The Echo at 45: The dynamic urban hub that is now South Dublin

South Dublin County in 1980 was a different world when The Echo first started to the one that exists today.

Over the last 45 years, the county has transformed from a largely rural and suburban region into a dynamic urban hub.

In the early 1980s, areas like Tallaght, Clondalkin, and Lucan were small communities surrounded by farmland.

Rapid population growth and urban sprawl in the 1990s led to major residential developments, with Tallaght emerging as a key town and Clondalkin and Lucan growing as economic areas with current projects in place to increase their tourist and heritage potential.

Estimates today have the population in the south of the county of at least 300,000 and rising year by year.

The year 1990 was an iconic moment when the Irish football team played in the Italia 90 World Cup quarter-final in Rome against the hosts. It was also the year when The Square Shopping Centre first opened, to much fanfare and relief.

Hard to believe now, but people, mostly the mothers in families, had to get the bus all the way into town to get the big shop ‘pre-Square.’

Ireland’s participation in the 1994 World Cup also coincided in the same year that South Dublin County Council was established, another major landmark for local politics in the county.

The inaugural meeting of SDCC took place in January 1994 in the temporary setting of Regional Technical College Tallaght (now TUD Tallaght) while its first meeting in the new County Hall, Tallaght, was held on June 17, 1994, the day before the Republic of Ireland beat Italy at World Cup 94 in Giants Stadium.

Councillors are elected from all parts of the county, from Templeogue to Saggart, from Bohernabreena to Palmerstown, in an effort to ensure fair representation is spread to all the communities.

The introduction of a hospital in Tallaght and the Luas further extended essential services to the wider community of the county.

Industrial estates and business parks, such as Citywest and Grange Castle, brought global multinational companies and jobs, shifting the local economy from agriculture to tech and services.

Meanwhile, green spaces like the Dublin Mountains and parks such as Tymon and Corkagh have been preserved and enhanced, reflecting a growing focus on sustainability.

South Dublin County Council has played a massive role in the development of the county, investing in a vast array of local projects, including cultural institutions like Rua Red, the Civic Theatre, and The Round Tower Visitor Centre in Clondalkin, which help to foster community identity.

The opening of Tallaght Stadium in 2009 has been another great addition, with Shamrock Rovers as tenants at the council-owned facility. It has recently been refurbished with an investment of millions and is a multi-purpose venue for women’s international football, rugby, concerts, community and corporate events.

New towns like Adamstown have been built over the last 20 years and Clonburris is currently being built in phases.

Along with the almost never-ending sight of blocks of apartments and plans for cross-local authority projects like City Edge, it seems the population will continue to increase in the years to come.

This brings massive challenges in terms of housing, health, infrastructure, school places and social cohesion, to name but a few. Not all are convinced at the State’s ability to manage this effectively.

Today, South Dublin County balances its rural roots with urban growth, evolving into a region that continues to expand and develop.