A third of all homes in Dublin City are apartments or flats. There are excellent examples, however, many developments are compromised by a range of legacy issues – design, construction, management – and apartments are not considered an optimum long term housing choice. This is impacting negatively on people’s quality of life and is a fundamental obstacle to developing the city. We need to build apartments to meet the needs of a growing population and to avoid urban sprawl. While improved regulatory controls and standards will help deliver better quality in future, how should Dublin City Council deal with existing developments?

Dublin City Architects, through the PIVOT Dublin platform, are running a pilot project around challenges faced by owners and residents of private apartment complexes in the city, called The Empowered City.

The Pilot is happening in two stages:

Stage 1: Preparatory training 25 and 26 June 2015
City Architects and the Center for Communities by Design are holding a two-day workshop with participants drawn from a range of disciplines. The objective is to establish a pool of potential volunteers for Stage 2. There are architects, artists, communication specialists, graphic and product designers, financiers, engineers, lawyers, scientists and planners involved.

Stage 2: Pilot project October / November 2015
City Architects and the Center for Communities by Design will engage and guide a project in Dublin, working with a group of apartment residents and a team of volunteer practitioners. The Apartment Owners Network will help select the apartment group.

The goal of the Empowered City Pilot is to build the skill and capacity of programme participants to design and implement an adapted form of  Design Assistance processes for Dublin communities. The Pilot outcomes will determine how to proceed with an expanded programme across Dublin and Ireland.

In a talk open to all on June 29, Joel Mills and Erin Simmons from the Center for Communities by Design will chat about The Empowered City Pilot Project and also the Design Assistance Programme (a strategic initiative of the American Institute of Architects Center for Communities by Design) it draws on. Through this programme, over 1,000 professionals from more than thirty disciplines have provided millions of dollars in professional pro bono services to more than 200 communities across the US – engaging thousands of people in community-driven participatory process.

Monday, June 29, 2015 , 6pm to 7.30pm, Paccar Theatre, Science Gallery Dublin

Register HERE

This is not an IAF event