Council contributes €30,000 to shop front improvement

Eleven businesses in the Liberties have been awarded grants as part of the Shop Front Improvement Scheme 2018.

The scheme has been in place for four years in the Liberties and in that time the scheme has assisted over 50 businesses. This year the scheme made 11 awards to local businesses, in most instances for the maximum available payment of €3,000. The type of work being undertaken includes refurbishment of existing shopfronts, installing new fronts, upgrading the boundaries and the fronts of buildings and restoring historic features such as sash windows and metal gutters.

Among the projects in Dublin 8 supported this year are Subway, Heritage Credit Union on Thomas Street, the D8 Arcade, Lark Inn on Meath Street and No. 30 Francis Street.

Stephen Coyne of The Liberties Business Area Improvement Initiative said: “The shopfront schemes have been hugely effective at encouraging property owners to invest in their premises.  This year for example, the Liberties scheme supported 11 projects at a cost of €30,000, but the scheme unlocked over €110,000 of investment by building owners or occupiers.

“The Council works with applicants to achieve the best result for their building and the street. The scheme allows owners to modernise their fronts while respecting the heritage value of their buildings and it encourages applicants to use signage or colours or other features that are more in keeping with the feel of Thomas Street and The Liberties, which is an Architectural Conservation Area.”

The same scheme has also been run in Kilmainham & Inchicore (which received 12 applications this year) and in Dolphin’s Barn and Rialto (which had 8 successful projects in 2018).  For the most part, projects are now completed though a number of still being worked through.