Dublin Corporation is following is example of the President, Mrs McAleese, in building bridges between North and South - except, in this case, it is a new pedestrian bridge over the Liffey.The Lord Mayor, Mr John Stafford, yesterday announced details of a design competition for a Millennium Bridge to span the river between Ormonde Quay and Wellington Quay, just east of Eustace Street.This will replace an aborted plan by Temple Bar Properties for a pedestrian bridge - known as the "Wibbly Wobbly Bridge" because of its wavy form - which was intended to link Jervis Street with Meeting House Square. The latest proposal represents a victory for Dublin's chief planning officer, Mr Pat McDonnell, who opposed the previous scheme on aesthetic and civic design grounds, and also because he believed it was in the wrong location.Intended as a companion for the 180-year-old Ha'penny Bridge, just 150 metres downriver, the Millennium Bridge should be "elegant, light and graceful" and respect "the well-established vocabulary of bridge design", according to the brief.Designers are being told it is of paramount importance to respect the internationally known vistas of the Ha'penny Bridge, which has become the symbol of Dublin since the demise of the Nelson Pillar, and its "characteristic arched profile".It is intended that the completed bridge, costing a maximum of £750,000, will be illuminated and displayed as a sculptural feature on the river.
Funding is being provided by the corporation, the Government and private sector sources.The city manager, Mr John Fitzgerald, said it was one of the millennium projects for Dublin that was "capable of being delivered". Unlike the previous proposal, which was turned down by An Bord Pleanala, "this bridge will be built", he declared.Mr Gordon Millington, president of the Institution of Engineers of Ireland, which is organising the competition, said the bridge would be a "tremendous celebration of the millennium". He hoped it would last as long as the Ha'penny Bridge.The jury consists of the Lord Mayor (or his nominee); Mr Jim Barrett, city architect; Mr John Martin, deputy city planner; Prof Sean de Courcy, author of two books on the Liffey, and representatives of the IEI and the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland.The closing date for entries is February 6th, and the result is expected to be announced in May.
