Client News > Release
01-06-2010
Airfield announces extensive upgrade to urban farm and gardens to enhance visitors’ experience
Airfield, the authentic urban farm and gardens in Dundrum, has announced that it is to extensively upgrade the facilities on its 35-acre estate.
The project, for which planning permission is about to be sought, includes major improvements to the horticultural, agricultural and public amenities, the refurbishment of Airfield House and bringing the Overend family archive to the fore. This will greatly enhance the visitor experience.
Speaking today Kathy Purcell, General Manager of Airfield said that “The upgrade will keep the working urban farm and gardens to the forefront, emphasising the importance of farming and gardening in our lives”.
The main purpose of the upgrade is to enable visitor activities and numbers to continue their strong growth in recent years. Airfield will be able to cater better for the needs of the modern visitor and make this wonderful venue more accessible, while retaining its unique qualities.
A key objective is the retention and refurbishment of nearly all the existing buildings as well as retaining the current acreage given over to agriculture and increasing the horticultural acreage.
The project has been in detailed design and consultation for the past twenty four months. Ms Purcell said that “we hope to secure full planning approval by autumn 2011 and construction work will begin then. It is anticipated that construction will take 18 months”.
“The design team, led by Solearth Ecological Architecture, has recommended that Airfield will have to be closed during the construction period in order to expedite the works and for health and safety reasons”.
“We are holding two Open Days for our neighbours and everyone interested in the future of Airfield. These will take place in the Lily Butler Room (Airfield House) on Saturday June 5th and Saturday June 12th. Later on, we will also arrange periodic tours of Airfield for local residents associations, members and interested parties so that they can see the work in progress”, added Ms. Purcell.
Key features of the exciting upgrading of Airfield include:
Creating a new 3-acre area dedicated to new garden experiences.
Centralising the farming activity to an improved and more visitor-friendly centre.
Restoration of the fabric of the main house. This will also allow the family archive to be fully appreciated for the first time.
Building a new multi-purpose building to support enhanced visitor programmes.
The relocation of the entrance from the current position on the Kilmacud Road to the more accessible Overend Way with its close proximity to the LUAS.
This peripheral area will incorporate a new cafe, retail space, ticketing area and car park.
The project is being financed entirely from Airfield’s own resources. The total investment in the estate will be in the region of €10 million.
