Dublin bids for Purple Flag status for the city’s northside
- Wed 03 August, 2016
The centre of Dublin’s northside is hoping to join 18 other locations in Ireland, including Dublin’s Dame District and Creative Quarter areas, that have the coveted Purple Flag status.
Purple Flag recognises places that demonstrate quality in their evening and night time offering. The flag is awarded by the London based Association of Town and City Management (ATCM). Areas are judged under a number of criteria including the quality of the offering, ease of movement through the area and the safety and security of the location.
A working group has been established for the proposed northside location which would extend west from O’Connell Street as far as Capel Street and would aim to celebrate the growing appeal of the area in terms of its restaurants, cafes, bars, entertainment venues and retail. The working group consists of representatives of DublinTown, Dublin City Council, An Garda Síochána, Fáilte Ireland as well as local businesses.
Work of the group is now well advanced and the area will be visited by independent assessors later this year, if successful the area located in the heart of Dublin One will be awarded a Purple Flag early in 2017.
Speaking about the application for Purple Flag status DublinTown CEO Richard Guiney said: “The fact that we are ready to apply for a Purple Flag for the northside of the city shows how far we have come in recent years. When we applied for Purple Flag status on the southside of the city in 2012, we felt that the northside was not quite ready for the rigorous assessment process. However, we are now very confident that our application will be a success. The range and extent of the evening time offer has improved beyond recognition in recent years, while through concerted effort and diligence the Gardaí have successfully addressed many of the issues that undermined the district in previous years. We are now ready to celebrate the area and believe that we are ready to welcome more visitors after dark. The district is ready to take off and we believe that the recognition that Purple Flag provides will be the catalyst for even greater things.”