Urb

Urb is ceasing business today. A big thank you to my clients,...

Tue, 31 Dec 2013 17:00:18 +0000

Urb is ceasing business today. A big thank you to my clients, colleagues friends and family who have shared the great adventure over the last four years. My contact details remain the same. Happy New Year to all!

Richard.

Business as Usual? What next for Planning? Looking forward to...

Thu, 28 Nov 2013 09:59:36 +0000

Business as Usual? What next for Planning? Looking forward to this event next Thursday 5th in the Wood Quay Venue, DCC

"…neither cities nor places in them are unordered, unplanned; the question is only whose order, whose..."

Fri, 25 Oct 2013 14:35:07 +0100

“…neither cities nor places in them are unordered, unplanned; the question is only whose...

High Street Renewal Fund by ATCM and UK Dept for Communities...

Fri, 25 Oct 2013 14:28:06 +0100

High Street Renewal Fund by ATCM and UK Dept for Communities & Local Government - This nice little publication has 7 examples of High Street initiatives, showing the organisations, projects and leadership it takes to make big impacts on town centres. It’s available from the ATCM web site here: https://www.atcm.org/programmes/town_teams/resources/high_street_renewal_fund

Use Classes need change to promote town centre diversity

Wed, 04 Sep 2013 10:02:19 +0100

It is a fundamental principle of the Irish Planning code (like many other countries) that not all...

The plan is useless, but planning is essential.

Mon, 08 Jul 2013 17:05:48 +0100

Local government structure and management around the world owe a great deal to historic military...

Urb achieves landmark Referral decision at An Bord Pleanala

Thu, 30 May 2013 15:03:09 +0100

The planning definition of ‘bulky goods’ definition of bulky goods has got greyer and...

Court awards Dunnes Stores 50% cut in rent | ShelfLife.ie

Mon, 20 May 2013 11:38:50 +0100

Court awards Dunnes Stores 50% cut in rent | ShelfLife.ie: Cost of Georgeâs St retail space cut in...

News - Department of the Environment, Community & Local Government

Wed, 08 May 2013 15:13:57 +0100

News - Department of the Environment, Community & Local Government: Government gives green light to...

London Portas Pilot writes why local traders are indifferent to digital

Tue, 07 May 2013 11:06:04 +0100

London Portas Pilot writes why local traders are indifferent to digital

Guidance on Integrating Climate Change and Biodiversity into...

Wed, 01 May 2013 23:47:28 +0100

Guidance on Integrating Climate Change and Biodiversity into Strategic Environmental Assessment. These new guidelines were published in April and provide very welcome and useful content for SEA and SA.

The guidelines can be downloaded at http://ec.europa.eu/environment/eia/

I’ve been helping out with the Thomas Street Business...

Wed, 01 May 2013 16:20:24 +0100

I’ve been helping out with the Thomas Street Business Association for few months now. We’ve created a 90 day plan to create some focus and bring in wider support for renewal of the street.

Its difficult for professional place management organisations to do “a plan” and then implement its actions. This is because there are so many externalities, interests and actors at play in a real street. For a voluntary group like ours, its impossible. So our plan is designed to evolve from from Version 1.0 throughout the plan period. This is because we want it to change, evolve and develop with the people who become involved and take ownership of their part in the plan.

see….. http://issuu.com/thomasstreetdublin/docs/90dayactionplan?mode=window and https://www.facebook.com/thomasstreetdublin (Illustration by Stephen Coyne)

Project Update: Planning advice on works to Protected Structures Procedural planning advice remains...

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:58:00 +0000

Project Update: Planning advice on works to Protected Structures Procedural planning advice remains...

Project Update: Dublin BID Submission to the Railway...

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:48:00 +0000

Project Update: Dublin BID Submission to the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) on Luas Broombridge scheme construction phase.

2013 will see the commencement of construction of a new light rail line for Dublin linking Stephen’s Green to Broombridge Station via Dawson Street, College Green and O'Connell Street (and others). This 4 year project is perhaps the largest ever infrastructure scheme to run through the heart of Dublin city centre, and poses great challenges for businesses and visitors to the city core.

Dublin City BID (Business Improvement District) have appointed Urb in association with JB Barry & Partners, Consulting Engineers to engage with businesses and the RPA so as to address construction phase challenges in a pro-active manner at the pre-tender stage. Detailed consideration of street manangement, communications, traffic plans and contractual obligations are key factors to manage the process of change for the city centre.

Urb’s expertise in Place Management complemented JB Barry’s engineering skill, to assess construction and operational phases of the works.

Project Update: Greater London Authority: Integrated Impact...

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:23:00 +0000

Project Update: Greater London Authority: Integrated Impact Assessment for White City OAPF

GLA have contracted Richard Hamilton to prepare an updated SA and EqIA for the Draft White City Opportunity Area Planning Framework which is being produced jointly by GLA with London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham and Transport for London.

Covering an area of 110 Ha. White City Opportunity Area is one of 33 opportunity areas identified in the Mayor’s London Plan. The OAPF will help resolve complex planning issues relating to the provision of significant residential and commercial growth. This provides for a new community of some 5,000 homes and 10,000 jobs over the next 15 to 20 years.

The IIA incorporates the statutory requirements for Sustainability Appraisal (SA), Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), and Equalities Impact Assessment (EqIA). The IIA process assisted the development of the Draft OAPF document as well as assessing the potential impacts

A new kind of Retail Strategy

Mon, 22 Oct 2012 12:47:00 +0100

Following the recent IPI conference on Retail and Town centres, it’s time to return to the theme of...

Retail Excellence Ireland's town centre survey

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 16:35:00 +0100

The Retail Excellence Ireland Town and City Review was published at the weekend in the Sunday...

Retail Mix is #1 factor for people visiting town centres

Mon, 08 Oct 2012 12:43:26 +0100

Retail Excellence Ireland have undertaken a national survey of 100 towns/urban places in Ireland. ...

urbalize: The Institute for Urban Design organized the...

Sat, 08 Sep 2012 12:11:36 +0100

urbalize:

The Institute for Urban Design organized the official U.S. Pavilion at this years 13th International Venice Architecture Biennale. The Pavilion titled Spontaneous Interventions: Design Actions for the Common Good features 124 urban interventions initiated by architects, designers, planners, artists, and everyday citizens that bring positive change to their neighborhoods and cities.

Westport - The best place to live in Ireland (according to the...

Sat, 08 Sep 2012 11:54:17 +0100

Westport - The best place to live in Ireland (according to the Irish Times). Nice little movie on the town. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0908/1224323739782.html. Pity there was no planner on the panel of judges.