OVER 1,000 students got their first taste of the new Grangegorman campus when it officially opened for learning last week.
The site will accommodate as many as 10,000 students by 2017, and an estimated 20,000 when the campus is fully complete in 2020.
Several local politicians visited the site last week to see the new campus, including Tánaiste, Joan Burton, Minister for Transport, Sport and Tourism, Paschal Donohoe and Dublin Central TD, Joe Costello.
“The development of Grangegorman is very close to my heart,
? the Tánaiste said.
“I grew up just a stone’s throw from the site and have had a long association with the tremendous work done by Dublin Institute of Technology.
“Seeing the progress achieved to date is inspiring. We are seeing the evolution of a state-of-the-art educational facility that will have strong links with the local community.
“Meeting the first staff and students who will work on the campus gives a very real sense of the achievement that has been made to date and the potential that will be realised in the future.
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Minister Donohue paid tribute to the President of DIT, Professor Brian Norton and his staff, the Grangegorman Development Agency, led by Michael Hand, and the local community for their dedication to the project.
“This project will have a tremendous benefit for the local community,
? he said.
“Not only will the campus produce a new generation of graduates who will contribute to Ireland socially and economically, it will also reach out into the community in a unique way for a third level institution in Dublin.
“It’s an exciting time for DIT and I look forward to working closely with them and other partners into the future.
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The initial phase of development at Grangegorman has focused on the conservation and development of the 19th century buildings that formed the core of the old site.
They have now been brought back to life as cutting edge design studios, lecture rooms, a library and student facilities. The project was made possible by an innovative approach to funding that has seen direct Government spending and use of the public private partnership model.
Over the coming years the Grangegorman site will host a new Educate Together primary school and a Primary Care Centre.
The next phase of the project will be the Greenway Hub, a technology and research hub in the heart of the campus. The official contract signing for the construction took place recently with BAM Building, the successful tenderer for the job.
Foundations have been laid for the Greenway Hub which will also house the Environmental Health Sciences Institute (EHSI) and Hot House Incubation Spaces (HHI) for start-up companies.
It’s scheduled for completion in late 2015.
Work will also begin on development of a new Broadstone Gate into Grange- gorman. A new bus parking structure will be constructed on the east side of the Grangegorman site to provide Dublin Bus with parking space when the development of the Luas Cross City Line and the new gate begins.
Clancy Construction have been appointed to carry out the construction of the new structure and they are due to begin next week. An information event for anybody interested in meeting with the contractor will take place at GDA offices in Park House, North Circular Road on Thursday, September 18 from 3-7pm.