This evening.
Grafton Street, Dublin 2.
Earlier…
This afternoon.
Grafton Street, Dublin 2
Meanwhile…
Went Christmas shopping in Dublin yesterday. Was shocked to see so many vacant shops – think I counted 14 on Grafton St alone. There were plenty of shoppers out but the buzz around Dublin is gone. They’re destroying it. Killing it slowly but surely.
— peter rowen (@peterrowen_) December 22, 2021
Anyone?
Sponsored Link
Who are ‘they’?
Transphobe
my best guess is that it’s the landlords of the Grafton Street sites. Rent goes stupid high, profits take a dip, shop moves away, site becomes vacant (temporarily or long term if the landlord keeps the rent too high).
Though I wouldn’t be trusting one persons judgement on the ‘buzz’ in the city centre being gone. The city is plenty busy at the moment, good spread of buskers. Only thing missing is a proper Christmas market :(
I was in the Market at Dublin Castle the other day – very nice
feck it, I completely forgot about that one. Was there a few years back and I loved it, very Christmassy, ended up blowing a hole in my savings and bought a set of Lewis Chessmen for my wife :)
That was Christmas 2019 I think, no Covid, no stress, delightful.
That market was great, was there with the little ones last week and they loved it.
Am especially partial to the mild thrills of the chair-o-planes too hence I had to go a second time. I totally forgot about Covid while there such was the normalcy on display.
+1 Paul. Yup- greedy landlords refusing to alter the rent given the reduced Covid-related footfall. Most Grafton premises are institutionally owned so they’ll just wait it out until things change and offer up the premises to the highest bidder. A version of land hording if you like.
Contrast with the Layden family and how they treated and continue to treat their George’s Arcade tenants during the pandemic – forbearance and understanding order of the day: https://www.independent.ie/regionals/dublin/southside/news/i-dont-want-people-looking-at-the-news-and-worrying-georges-street-arcade-owners-helping-tenants-through-covid-uncertainties-41132024.html
A true lady, Gwen Layden
that’s a lovely read, warm and fuzzies, thanks for sharing. I’m focusing on the positive stuff these days, human stories to keep the SAD at a low boil.
Speaking of the fuzzies the RTE documentary The Toy Shop broadcast last night is chock full of ’em …
I’m on board, thanks for the heads up.
Developers
Enjoy your shopping while you can. If Michael O’Leary got his way, the unvax’d won’t even be going shopping (or work, or get medicine). ;-)
“ If you want to be unvaccinated, that’s fine, but we should increasingly not allow those to go to work, to travel on the Underground, to fly, to go to the supermarket, to go to pharmacies,” the Ryanair CEO added.”
https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/news/ryanair-boss-michael-oleary-says-make-covid-19-vaccinations-mandatory-for-air-travel-41165257.html
absolute tosspot confirms status as human dregs
Tru dat
He’s fupping dead right
There’s no logic in your position which is driven purely from a perspective of ignorance, selfishness, childishness and voyeurism
Ah yeah. He is alright.
Especially the part where he says this
“Mr O’Leary also said what he described as “mass hysteria” about the Omicron variant ”
Ho ho ho – He’s talking about you Milhouse.
…is that the same micko who brought us the delta variant?
There’s no hysteria for me. Obviously the COVID thing is an exercise in mass hysteria for many, but then so are your hissy fit reactions to it. It’s ok though your balls are so big?
Silly lad agrees with wild flippant suggestion of banning unvaccinated from buying food, travelling, purchasing medicine and attending hospitals.
Thinks he’s not acting hysterically…
Delusional then?
Yeah, I’m gonna go with delusional. Final answer.
You’re really an unintelligent sort Micko and it pains me to have to be so honest with you as I do think like SOQ you come from a good place with this stuff. You can be both skeptical of mass hysteria while ALSO recognising that a dangerous situation has to be taken under control lest the entire economic system be affected. So the simple fact is that you folk are displaying signs of being a disproportionate drain on resources and the cold hard truth of it is that you and your ilk do need to be brought to heel.
“ unintelligent sort ”. :-o
Ah sure, who knows. It’s all relative anyway.
But answer me this. Who’s worse, the ” unintelligent sort” or the moron who’s on here every day arguing with him?.
Surely YOU should know better Mr Brainy ;p
Yes indeed you make a fair point there
While it is certainly a hard time for retail businesses, Grafton street is full of international chains who have given up their very expensive premises as a temporary cost saving measures during the pandemic. These aren’t mom and pop businesses that have gone under.
I remember a post last year about Aldo closing down. They’r back open and doing brisk trade.
Thank the greedy landlords and their insane rents.
Fair play to Peter, it has been a tough life for him, not as rough as the baby from the Nivana cover obvs but still. To hit the peak of your celebrity in 1980 as merely a boy, cant have been easy. Great to see him finally getting back out there and getting some recognition, whatever the means.
With the exception of back powers court,grafton,it’s a post apocalyptic disaster zone.
If you had FEMA they would be in the city center,Camden St reminded me downtown Kingstown,I thought I was in Poland at Portebello Bridge.
It’s like Deals or Dollar Stores puked everywhere,absolute twilight zone of tacky,fast food restraunts,junk shops,it’s the ghost Ben Dunne.
Now,I only go into irish design shops,quiet but anyone in was seriously buying.
Agreed
I walked around this afternoon
Apart from the Hemp shop (lol) the Northside was a no go area
Grafton St and environs a haven of cold, oppressive sanity and ubiquitous mask wearing compliance
A lot of yummy mummy types really gagging for a
Convert them to more hotels, clearly that’s what this city desperately needs.
God only knows what all these tourists are coming to see anymore.