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A Visitor Attractions Strategy It is estimated that over 200,000 people make their way along High Street and Thomas Street each year to visit the Guinness Storehouse off Crane Street. This is an huge bonus for the area. But what else can visitors see and what other possible attractions can be created to improve tourist activity in The Liberties? Understanding the cultural richness of the area is key to appreciating the wider imperative to protect and restore its built heritage. There may be more to The Liberties than you might think!
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LUAS
HEUSTON
Pedestrian route to Phoenix Park and National Museum at Collins Barracks
Suggestions for the James’s Cluster > Create a trail of industrial heritage buildings > Develop a new attraction and leisure facility at Grand Canal Harbour > Promote connection to IMMA and Kilmainham Gaol > Protect existing historic streetscape along James’s Street and encourage active uses > Improve the pedestrian space around the obelisk fountain on James’s Street > Develop new public park in St. James’s Graveyard
Place of Interest/ Attraction
ST. JAMES’S GATE BREWERY
Park /Open Space Place to Stop
Attractive and safe connections to the wider city are essential. Creating a more comfortable and attractive pedestrian environment on High Street is imperative. Attention should also be given to secondary, “loop-back” routes which encourage visitors to explore the area, while returning them back to the city centre. The route via Francis Street to St. Patrick’s Cathedral is one, while Bridgefoot Street is the natural route to take pedestrians across the River Liffey to Smithfield and the northwest section of the city, allowing for another natural “loop” back to the city centre to be developed. These routes should be made clean, green and inviting, with wayfinding signage and maps used to highlight the route. Thomas Street: Improving the Public Face of an Historic City Centre Street