Favourite family farm to close for 18 months

THE Southside’s
unique Airfield urban farm is to close in October to enable major refurbishment
works to get underway.

To facilitate
the conservation works as quickly and as safely as possible, it was agreed to
close it this winter.

Construction is
expected to take approximately 18 months with a planned reopening for Spring
2013.

The project,
which received full planning permission in July 2010, will include new central
farm buildings for the accommodation of animals; a new three acre horticultural
experience consisting of display gardens, vegetable gardens and kitchen
gardens; and the refurbishment and conservation of Airfield House.

John O’Toole,
Airfield Head of Finance and Projects, said:

“The planned upgrading and
refurbishment works will greatly enhance the visitor experience of Airfield, in
addition to ensuring the facility is both self-sustaining and self-financing.

“This will
enable us to cater better for the needs of the modern visitor, making the venue
more accessible, while retaining its unique and authentic qualities. Work is
due to commence in the coming months so we need to close in October. We have worked
with the project team to ensure the closure period will be as short as
possible.

?

Mr O’Toole added
that, unfortunately, the closure of Airfield for a full 18 months would
necessitate the ending of contracts for up to 30 members of staff.

“The redundancies
will include full-time, part-time and contract employees,

? he said.

“A small
number of staff will be retained beyond the closure date to facilitate the
process but it will then be necessary to hand the entire site over to the
contractor.

“We have entered
a phase of consultation with staff. In addition to meeting with them all to
discuss the redundancies, we will be putting in place a support programme
offering them advice on finding future employment.

?

However, Mr
O’Toole stressed that the upgrading of the facilities would provide Airfield
with the infrastructure to deliver an all-weather, authentic value for money
visitor experience.

“It will sustain
Airfield as an amenity for the public long into the future,

? he added.

Key changes to
the Airfield site will include the development of three acres of a new garden
area aimed at greater visitor interaction while allotments and a new kitchen
garden will carry the message of sustainability through food production
demonstrations.

Airfield’s
farming activities will benefit from an improved and more visitor- friendly
farm centre, with an upgrade of the facilities and central housing for the
animals.

The house and
former home of the Overend family will have a major refurbishment, allowing a
much fuller use of the family archive. A new garage will accommodate the
family’s cars.

A new core
building will be constructed as a multi-purpose flexible all-weather space to
act as the springboard for group activities and visits.

The entrance and
parking will move to the more accessible Overend Way. This will allow for
convenient access to the Luas and Dundrum. It will provide for car and coach
visitors, as well as for those using public transport and pedestrians.

A new entrance
area will house a new cafe and shop, ticketing area and car park.