Initial works on €3m heritage centre project commences

INITIAL works on a heritage centre project in Tallaght have commenced, according to South Dublin County Council.

The council received a number of tenders for the project and, last month, they appointed an architectural firm to work on the project.

The project is expected to reach the public consultation stage later this year, while a contractor is expected to be appointed next year.

The €3m heritage centre will be adjacent to the Civic Theatre as part of a wider ‘cultural quarter’ encompassing Rua Red and the County Library.

The council has enlisted the services of EPIC Heritage Consulting Ltd for the development of the “world-class” heritage centre.

The council previously described EPIC as “an experienced tourism and heritage interpretation consultancy”, which has identified themes “that reflect the rich history and heritage resource of South Dublin County”.

EPIC’s well-known projects include the Round Tower Visitor Centre in Clondalkin, the Garda Museum in Dublin Castle, and the Gates of Hell VR Experience in Wicklow Gaol.

“EPIC Heritage Consulting Ltd were asked to undertake a research phase which would inform core themes,” stated the council at a Tallaght Area Committee meeting on Monday.

“This phase consisted of a wide range of stakeholders representing local history and heritage societies, active citizen groups, local historians, and members of the public across the county.”

They made contact with these people through focus group meetings, face to face meetings, telephone interviews, e-mail interviews and an online survey.

The council said EPIC did this “to give an idea of the rich history there is to discover across the South Dublin County region.

“EPIC also considered key audience segments – what kind of people are likely to be interested in a heritage centre and what kind of centre would attract them – as well as undertaking a comparator analysis in relation to other museums and heritage centres.”

The council is now working with EPIC to finalise the second phase of the project to produce a clear interpretative strategy and interpretative plan which can be implemented by third parties.

“This work will demonstrate how the core narrative and its associated messages will be imparted in terms of the materials and mediums (e.g., multimedia, interactive, AR, VR, digitisation of archives etc) to be used in order to deliver a distinctive visitor experience,” stated the council.

The topic of a heritage centre documenting the history and ancient heritage of Tallaght and surrounding areas has been discussed several times in recent years.

Tallaght Community Council (TCC) and the Tallaght Historical Society had been pushing for a heritage centre in the area for several years, and back in 2015 TCC lodged an unsuccessful submission for a museum in Tallaght on the council’s County Development Plan 2016-2021.

TCC then lodged another submission calling for a museum in the locality in the Tallaght Town Centre Local Area Plan in 2020.

Cllr Charlie O’Connor has called for a heritage centre in the area many times over the years, while Cllr Teresa Costello tabled a motion about developing a museum in Tallaght at a council meeting in early 2020, before the council committed to pursuing the project in 2022.