THE Government is moving quickly to establish a new authority to take charge of the redevelopment of Dublin's redundant docklands. A Bill is being drafted for presentation to the Dail in October.
This week seven groups of consultants are being interviewed. One will be appointed by mid September to begin preparing a master plan for the 1,700 acre area, which stretches from the Custom House to the Pigeon House.
A spokesman for the Custom House Docks Development Authority told The Irish Times that the seven contenders had been shortlisted from almost 20 applicants who made submissions in response to advertisements.
The CHDDA spokesman said it would not be appropriate to release the names on the shortlist before the selection process is completed. However, he confirmed that each contender was a multi disciplinary team.
Each team includes architects, planners and economists with the expertise to draw up an overall plan for the area, to be implemented over 10 years.
On the architectural side, those involved in the final stage of the contest are believed to include Scott Tallon Walker, Murray O'Laoire Associates, Fitzgerald Reddy, Burke Kennedy Doyle and Partners, all Dublin based, and Sir Norman Foster of Britain.
The interviews are being conducted by a 10 member panel drawn from the Docklands Task Force, which published a major report on the area's future last May, and the Custom House Docks Development Authority. Its chairwoman, Dr Dervilla Donnelly, heads the panel.
The spokesman said it was intended to make an appointment "as early as possible next month", with a view to having a draft master plan in place before the beginning of next year. By then, it is expected that the required legislation will be enacted.
