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Temporary lift to be installed at Dún Laoghaire Baths until site is made wheelchair accessible

Complaints were raised earlier this year about the lack of overall accessibility at the newly reopened Baths.

DUN LAOGHAIRE-RATHDOWN County Council is to install a temporary lift at the newly refurbished Dún Laoghaire Baths until more permanent accessibility measures can be put in place.

Complaints were raised earlier this year about the lack of overall accessibility at the Baths, with the temporary ramps on the lower level described as being too steep.

A report was delivered to the council last night at a meeting, which said that a contractor would be starting at the end of May to rework the walkway between the East Pier and the Baths in order to install wheelchair-accessible ramps.

It is expected that these works will be finished by the end of November.

The contractor is to install a wheelchair-accessible lift for use until the new walkways are complete.

People Before Profit Councillor Melisa Halpin, who first proposed emergency measures to make the Baths fully accessible, said today: “It just beggars belief that this site could have been opened without full access for all.

“This was a real kick in the teeth for those with disabilities and all who had campaigned for this site.

“Finally, last night, [the council] reported that the works to provide full access will start at the end of May and that they should be completed by November.

“This is better news, but we will have to keep the pressure on to make sure it happens. I have asked for a progress report to be brought to the next meeting.”

The Dún Laoghaire Baths reopened in December after undergoing an €18 million refurbishment.

Sean O’Kelly, co-founder of Access For All, told The Journal earlier this year that the current ramps on the lower level at the Baths are “disgraceful”.

“To get to the main area, there’s three ramps. Three very steep ramps, and I couldn’t get up them, and I feared for my life going down them. I literally feared for my life going down them, because they were just so steep.”

In a statement to The Journal in January, a spokesperson for Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council acknowledged that the lower area of the refurbished Baths “is not accessible for some”.

“The recently opened Dún Laoghaire Baths represents the completion of the first phase of a larger project,” the spokesperson said.

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    Mute TheQueenofHibernia
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    Apr 4th 2023, 8:36 PM

    Why temporary? Why not leave the lift there? More waste. I see that my comments are being removed. Too much common sense in them I presume.

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    Mute Gerry Dornan
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    Apr 4th 2023, 9:04 PM

    @TheQueenofHibernia:
    Removed my comment on Trump.

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    Mute Jonny Spuds
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    Apr 4th 2023, 9:15 PM

    @Gerry Dornan: what did u say on trump

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    Mute Alex Marquis
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    Apr 4th 2023, 10:21 PM

    @Gerry Dornan: funny that they let the comments open for the Trump story just to close them quickly after around 30 of them. Methinks it wasn’t done intentionally (the piece wasn’t written by one of the the journal hacks but by the AFP so they probably didn’t pay any attention).

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    Mute stephen cunningham
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    Apr 4th 2023, 9:03 PM

    Glorified skate park. Dun laoghaire baths, except there isn’t any, er, baths. Only how many millions for some mass concrete walls.. Dlr should be ashamed..

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    Mute Nestor
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    Apr 4th 2023, 11:14 PM

    @stephen cunningham:

    Dun Laoghaire Council is doing an amazing job…

    and it is a bit petty of you to point out that Dun Laoire baths have no baths.

    You should be ashamed of yourself!

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    Mute David Plant
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    Apr 5th 2023, 7:49 AM

    @Nestor: they’re not doing great. They’ve mess up up cycle lanes, messed up the baths, messed up potholes, messed up parts of Killiney hill. Please let me know where they’re “doing great”

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    Mute Alex Marquis
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    Apr 4th 2023, 10:28 PM

    Another couple of million quid from the taxpayer will be spent correcting a mistake that should never have been made in the first place. I guess “lessons have been learnt”? Also much has been written about the poor workmanship and the ugliness of the venue (as well as the time it took to complete it) but how could this have cost 18 million? I was hoping it was a typo.

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    Mute Mike Magan
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    Apr 4th 2023, 9:41 PM

    Was it €8m bucks for the concrete and no pool?? Taking the absolute max urea…….

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    Mute Paul Keenan
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    Apr 5th 2023, 6:45 AM

    @Mike Magan: 18 million

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    Mute Anne Sullivan
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    Apr 5th 2023, 8:41 AM

    @Mike Magan: Euro, we don’t live in America

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    Mute Jonny Spuds
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    Apr 4th 2023, 9:32 PM

    What the bathing area like?

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    Mute paul burke
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    Apr 5th 2023, 6:44 PM

    Would someone please take the check book off DLCOCO as they waste money hand over fist and make bad decisions. They have too much property tax to spend and the roads are in rag order.
    The carbuncle Library , the baths are bad developments. The massive bicycle lanes are along the seafront road all the way to Blackrock have gridlocked the whole area right up to Church Rd too.
    Even Silchester Road has a totally unecessary one way drive around which looks awful.
    I was up Killiney hill which I had not visited for a while and it is destroyed. All the hedges and walkways off the paths are just mud now.
    The council are a law unto themselves

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