Sean O'Casey Community Centre
The Sean O' Casey Community Centre has been described by The Architectural Review as a “consummate building” having “brilliant, disingenuous architectural idealism.”
This striking, much talked-about structure comprises a single storey building with a floor plate of 2500m² and a 5 storey focal tower aligned in height with the campanile of the local church. There are four quadrants servicing the various needs of the community: Day Care facilities for the elderly, a Crèche, a Theatre, a Sports hall and an external FAI standard All Weather Pitch.
Some of the key challenges and unique features of the project were the corrugated concrete walls with circular window
openings (from 650mm to 2500mm in diameter). The corrugated concrete was hand sanded (1500m²) to achieve the desired architectural affect.
The project used 50% GGBS to reduce its impact on the environment. All the internal soffits are exposed fair faced concrete. Most of the internal walls are lined with timber. The Architect lined up the joints in the plywood of the wall and soffit shutters with the internal finishes requiring extensive planning and coordination of the concrete pours. It is also designed to be energy efficient with under floor heating in all areas. The building receives a portion of its heat requirements from a horizontal geothermal system laid under the sports pitch.
| Project | Sean O'Casey Community Centre |
| Client | Dublin Docklands Development Authority |
| Architect | O'Donnell & Tuomey |
| Quantity Surveyors | Boyd Creed Sweet |
| Structural Engineer | Casey O'Rourke |
| Services Engineer | Davis Associates |
| Value | € 7 Million |
