2005:600 - GALWAY: 36 Dominick Street Lower, Galway

Monitoring of groundworks at No. 36 (former Atlanta Hotel) and to the rear of Nos 34 and 38 Dominick Street Lower, Galway, was carried out between 20 January and 5 April 2005. The proposed development site was located within the constraint for Galway city (SMR 94:100). The development consisted of the part demolition, alterations, extension and redevelopment of the Atlanta Hotel (a protected structure)—including 35 apartments—and of 36 Dominick Street and demolition of a house to the rear of 34 Dominick Street, Galway.

The site was piled during December 2004 and January 2005 using bored piles, 300mm in diameter. Subsequent excavations for the base of a crane, a lift shaft, ground beams and pile-caps took place between January and April 2005. The excavations for the crane base measured 9m by 6.7m and 1.3m deep. The stratigraphy here was topsoil and rubble fill. A number of concrete and ceramic services crossed the area excavated. The rubble fill contained red and yellow brick fragments and one cut and dressed block.

The excavation for the lift shaft, located immediately to the rear of No. 34, measured 4m by 2.6–3.6m by 1.4m deep. Below the rubble fill was mid-brown friable silt loam. Both layers contained modern artefacts. This excavation also revealed a mortared rubble and red-brick wall foundation (0.52m thick) associated with the buildings recently demolished on the site.

The excavations for ground beams and pile-caps measured 0.1–1.1m deep and 1.5–2m wide. Up to 0.6m of this depth was made up of hardcore which was brought on to the site following the demolition phase and prior to the piling phase of the project. Some of the excavation did not exceed the depth of the hardcore. Below the hardcore was topsoil, rubble fill, the (rubble) wall foundation of the south-east site boundary (which measured 0.6m wide), the south-west site boundary (loose rubble) wall, the (mortared rubble and red-brick) foundations of the two boundary walls between the three properties (Nos 34, 36 and 38) which measured 0.52m wide, reinforced concrete beams and a concrete wall. Below the rubble fill was dark-brown/black friable silt loam. There was evidence of cobbles in places below the topsoil but never in situ or in sufficient numbers to form a feature. The excavation revealed a number of modern services. The rubble fill, topsoil and friable silt loam contained modern artefacts.

The groundworks revealed modern activity only, associated with the previous buildings on the site; i.e. the Atlanta Hotel and the cottages along the Eglinton Canal, located along the southern site boundary. The stratigraphy was quite disturbed throughout. Nothing of archaeological significance was uncovered.

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