail)3

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The price of this rapid economic successIreland has become the fifth most oil-dependent

ry in the EUninth in the worldwhich, given thatbarely industrialised, highlights the lack of naturalces on the island and emphasises our high perenergy use.5Small indigenous reserves of gas and

re both likely to be spent by 2030, further increasingpendence on imported energy. Although Irelands

missions (climate corrected) per dwelling were 97%the EU-15 average in 2003, most of Irelands pro-n of greenhouse gasses comes from transport. 6

uch a surprise when the vast majority of goods andngers are transported by road.7Transport is by farrgest energy user, running well ahead of electricityction, home heating and industry, with agricultureregistering.8On the other hand, Irelands temper-

mate and position on the western edge of Europe,the Atlantic, give us the best potential for wind,

and biomass exploitation in the EU.9 Yet to date2% of our energy comes from renewables, a situa-hich is gradually changing as the government hasht in limited tax relief for domestic use of alterna-

nergy. Rising oil prices are placing the issue of fuelod security at the top of the agenda and they are

eing seen as serious issues in considering the long-uccess of our economy.

ng boomt half of all dwellings in Ireland have been plannedlivered by the private sector since 1990. The major-dwellings, 82% and growing, are either ownedht or are in the process of being purchased (mort-).10 95% of the population lived in an individual

in 1998, compared to an EU-15 average of onlyOur new-found wealth has been driving a housing

to accommodate not just the annual influx ofn nationals but also affluent young Irish leaving

the family home to buy theirown. Whereas the incomingpopulation is heading fortown, the indigenous Irish areheading for the suburbs. Eventhough the urban population

is technically increasing, thepopulation in many urbancenters is actually dropping12as suburban sprawl continuesto soak up this urban popula-tion, expanding in a self-sus-taining ring with diminish-ing reference or contact withthe centre it notionally sur-rounds. The reality for manyso-called city dwellers is thatthey are as car dependent as their rural neighbors. Theyare probably just as likely as a rural dweller to get in thecar to go to work or the shops or to drop the children offat school. Both are just as likely to be dependent on thelocal petrol station for their basic needs and out-of-townshopping centers for retail therapy. Consequently, trafficcongestion in and around the major urban centres isendemic and it can often be quicker to commute from50km away than to travel across town.

RoadsIrelands sprawling towns and cities are tied togetherby an ever-expanding road network while the railwaynetwork is under-funded and neglected. 13 There is anunprecedented road-building programme underway,

which will quadruple the length of motorways and dualcarriageways by 2015. By contrast, the length of rail trackis less than it was a century ago and apart from recentlight rail in Dublin and the objective to reopen 70km ofdisused track, there is no new rail on the cards.142006 will

see the first hourly intercityservice between the countrystwo largest citiesDublin,

with a population 1.1 million,and Cork, with a popula-tion of 0.25 millionwhich,

by increasing capacity, willopen up points in between forfurther development. 40% ofthe population already lives

within 100km of Dublin,15underlining its economicand political dominance.The Greater Dublin Area hasbecome a commuter zonestretching halfway across thecountry, threatening to join

with the sprawl generated by Cork, Galway and Limerickto form one continuous super-sprawl condition onthe island. Sprawl creates dormitory accommodation,deserted during the week as the daily exodus starts earlierand ends later to avoid the chronic traffic congestion.

Suburban sprawl has become the enemy ofboth town and country, draining the life from one andexpanding relentlessly over the other, while chokingboth with cars tracing the daily triangle of home, school,work, and back again. It expands relentlessly at very low-

density, squandering formerly productive agriculturalland, stretching services and infrastructure to uneco-nomic levels and eroding the social fabric of rural life. Theline between urban and rural is blurring, robbing both oftheir essential character. Urban-generated populationslive in suburban enclaves stitched on to towns and vil-lages, generating a new cash crop sites for housesasmanicured lawns fast replace farmed land.16Meanwhile,the urban cores become heritage-themed retail experi-ences for tourists and visitors.

The Irish DreamThe logic of applying higher dewell understood and accepted, bthe issue of increasing demanmodation in Ireland over the lhigher urban densities will only

problem, as long as the primarand the design of viable family lip service by developers or regation by planners. In parallel witas opposed to suburbanpopulation has been steadily droppinmid-19th century when it was detrend is accelerating in most adecline in agricultural employm

vents people without local empnection from living in many area significant proportionup t

built in open countryside each yrural entrepreneurship. Encoutax incentives, many new dwelthe coast, have been built as tousecond homes, however, and rethe year.

Solutions have notpoliticians, planners or archite

become polarized: build nothing

or let people build what they Neither attitude seems to hold likely to perpetuate the current u

The decline in agthe seeming ability to turn any site has led to a rash of dormbarely landscaped fields with eby distance from neighbors. ThDream. But not everyone is lucafford such rural isolation, par

5SEI: Sustainable Energy Ireland. MorganBazillian, Fergal OLeary, Brian Gallachirand Martin Howley: Security of SupplyMetrics. 20066SEI: Sustainable Energy Ireland. FergalOLeary, Martin Howley and Brian Gallachir:Residential ReportEnergy inIreland, 1990-2004. 2005

7NRA: National Roads Authority Website8SEI: Residential Report9SEI: Security of Supply Metrics

10SEI: Residential Report: There was aremarkable increase in dwelling completionsover the period 1990 to 2004, from 19,139completions in 1990 to 76,954 completionsin 2004, an increase of 300%. The figureof 76,954 was also the highest over theperiod and represented a 12% increase oncompletions in 2003. According to theCentral Statistics Office, a record 86,200dwellings were completed in 2005.

11Eurostat: Statistical Office of theEuropean Commission. Social Portraitof Europe.12CSO: Central Statistics Office preliminaryresults of Census 200613 NRA: Transport policyRoads... accountfor 96% of passengers and 93% of freighttransport

14NDP: Transport 2115CIA: World Fact Book, Ireland,Geography Note

16Department of Agriculture and Foodwebsite: 80% of the agricultural area isdevoted to grass Beef and milk productioncurrently account for 58% of totalagricultural output at producer prices Thetotal number of farms was 141,500 in 2000,down from 223,400 in 1980. The averagefarm size was 31.4 hectares.

17SEI: Residential Report

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away by car. The imperative of proximity to urbans produces a version of the dream in low-density,se semi detached developments sprawling acrosslds around every town and village within strikingce of a city.

radigm shiftoposed new settlement patterns to be credible, theybe socially, environmentally and culturally sustain-valuing the land for its intrinsic qualities and not

a site for the construction of housing, satisfyingsire to live on the land without degrading the visualty of the countryside at a time when tourism is of

ng importance to the economy. They must engagehe existing patterns of the urban or rural landscape,

ming part of it and not just in it or on it.

15 years ago when Group 91 were looking to address theissues of the day, the creation of viable models for urbanliving was uppermost in their minds. That argument haslargely been won, even if consistent implementation isstill some way off. Within the generation that has seenIreland become a predominantly urban society, the pres-

sures of urban life have prompted a desire for privacyand freedom, expressed as a compulsion to drive carsand live in houses with off-street parking and front and

back gardens. Consequently, the challenge for this gen-eration of architects has become more complex. Perhapsgiving people what they want can be an impetus for newsettlement patterns in Ireland? Why not suspend thecurrent unsatisfactory model of urban/suburban/sub-rural/rural in favour of one that offers alternatives tosuburban sprawl by favouring a more focused pattern ofsuper-urban and super-rural? One in which the focuson suburban sprawl to square the circle of a widespreaddesire to live on the land within commuting distance of

work in town is shifted to a more sustainable model thatprovides alternatives, that breaks the cycle of commut-ing and enshrines a life/work balance where there is timeand space for recreation, universal access to nature andthe potential for self-sufficiency. A future, achievable

within a single generation, where there is a radical shiftfrom Suburban to SuperRural.

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64,000The proposed new population of 64,000 established acrthe 16th most populous county in the Republic of Irela26+1

PracticeBoyd Cody Architects

TeamDermot BoydPeter CodyJames Rossa OHare

From Terra IncognitatoTerra Firma: The contemporary rural landscape can no longer be represwhole, posited as a natural, cohesive and at times, sublime counterpoint to expanding nodIt is instead perhaps more clearly defined as a complex, fragmented, cultural and producthe marks and legacy of continuous occupation. This primarily agricultural landscape is alto the ruthless, disciplined and efficient surface organisation of contemporary economic form of suburbanisation, excavation, quarrying, harvesting, road building, drainage, inteand related land management practices. It is by these means that we constantly re-order anaround us into a network of surfaces and lines not unlike those operating in our cities. Thesere-territorialised by a mosaic of tangible and intangible boundaries, of incidental surfaces aand below the ground, in the form of voids, topographical aberrations, geological formatioThe resulting seams, edges and margins, often straddling zones of difference, are possibintervention, capable of establishing and re-forging a new connectivity and continuity throuinteraction between landscape and settlement. the boora complex:The Boora Complexoperating at both a geographical and territorial scale. A necklace of raised bogs, a vast peathe central plain of Ireland between the river Liffey and the Shannon. The organised harveproduction of energy by Bord na Mna, 80% of which occurs within the raised bogs of the

alongside the building of the hydro-electric power station at Ardnacrusha in the mid-1920s constructs that heralded the arrival of the modern project in Ireland. This landscape has, theand determining role in our re-imagining of the interdependent and symbiotic relationsurban and rural, and as such, is a suitable site for interpreting a new super-rural conditioprovide 49% of our indigenous energy requirements, as well as the raw material for horticuand peat-based products. It has established an unrivalled infrastructure network of roads, capower stations and small settlements co-existing alongside an extraordinary diverse wetlathe future:The bog will, over the course of the next thirty years, come to the end of itsfuture potential of this expansive, open territory must be considered, as little value can nowit to grassland. Like a great tabula rasa,this emerging post-productive terrain stretches out ovof cutaway bog. The potential exists to construct a new productive landscape, capable of supand self-sufficient community of small settlements, co-opting and adapting extensive expursuit of the most prized commodities of our timeenergy and food. An organisation integrated and environmentally stable manner preserves and builds upon existing biodiversi

vision for super-rural living, in what could be considered a new county.

Notes

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12Wind farms

5Conservation

25Horticulture

8Grasslands

5Bio-culture

2Infrastr

Emerging Terrain

The vast areas of cutaway bog that remain under

single state ownership offer the opportunity for the

planning and organisation of this new region as a whole.

As cutaway bogs result in a complex environment, they

naturally lend themselves to a mosaic of land-uses

determined by varying ground conditions such as peat

type and depth, sub-peat mineral soil, drainage, hydrology

and the geological sub-stratum.

Post-production

The land will be divided into diverse holdings combining

varying areas of wetland, forestry, windfarms,

horticulture, grassland, bio-culture and infrastructure,

while associated non-productive conservation areas

will be linked by natural ecology corridors, to form a

networked land-bank large enough to be considered a

wilderness park. Boora Complex landGeological substratum

Land ready for re-useCutaway peatland

Protected horticulture will increase from 300 hectaresto3,600, an increase of1,200%

By 2010, 13.2% of Irelands energy needs must comefrom renewable sources

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Sto

The storehouses are connected by the e xisting rail

infrastructure and into the electricity grid, allowing for

the efficient transfer of energy and residual heat between

power plant and storehouse.

The resultant combination of residual heat an

an abundant natural water supply and prepare

and horticultural products makes for an ideal

for the production of food. In all 64,000 peop

evenly distributed across this emerging lands

Storehouse & generated landscape

It is proposed to build 800 storehouses across the Boora

Complex, along established lines of communication. Each

house has a footprint of 1 hectare and a related hinterland

of 100 hectares.

Each storehouse is formed from 20 x 1,200m2plots set

over three levels, each of which can accommodate two

dwellings and the associated storage and production

facilities for bio-culture, silviculture and horticulture,

creating a community of some 80 people.

Ground floor plan

ape in transition 2006-2030

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Groun

Area of Republic of Ireland = 6,970,20

6,970,200 / 100 = 69,70

80people per storhouse 69,702 x 80 = 5,576,

Ground Floor Level Production/Storage

If we were to remove all our existing urban settlements,

the entire predicted future population of Ireland could

live at storehouse density in 2030 while building on only

1% of the available land a rea. Based on this proposal,

through the creation of 69,702 holdings, Ireland could

sustain a population of 5.6 million.

2928

Second Floor Level Residential Second Floor Level Residential S ect io n t hro ug h s to re ho us e Gr ou nd F lo or L ev el R es id ent ial /Gl as s- Ho us e


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NotesLearningand

PracticeBucholz | McEvoy Architects

TeamMerritt BucholzRalf KampeKaren McEvoy

Learning land: Land parcels currently in declining agricultural use can be intensified for colcreating new placesnew foci for public life and communities in the evolving conditiontraditional polarities of urban and rural l ife. Old schoolhouses are retained in civic usage tocollective uses, offering society an opportunity to reconnect and re-engage with the landRetaining existing field boundaries as pathways in a new slower means of traversing the laninaccessible accessible. Could the landscape become a positive structuring and generatemerging condition of life-long learning produced by the knowledge economy? Why sugg

when the land and the society it supports are already undergoing dramatic transformation?

10,000The projected number of f ull-time commercial farmers in Ire23

Percentage decline in the number of Irish farms between 2002 and 2005K

90Percentage of the population residing

within 40km of a large urban centre

75Percentage of Irish farmers who farm part

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This is a map of the middle of IrelandCo. Offaly, Laois,

Galway, Roscommon, Tipperary, and Westmeath. The dots

indicate the location of primary schools built following

the educational reforms of the 19th century. The grid

is formed by the rule that schools be no further than

2.5 miles from any dwelling. This simple decision made

education accessible to all, and reinforced a density of

land occupation, with schools and houses distributed

evenly across the landscape. Movement across the

landscape was by foot. The pattern of occupation

and density of land use did not alter significantly

until recently, when the 2006 census showed that thepopulation of Ireland had risen to its highest level since

1861. The lives people lead here today are every bit as

urban as those of city dwellers. The distinction between

urban and rural is fading away. Can this educational

grid be harnessedreactivated incrementally and

extended into parts of the surrounding post-agricultural

landscapeonce more, to become a key ingredient in

Irelands 21st century knowledge economy?

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Country

Dispersed occupation of the landscape was underpinned by the Irishconstitution and the land reforms introduced following independence in1922. From the 1930s to the 1960s, land ownership of estates and largefarms in mid-Leinster was reassigned in small parcels to migrant farmersfrom the West, creating thousands of small privately owned landscapes,typically 8-12ha in size.

Persons travelling 50km to workYellow low, blue high

EY

What will become of the post-agricultural landscape?

The landscape of Ireland has been re-worked,

re-structured and transformed over the centuries,

superimposed with layers of patterns and imprints

of cultural and socio-economic formations as they have

changed and evolved over time. The rural economy is no

longer geographically seperate from the urban; both are

part of the same space. All but 10% of the population

lives within 40km of the countrys 13 largest urban

centres. By 2025 there will be fewer than 10,000 full-

time farmers and fewer than 30,000 part-time farmers.

More and more part-farmers work in towns. But others

already spend their days in the countryside working from

home in the knowledge economy. Education has alwaysbeen valued outside urban areas. Schools are one of the

few public buildings ubiquitous in the landscape, often

marking the only piece of land owned by the community.

Can Ireland build on this to remain competitive as a

society? And what if instead of redundant agricultural

land being consumed for residential and commercial uses,

it were brought in to collective/public use?

New network of villagesnew network of villagesgathered around schools/education centresfield spaces

AgriVision 2025.Rural Ireland 2025Foresight Perspectives. N

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Why travel? Right here is fantastic!

In recent decades, depopulation of rural areas and

abandonment of productive agricultural land, combined

with the deterioration of socio-economic services in rural

areas, has produced declining peripheral areas which are

now juxtaposed with relentlessly expanding cities and

towns and their associated transportation corridors. Can

we imagine an Irish super-rural economy in 2030 where

daily dependence on the car is almost a thing of the past?

Can we imagine our society transformedinto one that

trades globally on the knowledge it createsbut where

people can and do continue to live in the countryside, in a

landscape that increasingly offers many of the traditional

attractions of a city but without the disadvantages?

Field space study 1organisation around aspace-field-space transport

Field space study 2 Field space study 3new plan around a field-space hcurrent planlinear along roadconnectionslinks at slow speed

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Slowing down

Our fast, car-based infrastructure has improved mobility

but also increased the disconnection between home,

school, work and social life. The speed at which we

move across the landscape is the speed of the car; on

the road, we lose contact with the land. Almost half of

country dwellers no longer have direct contact with the

land. Development in the landscapewhether a housing

estate or a new roaderases all traces of what was there

before. Everything is cut. A learning landscape would

not forget the local field patterns, hedges and boundaries.

Why cant those field boundaries, with their rich micro-

environments contributing to rural biodiversity, be

retained and developed as new pathways to traverse thelearning landscape? Creating a slow, safe infrastructure

for walking, cycling, skating, roller-blading, scooting,

skate-boarding, heelying... crossing the fields lightly,

bringing people together informally, building community.

Moving slowly through the landscape

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John OHagan (18221850) evoking the 18underground Irish educational movement

The learning landscape

Still crouching neath the sheltOr stretched on mountain fernThe teacher and his pupils met

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Notes

PracticedePaor architects

TeamT. dePaorA. Hofheinz

tall-house

tall-house: Currently 1,600,000 people live outside urban settlements in the Republic of Irbe another 1,000,000 transient rural dwellers, mostly commuters. The countryside cannolandtake. Surrogate typologies will develop.

5A wall in itself is a fine th ing, if the proportions ar

dated August 7, 1964, following the press release 19Wall be heightened by 5cm (better proportio

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Rural building stock 2002**

4,000,000population 1,280,000units

Rural: 38.8% 497,000unitsOf these, one-offs: 82.4% 409,000units

Projected new bungalows & detached houses in rural areas, 2006 -2030

5,800,000population**

Average annual output: Say 20,000

20,000x 25years = 500,000

Further random landtake

UGH happens on existing road and power networks on the basis of development plan road-frontage requirements, whi

planning extrapolation of British Standard traffic sight-line re gulations. Essentially orderless, this suburbanism is descr

cluster, ribbon or one-off development of variations on a basic house type. The Department of the Environments Nat

Strategy recognises UGH landuse as unsustainable.

[A planning paper published by the Department (of Environment) in August 2001, in the context of preparing the Na

Strategy,] found urban-generated housing generally unsustainable because of the energy it consumes, the traffic it g

the pressure it puts on water supplies [The paper] noted that the number of planning applications for rural housing wen

20% and 70% in the period 1997-99, depending on the county. (F. McDonald / J. Nix, p. 112)

The vast majority of planning applications made in rural a reas are urban-generated one-off houses. In 2003, they accou

of all housing in Mayo, 68% in Wexford, and some 70% in Galway. On average, 85% of all planning applications for one

are granted (F. McDonald / J. Nix, p.113)

Although the National Spatial Strategy and the county development plans acknowledge the situation, the number of

houses has not significantly decreased.

N6.UGH (A. H

1,000,000 transient rural dwellers

At current rates of output, up to half of a million new one-off houses are expected on Irelands landscape over the next 25 years. A

further 250,000 acres of landscape will therefore be lost to so-called Urban Generated Housing (UGH) in areas outside the limits of

any incorporated or unincorporated city, town, village or any other designated residential or commercial area such as a subdivision,

a business or shopping centre or community development by 2030. (countryside as defined by the European Environment Agency,

http://glossary.eea. europa.eu/EEAGlossary/C/countryside). While UGH is occupied by either commuters or holiday makers, both

groups of rural dwellers are transient, frequenting the landscape rather than inhabiting it.

Glenelg.UGH (P. Lawlor, 2005)

N6.UGH (A. Hofheinz, 2006) **Figures: CSOIreland*Figures: Annual Housing StatisticsBulletin,Department of Environment

New built bungalows and detached

houses in rural areas*

2004 19,350

2003 21,000

2002 20,870

2001 23,050

2000 22,500

169 m2footprint

Gaora House, Co. Galway (T


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46 47

Such houses are one/two story assemblies from off-

the-shelf domestic pattern books. Development plans

for each of the counties specify the minimum plot size

to be a half acre or 2,000m2with a minimum site road

frontage of 30 linear metres. 500,000 projected one-

off houses imply 15,000km of ribbon development.

N6, the national road between Dublin and Galway is

217km long. The total length of Irish coast is 3,172km.

This future development is therefore 70 times the

length of the N6, approximately four times that of

the periphery of the island and the equivalent of 280 hours of continuous drive-by suburbia.

It is imagined that the planning and development regulations of 2001, Schedule 2 Part 1, are amended to allow only domestic develop-

ment as extension upward or downward on non-urban lands. No horizontal ex pansion and no new build. The built footprint of all UGH

is therefore ringfenced in 2006, and no further rural landtake permissible. The rural silhouette morphs as the existing UGH mutates

and the urban contour focuses. However, the spatial and structural limits of the existing type become exhausted and with land value

increase, demolition and reconstruction on the existing footprint is soon inevitable.

Surrogate typologies

The lifestyle of UGH is not threatened, the programme well established. There are four seats in a car, one front door in an elevation

and there are four elevations. Four transient dweller groups (families) settle in one house. The density on the half acre plot is there-

fore quadrupled on the same footprint.

The new construction is tall.

The tower-house

A statute enacted by Henry VI in 1429 declared that it is agreed and asserted that every liege-man of our Lord the Kingcounties who chooses to build a castle or tower sufficiently embattled or fortified within the next ten years, to wit tw

length, sixteen feet in width and forty feet in height or more, that the Commons of the said counties shall pay to the s

build the said castle or tower ten pounds by way of subsidy. (H.G. Leask, p. 76)

Tower-houses, as defined by Leask, are square or rectangular towers (occasionally equipped with side turrets), normally

over at least one floor, usually the ground floor, and with the upper floors marked by better windows, fireplaces, etc; e

ally through a door on the ground floor. (T. McNeill, p. 201)

The towers provided different levels of accommodation: the small towers had effectively only one room on each floor, w

latrine taking up the rest of the a vailable space. (T. McNeill, p. 222)

And may these characters remain / When all is ruin once again. (W.B. Yeats inscription for Thoor Ballylee, Co. Galway)

The tower house is common in the Irish landscape.

Ath Luain

Atha Cliath

Gallimh

Central StatisticsOffice Ireland,current statisticsand projections, http://www.cso.ie/statistics/

div.CountyCouncils,current CountyDevelopment Plansand Rural HousingGuidelines,available from the countieswebpages, e.g.http://www.wexfor

Department of the Environment,National Spatial Strategy2002-2020, http://www.irishspatialstrategy.ie/ 2002

Government of Ireland,Census2002 Principal Socio-EconomicResults, StationaryOffice, Dublin 2003

J.R.Kenyon / K.OConor,The Medieval Castle in Ireland and Wales,FourCo Press,Dublin 2003

H.G.Leask,Irish Castlesand Castellated Houses,Dundalgan Press, Dundalk 1964

F.McDonald / J.Nix, Chaosat the Crossroads,Gandon Books,Kinsale 200 T.McNeill,Castlesin Ireland,Routledge,London 1997 D.Sweetman,The Medieval Castlesof Ireland, The CollinsPress,Cork,1999

C la ra , C o. K i lk en ny ( D . Sw ee tm an , p . 14 7) C la ra , C o. K i lk en ny ( r ed ra wn p la ns / s e ct io n)Rockfleet,Co.Mayo (D.Sweetman 1999,p. 149)Derryhivenny,Co. Galway(D.Sweetman 1999,p. 149)Nenagh,Co. Tipperary(P.Lawlor,2006)

t h l i t h

N6t h L u n

l li h

References

N6.UGH (A. Hofheinz, 2006)


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48 49

7 Sixth floorliving room with fireplace 8 Seventh floorpatio with barbeque

4 Third floorbedroom 2 with ensuite and built-in storage 5 Fourth floorbedroom 3 with ensuite and built-in storage

1 Ground floorcommunal (crche, daycare etc.)/169m2footprint 2 First flooropen porch,entrance door to dwelling unit

Tall-houses are erected on the footprin

earlier UGH, the half-acre plot held in

They are predictably within a half-hou

from urban settlements, off national r

in the sub-rural hinterlands or in positi

high scenic amenity. Their specific loca

dictated by local market economics. Th

to be self-sufficient in terms of servic

make use of passive and active energy

tion, rainwater recycling and so on. Th

communal kitchen garden, composting

shed and a lawn within a walled, gatedindigenous hedge enclosure. They ofte

name as address.

Occupants share with their neighb

carpool and a crche or day-care (depe

the age profile). Sometimes the tall-ho

used as guest houses where previous p

uses allow.

Each of the four dwellings in one t

has own-door access from a driveway/

with covered porch, open plan kitchen

living room with fireplace, a patio with

cooking facilities, three bedrooms wit

bathrooms, built-in storage and a lift.

domestic spaces rotate so that each dw

group enjoys each orientation and view

ly. Each occupant is sufficiently unawa

neighbours. A mural stairs leads down

countryside.

(scale 1:250)9 Roof

6 Fifth flooropen-plan kitchen/dining areawith guest WC

3 Second floorbedroom 1with ensuite and built-in storage


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50 51

4 Bedroom 3

5 Living room

6 Patio

3 Section through domesticspaces1 Elevation 2 Section through poch


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t

UGH location criteria (typical county development plan 2005 2011)

Site curtilage minimum 0.2hectares (0.5acres)Road frontage minimum 30metresBuilding lines County Roads and Regional Roads 20metresEntrance Entrance gates shall be recessed 4.5metres behind the line of roadside hedgerow with side boundaries

splayed at an angle of 45degrees to the public road carriageway. Opportunities for shared use of accessor combining access points should be availed of.

52 53


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received images of Dublin, and of Ireland, in theinternational public consciousness are of a gracefulGeorgian city and a country replete with wild, beautifullandscapes. Among architects abroad, Dublins recentsuccess in pursuing an urban renewal agenda wouldalso be known from the many awards for projects such

as Temple Bar. There would also be a general awarenessof the remarkable transformation of Irelands economyover the past decade by the Celtic Tiger boom, whichhas turned usmuch to our own amazementinto thesecond wealthiest country in the world (measured on aper capita basis).

Nothing more graphically illustrates thismetamorphosis than the figures for migration. Duringthe bleak years of the 1980s, 40,000 people a yearinclud-ing the best and brightestwere leaving the countryto get jobs in Britain, continental Europe and the USA.Now, ironically, a greater number of immigrants entersIreland every year from other European Union memberstates (notably Poland), as well as from Asia, Africa andLatin America. One recent survey found that no less than167 languages are in daily use in Ireland todaytrulyamazing for an island at the edge of Europe.

Bursting at the seamsThe States population stands at 4.2 million, its highestlevel since 1861, with foreign nationals accounting for

around 10% of the total. It has been rising by a record 2%per year since 2002, which is the largest growth rate in theEU and shows no signs of tailing off; according to projec-tions, the population could exceed 5 million by 2020. Butgiven that it has been on a steeply upward curve since themid-1990s, this presented the Government with a uniqueopportunity to use population growth as an engine forsensible and forward-thinking spatial planning based onthe principles of environmental sustainability and bal-anced regional development. That opportunity has been

squandered, and spectacularly the way to becoming a city-stating everywhere else. Its capital hexample of the 21st century phcity, with tentacles stretching of Leinstervia the spokes of

way network and pieces of thoutskirts of towns and villages100 kilometres. The increasincentre, with its new apartmentand cappuccino bars, is surrounNorth American-style edge city Census 2006 constrained sprawl and, more generof Ireland at the expense of its tion statistics starkly illuminatedfaireapproach to regional planninensure that growth happens in aplaces. Thus, Dublin has even beparts of the province of Ulster. Office (CSO) noted in its own the highest growth rate of the th

the main stimulus coming fromwhich is within commuting dist Leinsters share oflation has continued to increassprawl of Dublin; it now accoun

total. All of the counties in Leinulations between 2002 and 2006than the national average rate

years, as the CSO noted, three cand Kildareaccounted for negrowth in the States populatastonishing 22% over the past foincrease (32%) in the Blakestownone of the three new towns on of Dublin.

he road toGod-knows-whererank McDonald

Frank McDonaldis EnvironmentEditor of The Irish Times,author ofThe Destruction of Dublin, Saving theCityand The Construction of Dublin,and joint author with James Nix ofChaos at the Crossroads.

54 55


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tively, while Waterford City recorded a modest increaseof 2.6%. Meanwhile, Co Cork (+11.4%) was the fastestgrowing county in Munster, followed by Co Waterford(+9.2%) and Co Limerick (+8.3%). The most dreadful doughnut of all isLetterkenny, the largest town in Co Donegal. Its core

population plummeted by nearly 23% since 2002 whilesurrounding rural areas rercorded an aggregate increaseof nearly 27%, with two townlandsBallymacool andCorravaddyturning in growth rates of 43% and 51%respectively. But then, Letterkenny is remarkable forbarely having more than one coherent street even as thefields around it, up hills and down dales, were coveredin concrete and tarmac. The county, once prized for itsspectacular scenery, has become a byword for haphazarddevelopment, spreading like wildfire along its ruggedcoastline. Galway did rather better than the othercities, although the rapid growth in its population since1991 moderated to 9.3% between 2002 and 2006; one ofthe reasons given was that many infill developmentsin city areas consisted of apartments catering for onlyone or two persons. And theres the nub. Unlike most oftheir European counterparts, Irish families still preferour version of the Garden City idealtwo-storey houses

with front and back gardens, generally built at 10 unitsper acre (24 per hectare) and laid out along grass-verged

roads, with ample room for car parking; this has beenthe spatial norm for Irelands suburbia from the 1960sonwards.

A prairie mentalityThings began to change, at least to some extent, after theadoption of new Residential Density Guidelines in 1999.New Dublin development areas such as Adamstown,Pelletstown and Stepaside are radically different inform, consisting predominantly of apartment blocks

and, with the emphasis on creatneighbourhoods. But their succthe timely provision of good presidents a credible alternativea metro, however, is questionDublinunless traditional subu

by much higher density developit would serve. In the meantimesmaller cities are faced withassets, particularly schools in eageing population profiles; evealma mater, Greendale CommuDublin suburb of Kilbarrack, isConversely, schools in rapidly exing at the seams or have yet to beIn the seaside settlement of Lay100 children will have no schoolocal Labour councillor DominicHundreds of people have to commtrains, roads and buses. This is affor hard-working families. Seweare creaking and there are few facilities for our youth, he said. Meath are offered in terms of trmotorwaythe M3which woTara, ancient seat of Irelands h

distant prospect of reinstating aNavan, the countys principal tosurely a case of putting the carting any notion of sustainable de

Even more unsusIrishis the sprawl of one-offcountryside. Mainly urban-geTom de Paors apt acronymthof Irelands record output of newrently among the highest in Eu

Figure 2Annual new dwelling completionsper 1,000 of population among the19 countries in the Euroconstructnetwork, 2005Source CSO

Between them, Meath, Kildare and Wicklowered an increase of 15% in the same period. Thend Region, with an 11.5% rise, also comfortablyded the national average rate. As the CSO noted, itsiesLaois, Longford, Offaly and Westmeathalso

part of the wider Dublin commuter belt. By contrast,

pitals own population grew by just 5.6%, with thencrease in Fingal being offset by smaller increases

blin City (2%), Dn Laoghaire-Rathdown (1%) andDublin (3.4%). The main reasons for this sluggishmance were attributed by the CSO to the relatively

vel of new housing and an ageing population.As Hubert Fitzpatrick, director of the Irish

Builders Association, said: What is happeningt the failure to provide sufficient zoned and serv-ands in Dublin ... is creating a doughnut effect,by increasing numbers of Dublin-based workersing forced to move further and further from the

nd inevitably rely in the main on car-based com-g. This is the direct opposite of what was meant ton under the 1999 Strategic Planning Guidelines foreater Dublin Area (GDA), which laid down a policysolidating the metropolitan area, with only limitedh envisaged for the major towns of its hinterland.olicy is now in tatters.

Nothing more graphically illustrates thenments failure than the case of Gorey, in Co

rd, 100km south of Dublin. Local councillors wered to get away with rezoning vast tracts of land

d this planned 17th century market town for resi-l development aimed at long-distance commuters.

esult, Goreys population soared by 44% betweennd 2002 and its outskirts recorded an even largerse (53%) over the past four years. The local area plandes that at least 40% and possibly even as much asf the new residents commute to Dublin on a dailymostly by car, making use of the much-improved

N11 national primary route. While this plan was being hatched, MartinCullenthen Minister for the Environmentdeclinedto use the powers available to him under the 2000Planning Act to rescind it. In October 2005, after a sod-turning ceremony for the N11 Gorey bypass, Cullen

now wearing his hat as Minister for Transporthailedit as one of the fastest growing towns in the south-east.The demographic change which Gorey has undergonehas been immense. We in Government must respondto this change, he said. In effect, he was conceding thatthere had been a failure of political leadership to preventthe country being consumed by rampant unsustainabledevelopment.Bowling aloneAlthough Taoiseach Bertie Ahern once identified sus-tainable development as fundamental to his vision ofIreland, the truth is neither he nor his Government hasdone anything to make it a reality on the ground. As aresult, the nightmare scenario painted by Robert Putnam,inBowling Alone, of community and even family life beingeroded by long-distance commuting, has become a grimreality for many Irish people. Bertie Ahern is said to haveread the book twice and even invited Putnam to speak ata Fianna Fil parliamentary party think-in, but there isno evidence that this has had any impact on public policy,

particularly the need to curb sprawl. Even as Dublins fringe areas experiencedastounding rates of growth54.6% in Ratoath, CoMeath, for exampleolder established suburbs sawtheir populations decline by between 8% and 16%, largelydue to the effects of the empty nest syndrome. The flightof younger people to outer suburban areas in search ofaffordable housing was mirrored by the Census returnsfor Cork, Limerick and Waterford. The populations ofCork City and Limerick City fell by 3.2% and 2.7% respec-

Figure 1Average housing stock per1,000 of population among the19 countries in the Euroconstructnetwork, 2005Source CSO: Central StatisticsOffice Ireland

56 57


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tralisation programme, promulcrackpot programme, 10,300 purelocated from Dublin to 53 platies. Of the 920 who were to be sto go to the city; they were to beKanturk, Macroom, Mallow, Mi

What chance then that Cork Citto realise its vision of developilands along the River Lee, just athe River Liffey? The GovernmentIrelands need for a real counternance is its most grevious errembraced Dr Edward Walshs Technology Corridor linking Gaand Cork, but it shamelessly Instead, everything is being left

whether its the explosive growtpock-marking of rural landscaptime, the country will be well ana people will be consumed withIreland to be turned into a free-fisort of mountainy version of Fla

Figure 5Percentage change in the populationof electoral divisions, 20022006Source CSO

Figure 6Percentage change in the populationof electoral divisions within Dublin,20022006Source CSO

%

Decrease

0 < 5

5 < 10

10 < 15

15+

Figure 4Components of Population ChangeCensus periods 1926-2006Source CSO

Source: Central Statistics OfficeReproduced with the permission of the Ordinance Su

menon, which threatens to destroy the landscapew material of Irish tourism, is actually encouraged

ficial policy (the p reposterously-titled SustainableHousing Guidelines), and panders to the interest ofrs in selling sites at a time of agricultural declinetter what environmental groups such as An Taisce

o say about it.The colonisation of the countryside for

ng is also driven by a false perception that land ind is an unlimited resource. This prairie mentalityravated by a cultural attachment to the idea thatcitizen, as John Waters put it, had the right to nest

he pleased in a nest of his own designing. The IrishDwellers Association has also argued that there isng wrong with reverting to the dispersed settle-pattern which existed on the island in pre-Famineignoring the fact that very few people venturedtside their own parishes until the developmentrailways in the mid-19th century. Now, of course,

ll have cars.

ng on emptythe runaway suburbanisation we are witnessing

including UGHit is no wonder that Irelandecome one of the most car-dependent countries

world. A report in 2000, Transport Investmentonomic Development, showed that the average car

s a distance of 24,400km per year70% more thane or Germany, 50% more than Britain and 30% morehe USA. With rising prosperity, the number of carsup by more than two-thirds from 939,022 in 1994 to

33 in 2004, while the number of trucks and com-al vehicles nearly doubled from 135,809 to 268,082,re goods are being transported by road.

Until the Celtic Tiger era, Irelands oil con-tion per capita was below the EU average. But for1% increase in economic growth, oil use has gone

up by 2%largely as a result of the explosion in carnumbers and road traffic generally since the mid-1990s.Oil accounts for more than 57% of our overall energyconsumptionmuch higher than the EU average.Greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sectorhave risen by 144% between 1990 and 2004, making ourKyoto target even more difficult to meet. And with theGovernment investing 30 million per week in motor-

ways and other major roads, we are being locked into aUS-style reliance on imported oil.

Apocalypse now?What is to be done? Well, some of us were nave enoughto think that it was on the way to being sorted back in1986 at the Dublin Crisis Conference. At the time, practi-cally every element of public policy was pointing in the

wrong direction. Most appallingly, the inner city wasbeing evacuated and carved up for roads, and the pros-

pect of it accommodating even an extra 10,000 people waswritten off by the planners. But the conferences agendaof repopulating the urban core and improving publictransport, rather than merely roads, soon became partof public policy. Most hearteningly of all, the numberof inner city dwellers now stands at nearly 115,000upfrom 75,000 in 1991. The real problem is that the Governmentdoes not recognise the asset value of cities, either in itsNational Spatial Strategy, published in 2002, or its decen-

Population 4,234,925Highest since 1861Increase of 317,722since 2002Highest increase in EU50% increase since 1961(2.8m)Census2006

Figure 3Population 1841-2006 (26 Counties)Source CSO

58 59


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NotesHinterland

Hinterland: The projected investment in transport infrastructure for the country to 2030building of new roads. This priority reflects the overriding car culture that exists in Irelandcar as the primary status symbol. Cars are an integral part of the Irish dream of owning a housfamily and friends, within easy reach of an urban centre. This desire has generated disparateconsisting of one-off houses, ribbon developments and clusters. These are now characteristhough difficult to sustain environmentally and socially, but are nevertheless sought after byof the population. New, improved roads will mean faster travel times for commuters and wfurther from their places of work. This will increase the pressure on agricultural land bordto provide housing and lead to further congestion on the commuter routes. the value ofhistorically valued the land above all, which has evolved into an ownership culture that has the land, as it has become merely a commodity. The value of the land has changed. The produexchanged for a one-time only cash crop of houses. Farmers reduce their production and thsmall housing plots that will release carbon emissions and waste into the environment. 8.2 toannually per dwelling in Ireland97% higher than the EU averagewhich cannot be sustalandOur societys future lies in realising the potential of the resources available to us. A re-lead to a new attitude of sustainable development and a further evolution of the productiv

support an increased population in the hinterland of the proposed r oad network.

PracticeFKL architects

TeamLuis AguirreMichael BannonJeff BolhuisDeirdre BrophyDara BurkeMiriam DelaneyMichelle Fagan

Andrew GriffinPaul KellyLaurence LordGary LysaghtDonncha O SheaTara Quinn

60 6161

92Irish households living in single-family houses, compared with the EU average of 59%87

Percentage of Irelands energy reqwith only 2.2% generated from ren

40.1Percentage of Irelands population living in rural areas

125Kilometres of new motorway and dual carriag

25,000The worlds highest average

distance in kilometres travelledeach year per carcompared to20,000km by Danish drivers and

18,500km by US drivers


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22Other

9Forestry

64Agriculture

4Urban

Land use 2006

Population & Density 2001 Current road network

Motorway/Dual Carriageway

Primary/Secondary Road

Commuter Zones

Population (1,000s)

Over1,000

100 -125

75 -100

50 -75

25 -50

Under 25

Density 2001persons per squarekm

Over100

50 -100

25 -50

10 -25

Under 10

eople want to drive cars, work in town and live in the countryside

Population distribution Primary energy consumption

Dwelling typeMode of travel

1841

1906

1961

8,1

75,

124

4,

450,0

00

2,8

00,0

00

2006

4,2

00,

000

2030

5,8

00,0

00

Population

62 636362

IRL

EU

%Urban %Rural

IRL

EU

%Oil %Other

IRL

EU

%Apartment %House

8

41 59

92

5360

2773 41 59

4740

%Rail %Road

964

3961

IRL

EU

Current Irish population

Currently 40.1% rural dwellersMax total population by 2030

Projected 30%rural dwellers by 2030

Rural population will continue to stagnate


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P

Percentage of agriculturalland required to providebiofuel for current car use

Ash, birch and willow

trees absorb pollutants

and block road noise

Biofuel such as rape seed

will provide an income

stream, offsetting tolls and

improving traffic flow

Biofuel from each plot

and from road margins

is processed into biodiesel

in regional plants

Transfer to buses will reduce

overall traffic volume, noise

and pollution

5 MINUTES TO HUB

PLOT HUB ROAD

A change of emphasis for the individual road user from car

to busby translating one lane of every dual carriageway

to a dedicated bus lanewill serve to increase the capacity

of the road network. A coach can carry 54 passengers

and a doubledecker bus carries 77 but both only take up

the equivalent road space of 2.5 cars carrying an average

of 1.5 passengers, potentially removing up to 51 carsfrom the road. Park and ride facilities will be provided at

intervals along the motorway, facilitating the transfer

from car to bus close to home and thereby attracting

amenities that will serve local communities. The local

car culture, integrated with a bus system, connects the

increased rural population to urban centres. The territory

occupied by the roadway is made productive to cultivate

biofuel for transport. Rapeseed or Miscanthus is planted

on the margins to provide the raw material for biofuel,

with willow and birch trees absorbing chemical and noise

pollution. The visual amenity of the road is enhanced by

this opportunistic planting, and reduced traffic levels

make living in proximity to the road a viable option.

Subverting the road network to public

Ash, willow, birch

Rapeseed

Cycle lane

Dedicated bus lane

51cars 1bus

transport makes rural living viaPropos

64 65

Kilometres per car per year (2006)

Hectares required for biofuel per carCars on the road (2006)

Hectares required to produce biofuel just


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20 Houses 60ha Farm land 20 Houses 30ha combined

Each plot is the size of two soccer pitches

Rapeseed harvestedfrom road

Plot sub-division

Willowgrown in 4-year cycles Willow providesprivacyGarden

Reed bed

Fruit & Vegetables

Harvesting route Rape seed

Wind and solar

erratic sources are

used to pump water

to a high level tank

which can be used

to generate electricity

when required

Solar energy is converted

into electricity

The biodiesel is sufficient to

power a car for 5,000km and

1:50 share of a bus for 20,000km

Wind energy is

converted into

electricity

0.375ha of biocrops are

harvested and processed to

manufacture sufficient biodiesel

0.375ha of coppiced willow

provides heat and hot water

for an efficient home

0.125ha of reed beds processes

the waste produced by a family

0.375ha provides the basic fruit

and vegetables required by a family

A house plot of 0.25ha is

equivalent to the current site

size for one house

Hectares of biofuel for 5,000km by car

and share of 20,000km by busProposed hectares for a self-sufficient dw

Average people per dwelling by 2030

=> People per km2

National average population density per k

The current suburban development of 20 houses to the hectare requires60 hectares of farm land to balance its ecological footprint. If we combinehousing and farming it requires only 30 hectares of land

22%of all energy consumed in Ireland is lost in

transmission. Generation of energy at point of use

eliminates the need to install costly networks in

low-density rural situations. The minimum size for a

sustainable residential plot is 1.5 hectares, which will

support an integrated system balancing energy production

to heat houses and produce basic food needs a nd fuel forcars, while dealing with waste produced by occupants in

an environmentally beneficial way.

This development pattern encourages the individual

to be self-sufficient, giving the freedom to ope rate

separately or with the community. The sustainable plot

allows for continuing involvement by farmers: they sell

the sustainable plots but can still maintain their lifestyle

as service providersthrough the ongoing cultivation of

biocropsto the new rural dwellers.

econnecting the housing plot to the productive potential of the land

66 67


35/73


36/73

onnecting a viable rural population to a network of dense urban centre

FKL architectswishesto extend itsgratitude to help with editing the curatorsessay,SubUr ban

ReferencesCSO,SEIEurostat,NRA

CreditsPhotographyServices image pGoogle image p64/66

Proposed motorway hinterland2030

In a country with a history of husbandry and land

management, the visual amenity of the countryside lies

in its functionality and through the contrast between

managed farmland and wild edges. The Hinterland pattern

will reconnect housing capacity with the productive

potential of the land and thereby create a rich pastoral

environment where the rural population is integratedvisually and environmentally. A change in attitude to the

construction of houses to respect climate, orientation

and locally produced materials will inform their nature and

aesthetic, making them innately part of the landscapea

new vernacular. By 2030, the rural hinterland of the road

network will be inhabited in a sustainable, coherent and

productive manner and will have reversed the re lative

decline of the countryside.

70 71

Maximum total population in 2030

Proposed rural population @ 40.1% Rural population increase

@ 700people per km of motorway

Length of road required


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NotesDemo-ra hics

Demographics:Ireland has the highest car use in Europe. Ireland has the lowest train usdispersal in rural areas does not support an alternative.

60Current density of population per 1.6Million projected population growth in the 25 years to 2030

PracticeHenchion+Reuter Architects

TeamOlaf BehrensMichael Robert ConroyMartin HenchionTrine KobbelvedtMary ONeillWerner Weidenberg

72 7373

70,30Lan


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Passenger kilometres travelled by rail per hAverage kilometres travelled per car per annum

Irish railway system 1923 Irish railw

esal StatisticsOffice Ireland.

epresenting Irish Architecture,18 Nov2004resident of the Royal Institute of the Architectsof Ireland,Tony Reddy)

irelandstory.com

sat the CrossRoadsbyFrank McDonald + JamesNix

wesleyjohnston.com/users/ireland/geography/settlement.html

atoc-comms.org/Document/c479106.doc

Distribution of settlements with over 5,000inhabitants in 2001

blin has been forecast soon to occupy a surface

a equivalent to Los Angeles, but with less than

uarter of its population. The citys commuter

t extends from Dundalk in the north to Gorey

he south and as far inland as Athlone. The

circle of this belt has witnessed the greatest

ulation increase in the last 10 years.

The Republic of Ireland is projected to grow

.6 million people in the period 2005-2030.

s is a 38% increase on the current population.

ile this may represent a substantial change,

significantly less dramatic than the fall in the

al islands population from 8.1 million people

6.5 million people in the period 1843-1850 (or

subsequent population drop to 4.2 million by

6).

By European standards, Ireland is not densely

ulated at 60 people per km 2. In fact, the lack of

stantial population density may be the biggest

llenge to development and growth, as the

ical mass required to support an integrated,

cient infrastructure system is still lacking.

Irelands lack of viable alternative transport

accommodation models increases the

ssure for new housing on farm land, to a

ree unimaginable in societies having advanced

astructure networks and higher residential

sities.

Population change, Ireland North and South

74 75


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Current plans to decentralise government departments

in a pattern of node points eve nly scattered across the

country is not supported by an infrastructure system and

will cause further chaos in towns not structured to accept

further growth.The National Spatial Strategy, inconsistent in parts

with the decentralisation plan, further proposes an even

distribution of gateways and hubs across the country.

Both plans assume a point system, rather than a network

of interconnecting functions or zones of activity.

The points chosen refer invariably to mediev

centres already clogged with traffic, surround

low-rise development serviced by by-pass roa

roundabouts. No successful model exists for

satisfactory enlargement and development oftowns, the growth of which can in certain ins

equate to a 100%increase in size.

Most country towns have limited capacity

new infrastructure and population growth. T

model of suburban housing and ring roads at t

town militates against high-quality developm

The town begins to growA traditional country town

The road network is overwhelmed The town is by-passed

Government Decentralisation PlanProposed relocation of 10,300public servants,currently mostly in Dublin, to 53locations

Car and rail accessCar access only

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Travelling between Dublinand Sligo takes 3h 05minby Irish Raila distance of209km.

A French TGV train would

be able to travel the samedistance in 48minutes.

48m

Penta Zone (area 27,000 sq

This area could fill to a den-sity of 150 people per squarekilometrewhich is morethan enough to sustain a de-veloped railway system withfrequent train departures.

Sourceshttp://www.noah.dk/trafik

www.atoc-comms.org/Document/c479106.doc

www.raileurope.co.uk, www.viamichelin.com, www.irishrail.ie Distances are measured in trav

SuperRural (2030)Rural

Clearly, a thin and even spread of some of the projected

population increase across rural areas will add further

low-rise development and commit the country to decades

of car-dependent living. While many will continue to

gravitate to the main urban centres, Ireland has the landresources to offer an alternative to city living.

Can a form of super-rural settlement pattern be

formulated that offers an alternative lifestyle to

city living but is organised to support a centralised

infrastructure system? For our investigation of

manipulations of density, we have considered where

this new population of 1.6 million people could be

accommodated.

Between 1993 and 2000 the number of new cars boughtannually in Ireland increased by 370%.

Transport 21, the governments ten-year infrastructureprogramme (20062015), will invest much more in roadsthan railway. The ratio is almost five to one.

Ten average cars use the same amount of fuelas a Danish IC3train with 133seats.

Ireland has 3,312km of railways and 95,736km of roads.

Point-city zone(area 800 sq km)

Tri-city zone(area 1,600 sq km)

Mid corridor zone(area 13,000 sq km)

Eastern corridor zone(area 17,000 sq km)

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Stadium32minutes from Dublin

SuperRural town28minutes from Limerick

SuperRural town19minutes from Co

SuperRural 2030: A network of new towns overlaid onIrelands existing infrastructure corridors and linked tothe major urban centres by a high-speed train system.

New towns located around dedicated infrastructure hubs

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Suburban development model, 2006 SuperRural development model, 203

40% land occupied by infrastructure

30% land occupied by housing

15-30 housing units per hectare

80% landscape

10% land occupied by housing

100-150 housing units per hectare

SuperRural Infrastructure hub

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ElastiCit

Practiceheneghan.peng.architects

TeamRisn HeneghanShih-Fu PengEmer ODalyKathryn Stutts

The missing link: Ireland is the largest country in the EU that is not physically connected toWith our trade-dependent economy, air travel has become a necessity. There will be 21,000from Dublin airport this year, equivalent to each person in the country making five journepassenger journeys from Dublin airport are to the UK. The DublinLondon air route is the bsecond busiest in the world. Based on the need to get to London, we propose a bridge connecEurope. The distance from Dublin to London along this land route would be 570km (130 km DRosslare to Fishguard, and 360 km Fishguard to London). Along this would run a high speed trLondon directly in 2 hours, and Dublin to Paris in less than 5 hours.attracting some orderdevelop a magnetthe easy link to the UK and the continentso great that the city will recre

bringing housing development and infrastructure together. Dublin would become de-centalong the east coast of Ireland. Every part would be close to both rural landscape and the rail l iqualities (close to the countryside) with urban qualities (close to major infrastructure). Thcondition. If every part of a city is within easy reach of the major infrastructural route, thencentre; the suburban as we know it no longer exists. a middle ground between rural adream: The attraction of a suburban lifestyle is derived from the desire to live in close prox(or at least to a small part of it in the form of a front and back garden), coupled with the ne

working in the city. The development and enlargement of Dublin has been largely directed surrounding sprawl extending ever outward from the centre, consuming the countryside w

which cannot support a workable public transport system. Ultimately, the current model ois unsustainable, as the rural and the urban are being driven further and further apart. By crIreland would be putting in place a catalyst for the reconfiguration of the urban sprawl thaIrish countryside. A Dublin-London linear urban corridor would be created facilitating thoseto Londons networks but would rather live and work elsewhere. The magnet of the bridge andof a stretched city, an ElastiCity, will provide a new pattern for guiding Irelands growth.

Notes

Ireland is the largest EU country that is not physically

21,000,00Projected number of passenger journeys from Dublin airport in 2006, eq uivalent to each person in the country making five journeys

84 8585

80Number offlights perweek day

from Dublinto London

250High speed trains travel at over 2 50kph

57The distance in kilometers from Dublin to Lo


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The missinglink

Dublin

London

Paris

Dublin

L

Dublin

London

Paris

Dublin

London

Paris

Based on the need to get to London, we propose a bridge be built, connecting Ireland to the rest of Europe...

DublinLondonParis

The physical distance between places becomes less

important as travel times are considerably reduced.

Currently the time it takes to travel from London to

Paris by the Eurostar is 2h 35 mins. Travelling by train

has begun to replace air travel due to faster trains, shorter

travel times and reduced check-in, security and boardingformalities. The Eurostar has already captured 71% of the

London-Paris market from the airlines. Within Europe,

high speed trains are fast becoming the most efficient

and sustainable mode of travel.

The DublinLondon route is the second busiest in the world...is an island...

All times are lo

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Different levels of occu

Building the bridge

Clearly this proposal is a significant engineering

undertaking. The distance from Rosslare to Fishguardis 80km and the Irish Sea is up to 100 metres in depth.

As a high speed train requires stability the bridge needs

foundations and cannot float. By applying construction

techniques developed by the oil industry for oil platforms,

the bridge can be built and shipping channels maintained,

but it is an expensive undertaking.

However, consider the costs of our current condition. In

2005 there were 8.25 million passenger journeys throughDublin Airport to the UK and 11 million from all the Irish

airports to the UK; traffic in 2006 is up 15%. All involve

air journeys of less than 1000km, distances at which air

travel is highly fuel inefficient. It has been estimated that

by 2040 aviation will consume the entire EU budget for

carbon emissions. We may need to connect, but whether

we will be able to do so by air is subject to question.

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Dublin

London

D

u

b

lin

Dublin and London Dublin London

Global-scale urban planning

The process of globalisation has transformed Europe.

Different societies, cultures and economies are becoming

increasingly integrated and interdependent. New

technologies allow the rapid exchange of goods and

people from city to city, and the almost instantaneous

transfer of information and ideas. What this means is

that urban planning should not be restricted to national

boundariesit should be considered at a global scale.

We must start to think about our cities within a much

larger context than ever before.

Over the past decade Ireland has witnessed an

astonishing economic growth, largely as a result of the

contribution of overseas companies which have found

Ireland to be a highly competitive location from which toserve international markets. This means that Ireland has

a high dependence on international trade, making it one

of the most open economies in Europe.

This boost to the Irish economy was initiated by

systematically creating new connections and links within

the larger context of the global market. By creating the

missing link to the UK, Ireland would not only become

physically connected to the EU, but would also be putting

in place a catalyst for the reconfiguration of its cities.

The magnet of the bridge and the formation of a stretched

city, an ElastiCity, would result in Dublin and London

becoming increasingly integrated. New development

would evolve alongside the infrastructure in the form

of a Dublin-London Corridor.

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Dublin 2030Dublin 2025Dublin 2005 Dublin 2015

ElastiCityTypical City

Shorter distance betweencity and countryside

Greater distance between cityand countryside

Directed sprawl: The benefits of elasticity

Dublin has developed beyond its infrastructural

capabilities. The multi-directional, unguided sprawl

of Irish housing cannot be serviced by a functional

transportation system, as development has spread too

widely and at too low a density. This link would redirectDublins development to stretch linearly along the

east coast of Ireland. It would become a multi-centred

metropolis composed of a series of nodes, ev olving

alongside the primary infrastructural link. Because

the nodes are gathered along a single line rather than

scattered across an area as they are now, high-speed

trains running along the east coast become economically

viable, as they are able to serve the entire city. This new

model is not based on a traditional centralised European

city that relies on a dense urban core. Rather, it is a city

that has unfurled, so that the edge and the centre are

adjacentan ElastiCity.

dial to linear citythe rearrangement of nodes

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An alternative vision ofreland in contrast withhe current spatialevelopment mantra

Constantin Gurdgiev

Dr Constantin Gurdgievis anEconomist with Trinity College, Dublinand University College Dublin, andEditor ofBusiness & Finance.

1.Introduction

To a casual visitor departing Dublin Citycentre, as the rows of Georgian and Victorian homes give

way to the monotony of suburbia, the imagery of GreenIreland slowly recedes into the memory of the touristbrochures. Dominated by the ageing stock of standard-

ized housing, the typically provincial 1960s NorthernEnglish architecture is reinterpreted in bricked andpebble-dashed rows of homes haphazardly snakingacross the landscape. The entire architectural languageof Irish suburbia can be compressed to just two expres-sionsa dormer bungalow and a pitch-roofed box. Thesocial order that abhors any attempt at transgressionmakes certain that nothing passing the local plannersdesk disturbs its aesthetic tedium.

On the urban margins, strings of relativelyconcentrated developments radiate from the M50 ringroadbeads of towns/villages with occasional awk-

wardly protruding blocks of apartments threaded onthe thin needles of the main motorways. Staring intothe confines of a solitary public square, an averageIrish town usually avoids waterways and other naturalfeatures as focal points of orientation. A local pubforming the main point of attraction is an apt r eflectionof a country psyche still inclined to measure the cost ofliving in pints. Premium aesthetic goods like the viewand identifying features of the landscape fail to inform

the architectural patterns. New plain-faced four or five-storied buildingsthe symbols of high-rise modernityin a townfolk viewoften compete for light and air withdecaying factory walls or the corrugated rust of adjoin-ing farm yards. Walkways lack breadth and trees. Streetcorners rarely contain an element of surprise, suchas a sudden square or a remnant of past public space.Sculpture and architectural detailing are either non-extant or mimic past decades, as if past-their-primeartists have descended en masse on Irish provincial

towns to leave their lasting marcompleted buildings prefer toinstead of using the contours and rich Irish terrain to their po

In this spaceOne drowns without

So much as a trace,Or a record of a lossIt is hard to find a less humathan that presented by the extstantly blending land to suit tproduction and suburban expaadjoining the larger cities has baginative utilitarian spread of folder estates retain mature treemaintained streams or ponds. Stretching beyonlies the world of abandoned hand rusting skips of smaller roone-off housing. Here a juxtapmodern is reflected in the phy

buildings. With the exception older dwellings and the layouttryside conform to the geophysscape.

Sprinkles of bungalows, flat toBuilt to contain the guts of wis

Ones speech here grows slowerChances are, the thoughts will fSingle-road towns, with gas staincreasingly serving as focal pactivity, are rarely distinguisheda unique character. Just as wittowns, the Irish countryside is b

view of land as a productive unpoint of view of its aesthetic va

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This essay outlines the state of Irish spatial policies,stressing the apparent failure of national developmentstrategies to reverse the organic urbanization broughtabout by the accelerated economic development of thelast 15 years.

We conclude by proposing an alternative

vision of Ireland in which urban and suburban areas areencouraged to further increase population density. IfIreland were to pursue this organic growth, the processof separation of rural areas from urban zones will con-tinue. The result will be a transformation of Ireland into ahigh-growth and high-density island with five core l oca-tions of economic and social activity which will supporta set of large recreational zones similar to the state andfederal parks in the US. This process will coincide withcontinued reduction in the economic diversificationof peripheral rural locations to the point of rural areasemerging as publicly accessible forestry and parklands

with developed recreational infrastructure.

2. Tunnel vision in development planning In Ireland, the organic evolutionary process

of continued separation of rural periphery from theurban centres is being undermined by a host of state andlocal initiatives.

According to the National Spatial Strategy(NSS, 2001), Irish rural areas experienced a strong decline

in population even in the boom years of the mid 1990s.However, there was little concerted effort to developdeclining areas with a focus on recreation, natural habitatpreservation and restoration. Instead, the regional devel-opment plans, the NSS and the National DevelopmentPlan (NDP) insisted on the feasibility of mixed develop-ment, with industry and auxiliary services coinciding

with the recreational use of land and high value-addedtourism.

The NSS (2001) expthe objectives of the NSS shoulgravitational forces in Ireland wclose to Cork/Dublin are selected

will simply become commuter2006 envisioned the promotio

additional regional gateways ([and] positive discrimination in behind in relation to support foproductive sector in general. Thsense in reality:

Since the beginning of theeconomic development and

within the five urban areas ofLimerick and Galway.

Foreign direct investment pareas started to withdraw frcate higher value-added proc

The cost basis for high valuless favourable in rural locatinfrastructure, amenities, kthe lower ability of these areskilled domestic and foreign

Enhancement of gateway deareas is more likely to result nities adjoining urban high-ing reverse commute pattern

Despite stating that the objeopment policy include presetats and the environment, ththat There must be a strateglages and towns; people shouin rural areas.

Thus, the NSS and the NDP 2000conflicting objectives. The expa

ntrast, buildings completed since the mid-1990sent a departure from their surroundings. Oftening in size and ostentatiously decorated, they

ve greater visibility and prominence in the land-This effect is only exaggerated by the pervasive

f vegetation around the new builds, the ubiquitous

es with ostentatious names of the dwellings, oftented in a tombstone fashion, and imposing stoneIn an attempt to stamp a mark on their surround-he newer structures appear garish and loud. Theity of the decorative elements that are supposed to

m the architectural vocabulary arrive from a limiteder of sourcesthe new Irish countryside rese

Documents

Suburban Super Rural