Delight as Airfield farm reopens

ONE of Dublin’s most popular visitor experiences is set to reopen to the public two years after it closed.

Airfield will start a phased re-opening of its Visitor Centre last this month following completion of the bulk of its e11 million investment and upgrade programme.

The 38-acre urban farm set in the heart of the Southside closed in late 2011 to enable construction works to be carried out.

Following a detailed planning and consultation process the work was completed to enhance the visitor experience and ensure that the facilities were adequate to secure the site as a unique destination for generations to come.

Airfield was left in trust by Letitia and Naomi Overend to be used for education and recreation purposes.

The trustees have endeavoured to ensure that both the restoration and repair of the older buildings, as well as the creation of new spaces and experiences for education and learning honour both the values and legacy of the benefactors.

In particular, the new interactive Heritage Experience in the ground floor of the family home presents a display of selected materials and stories from the family archive which is now housed in Castletown House in Leixlip.

Gráinne Millar, Head of Visitor Experience at Airfield, said:

“We’re delighted to welcome back our many visitors, friends, and members to Airfield as we now begin to re-open the estate on a phased basis.

“The first phase will see the opening of the new entrance at Overend Way, car park and our brand new Overends Café which will be a showcase for food produced on the estate as well as by suppliers sharing our values.

“We have also developed a wonderful interactive Heritage Experience in the Overend family home which brings to life the many stories to hear and tell about our benefactors, Letitia and Naomi Overend. It is based on the family archive of over 20,000 documents and 7,000 photographic images that are housed in Castletown House, Leixlip.

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She added:

“We’ve also been busy creating a new Kitchen Garden and a farmyard and dairy to house and care for our animals, including the famous Jersey herd, and these will be opening in Spring 2014.

“In the meantime we will continue to work in these areas throughout the winter and expect to re-open a nature walk of about 1km around the farm before the end of the year.

“Some of our farm animals are also making their way back and we will provide as much opportunity as we can for children to reacquaint themselves with them

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Ms Millar said the renewed focus would be on food and inspiring visitors to re-connect with food production and the land that supports it.

“This will be reflected in all our activities and programmes which we will launch in Spring 2014, where we will practically demonstrate to our visitors how to grow and prepare a wide variety of natural produce which they can experience and taste seasonally in our café or learn to cook for themselves at home,

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“We are all excited at the prospect of welcoming back our old friends, as well as having the opportunity to greet new faces, so that we can show off all the hard work that’s gone on during the closure.

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The phased re-opening saw the opening of the new Overends Café at Airfield that now serves breakfast, lunch and snacks throughout the day.

From October 30 the public will have access to a substantial part of the estate including the Heritage Experience and the formal gardens around the family home.