The People's Park is a small public park in the suburban town of

Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built following the 1816 legislation that allowed the building of a major port to serve Dubli ...

, south of

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. Located near the East Pier of

Dún Laoghaire Harbour Dún Laoghaire Harbour and Carlisle Pier were constructed in the nineteenth century for the purposes of sheltering ships and accommodating the mailboat which sailed between Dún Laoghaire and Holyhead. The nearby settlement of Dún Laoghaire h ...

and

Glasthule Glasthule ( ; ) is a suburb of Dublin, Ireland. It is along County Dublin’s south coast, between Dún Laoghaire and Dalkey. Amenities Sandycove and Glasthule are served by a number of businesses and amenities, including retail outlets, pu ...

, it opened in 1890, and major elements were redeveloped between 1985 and 1997, and again in 2012.

History

Martello Tower Martello towers, sometimes known simply as Martellos, are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts. They stand up ...

was previously situated on the site in 1805, as visible on maps from 1817 and 1821. The land was later a quarry, and was acquired by the

Kingstown Kingstown is the capital, chief port, and main commercial centre of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. With a population of 12,909 (2012), Kingstown is the most populous settlement in the country. It is the island's agricultural industry centre ...

Town Commission in 1889. The park was designed by J. L. Robinson, an architect who was chairman of the Town Commissioners, and also designed other local civic buildings. Funding was partly provided by the Local Government Board. The park was officially opened on 29 September 1890. A revised system of pathways, which replaced a more formal layout, was in place by 1937. The fountains were restored in 1985 and 1988, a new playground also being constructed in 1988. The bandstand and shelter were reworked in 1990, and the park re-dedicated in September of that year. In the early 2010s, under the direction of Leslie Moore, Senior Parks Superintendent, the pavements in the park were reconstructed in a more formal arrangement to reflect the original design intention. The gate lodge and shelter structures were conserved, public toilets constructed and an extension was added to the shelter to create tearooms, designed by Howley Hayes, conservation architects. New railings and gates were constructed along the line of 'the metals' and the raised promenade and glazed viewing deck were constructed over the DART line, designed by the in-house parks team. This work was completed in 2012.

Location and access

The park is approximately in size and is bounded by Summerhill Road, Park Road, the DART railway cutting (the nearest railway station is Sandycove and Glasthule), and the rear gardens of some houses on Martello Terrace. The formal entrance is at the point where Upper George's Street becomes Summerhill Road, and Park Road goes towards the coast, and the second entrance is where Park Road meets Marine Terrace at Queen's Road.

Amenities

The gate lodge is at the entrance at the junction of Upper Georges Street, Park Road and Summerhill Road. A bandstand is at the centre of the park, and it also holds a playground, two fountains, a "tearooms" style café in the Victorian shelter, and a ''Garden for the Blind'' (with a specially-designed walking trail). Sunday Markets are held on Sundays except that nearest to Christmas throughout the year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:People's Park, Dun Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire Parks in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown