County: Dublin Site name: 1–5 Camden Street Upper and 49–51 Camden Street Lower, Dublin 2
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 17E0362
Author: James Hession, Rubicon Heritage Services Ltd
Site type: 19th-century masonry structures
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 715520m, N 732852m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.333288, -6.265574
A programme of test trenching was carried out at a proposed development site located at 1–5 Camden Street Upper, 49–51 Camden Street Lower, Dublin 2. The site currently comprises a series of vacant buildings which formerly operated as a stained-glass window business, commercial offices, a hotel, hostel and residential premises.
The works were undertaken on behalf of JD Weatherspoons Plc. in response to Planning Condition No. 8 of the planning permission issued by An Bord Pleanála (PL29S.247635).
Six test trenches were excavated across the site. The results from the test trenching programme identified a series of sub-surface 19th-century masonry structures, which correlate to structures depicted on historic mapping in these locations. No features pre-dating the 19th century were identified during the investigation.
The proposed development involves the refurbishment and change of use of the existing buildings at 1–5 Camden Street Upper and 49–51 Camden Street Lower and the construction of new buildings to the rear of these properties to provide a hotel development (98 bedrooms) with ancillary public restaurant/bar (c. 896 square metres) and associated ancillary uses.
The foundation design of the proposed lower ground floor structure will be supported by a concrete raft slab and substantial retaining wall, with a series of reinforced concrete columns inserted throughout the structure. Present ground level across the proposed site is 15.200m OD. The finished floor level for the new lower ground floor building will be 12.100m OD. Therefore, a ground reduction of up to 3.1m is anticipated.
No further work is recommended with regards to the 19th-century remains. However, it is possible that the necessary ground reduction could expose localised, but previously unknown archaeological features or deposits within those parts of the development site not directly investigated by the test trenching programme. As such, all ground reduction should be subject to a programme of monitoring.
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