1 - 45-47 Mary Street and Chapel House, Dublin, Dublin

Monitoring was carried out in line with planning conditions associated with the proposed re-development of the Penney’s Store located at 45-47 Mary Street, Chapel House and 22-24 Parnell Street, Dublin 1. The redevelopment includes for the linking of existing upper floors, refurbishment of the existing stores and offices and new lifts and staircases at a number of locations in the building. Nos 45-7 Mary Street is listed as a protected structure within the current Dublin City Development Plan 2011-2017, and is described as Penney’s Department Store: (a) facades on Mary Street and Jervis Street (excluding modern fascia and signage; (b) roof structure, including dome and decorative copper clad stair enclosures).
The site is located within the area of archaeological potential associated with DU018-020 – Historic City. The site also contains the locations of DU018-020095, a Dutch Billy-style building at 30 Jervis Street which was three storeys high with a garret, curvilinear gables, an elaborate doorway, granite lintels over the windows, no string courses and angle fireplaces in the end walls and DU018-020246: an 18th/19th-century house along Jervis Street.
The redevelopment works, though significant above ground level, have a very limited impact on existing ground and basement levels. Three separate areas were monitored during demolition and excavation works and included one new lift shaft in the Chapel House area of the building and two areas where underpinning of existing walls was required in order to carry additional weight at higher levels from a second lift and bridge links. All three areas were in the existing basement car park of the Penney's store which was constructed over a decade ago.
The demolition works involved the removal of concrete floors within the basement and the excavation of the material below to the required depth. In all three areas the ground below the concrete had been significantly disturbed in the past (presumably during the construction of the car-park) and consisted of clay mixed with concrete and rubble. In the Chapel House lift shaft area a layer of very wet silt mixed with rounded stones was visible below the rubble and may represent reclamation deposits in this part of the city.

Unit 21 Boyne Business Park, Greenhills, Drogheda, Co Louth.