Construction to begin on €486m inner city campus

CONSTRUCTION starts within the next fortnight on a €486m project for a major education and health campus that will transform a corner of Dublin's north inner city.

In the short term, the development at Grangegorman will create 450 building jobs for each of the next 10 years.

The longer term vision is for a unified campus for Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) by 2016, a primary school for Dublin 7 Educate Together, mental health facilities and other public amenities, with 1,000 jobs in retail, administration, maintenance and other services.

The project, on the site of the former St Brendan's psychiatric hospital, creates an engine to drive regeneration in a part of the city that has suffered severe disadvantage for decades.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen and Tanaiste and Education Minister Mary Coughlan attended the official launch of the project, one of the largest education investments over the next few years.

About 57pc of the project will be funded through property disposals, with €7m annual savings arising from consolidation and private donations, and the balance from State funding and public/private partnerships.

- Katherine Donnelly

Irish Independent