There were 70 construction cranes visible over the centre of Dublin on October 1st from the seventh floor of the Irish Times building on Tara Street.
This is an increase of two on September’s total of 68, and more than double the 34 cranes recorded on February 1st, 2016, when the newspaper’s crane survey was launched.
Construction is still concentrated in pockets south of the Liffey – Ballsbridge, the Docklands and Molesworth Street – where there were 54 cranes (the same as last month).
Demolition and site clearance work has just started on one of the last large riverfront sites in the South Docklands. A 1.7-acre site at Lime Street and Sir John Rogerson's Quay, which once housed the Irish Steam Packet Company, is to accommodate a €100 million scheme with 100,000sq ft (9,290sq m) of offices and 100 apartments. This is the last significant brownfield site for development in the south docks special development zone where much of the current construction boom is concentrated.
Fifteen cranes were visible north of the Liffey – one up on September and 50 per cent up on May’s total. There has been a marked increase in the pace of development work in the North Docklands, especially down river of the new Central Bank building on North Wall Quay.
For example, construction is ramping up at the Dublin Landings scheme where work has started on three further office blocks which will deliver an additional 30,679sq m (330,000sq ft) of office accommodation by the end of 2019. The first block at the scheme is due for fit-out early next year, while work on a second is well advanced.
With the Irish economy expected to continue its recovery and a number of significant developments due to enter the construction phase shortly, it is likely the number of cranes on Dublin’s skyline will increase.
The Irish Times will continue to conduct a crane survey once a month to track construction levels in the city centre.
