Junkies on O'Connell St and sorrounding area *READ MOD NOTE POST #1 AND #11*

Aard

vidor wrote: »

It's a shame that O'Connell St wasn't maintained to be the number one street in the city. Obviously has lots more character than, say, somewhere like Grafton or Henry St but needs a good bit of work to bring it to the level of some other European cities. Just talking architecture/shops here but yeah, having addicts roaming the street doesn't help!

As far as the architecture goes, OCS is pretty decent. Many fine buildings on the street, and very few duds.

The problems with the street are mainly social, which is very difficult for any public body to change fast.

vidor

I'm probably being a bit harsh but there is the odd eyesore. The Spire and some of the buildings across from the Savoy spring to mind.

Baron Kurtz

It's hard to tell these days if faeces littered about Dublin city originated from that of an animal or human!:)

John_Rambo

An Claidheamh wrote: »

Does anyone else think that the gardaí are too afraid to actually stay permanently on O'Connell St and the like?

I'm not a big one on Garda bashing, particularly online, if I need to say something I will say it to their faces and I have done so in the past. But, the Gardai are human and in my experience will go for the less hassle option, the easier paved way. Which is easier? Stopping a red light runner on a bike or searching a foul mouthed, disease riddled drug addict that knows the law inside out and that hasn't washed in four weeks, in doing so risking being assaulted, spat upon or pricked?

Sorry, but I've seen them walk right by what they shouldn't have in the past. Should they be paid more to work in areas of higher risk?

Rocky is the path of the righteous and all that.

rwg

John_Rambo wrote: »

I'm not a big one on Garda bashing, particularly online, if I need to say something I will say it to their faces and I have done so in the past. But, the Gardai are human and in my experience will go for the less hassle option, the easier paved way. Which is easier? Stopping a red light runner on a bike or searching a foul mouthed, disease riddled drug addict that knows the law inside out and that hasn't washed in four weeks, in doing so risking being assaulted, spat upon or pricked?

Sorry, but I've seen them walk right by what they shouldn't have in the past. Should they be paid more to work in areas of higher risk?

Rocky is the path of the righteous and all that.

lol - it seems you are in such position to comment on how bumpy the road is

Ben D Bus

An Claidheamh wrote: »

Does anyone else think that the gardaí are too afraid to actually stay permanently on O'Connell St and the like?

Not sure I understand. It's rare that there are no Gardai on O'Connell St. Outside the GPO is an almost permanent station for example.

Having worked beside Connolly station for almost 25 years maybe I'm immune but there are far worse places than Talbot St. I actually like that street. It has an interesting mix of retailers including some very nice restaurants and coffee shops. It's also very busy with commuters, shoppers & tourists. Not to mention Gardai coming & going from Store St. Marlborough St & North Earl St are much worse streets.

This evening the junkies/street drinkers had migrated to the more salubrious surrounds of South William St. At least they had when I passed on the way to Dunnes on Exchequer St. On my way back they were gone having been replaced by a Garda van

But to me the worst spot now by far is the Westmoreland St/Aston Quay area. Presumably exiles from O'Connell St. I guess managing street junkies is a bit like herding cats.

Sulla Felix

The problem isn't really with the junkies, it's with the failure to properly implement medical treatment and rehabilitation.
Methadone was never intended as a permanent solution, yet we have people on it for years and decades?

smellmepower

The addicts have been gathering on the corner of Westmoreland Street/Aston Quay for years now.They use the Eircom phone box to deal and a few of the dealers used to frequent the pub beside it.

Remember I used to get the old 78A outside Virgin Megastore there in the mid 90's and there'd always be a steady supply of requests for change or smokes from them.Goes to show how little effort the authorities (HSE/Garda/DCC/Govt) have put in to trying to solve the problem when the same thing is still happening nearly 20 years later.

Kiltennel

I get the bus from Abbey street most days. Seems to be less junkies around as of lately and the other day I saw 3 groups of plain clothes garda searching different groups of them along the street. Been getting the bus there for years and this happens every so often, they make a big sweep of the street. Things die down for a few weeks, garda leave, junkies come back. Only way to deal with the problem is rehabilitation, imprisonment does nothing to solve the problem, drugs easily available in there too.

corner of hells

chopper6 wrote: »

yeah...very revealing...a bloke calling himself "Irish mortage brokers" asking junkies what do they think of the banking crisis...and using 30 year old terminology to try and sound cool.

<snip>

<snip>

Addiction and homelessness is bad enough without making poorly thought out statements like what you're posting.

Maybe you should clarify your post and possibly indicate where your information comes from , bearing in mind we do not have a register of sex offenders available for the public to view .Nor are all convicted offenders identified in order to protect the victim.

gctest50

Sulla Felix wrote: »

The problem isn't really with the junkies, it's with the failure to properly implement medical treatment and rehabilitation.
Methadone was never intended as a permanent solution, yet we have people on it for years and decades?

probably a few bob involved if something doesn't seem to make much sense ....

While up to €100 million is pouring into the State-sponsored methadone programme, only a trickle of State funds are being spent getting people off drugs altogether.

Methadone was implicated in 113 deaths in 2011, rising from 60 deaths in 2010.

Heroin related poisonings continue to decline from 72 in 2010 to 60 in 2011.

http://bit.ly/1g7zDmM

chopper6

corner of hells wrote: »

<snip>

I'm not going to identify him but he's in the video.

corner of hells wrote: »

Addiction and homelessness is bad enough without making poorly thought out statements like what you're posting.

So apart from being homeless and addicted,these guys are basicly all jolly good eggs?

corner of hells wrote: »

Maybe you should clarify your post and possibly indicate where your information comes from , bearing in mind we do not have a register of sex offenders available for the public to view .Nor are all convicted offenders identified in order to protect the victim.

Nope.

Boards.ie: Niamh

<snip>
Not a road we are going to go down here - back to the topic at hand please.

Aard

I walked the length of North Earl Street - Talbot Street - Connolly and back today, pretty much on foot of this thread. This was just around lunch time there, so there were lots of people about -- tourists, shoppers, students, workers. I have to admit that there were very few "undesirables" (what a terrible term) about, the odd skanger standing on a corner looking quite dodgy, and a few gaunt zombies in tracksuits. But by and large because it was so busy you'd hardly notice them.

I think the street has loads of potential, and isn't in as bad a state as some others. The side streets do look pretty grim though. The architecture along Talbot Street, in particular past the Irish Life centre is amazing. Spruced up with a lick of paint and the original windows put back in, and you'd have a beautiful street with lots of character. The great thing is that there's a mix of buildings, some really new ones that don't seem to have been occupied yet, and some higgledy-piggledy ones like those under the Dart bridge. This means that a wide variety of shops catering for different income levels can co-exist. Indeed the current mix of tenants along the street is unusually varied, and even though they're not high-end it appears that the local retail scene is thriving. There even appears to be some new residential units above ground floor, a very good sign.

Maybe with time, the "rough" element will just become seen as another aspect of the area, kind of like certain part of Temple Bar. There's always a few lads hanging around on Eustace Street, but it doesn't seem to deter anybody; the attraction is worth the slight discomfort. I can see Talbot Street becoming like that too with time.

chopper6

Aard wrote: »

Maybe with time, the "rough" element will just become seen as another aspect of the area, kind of like certain part of Temple Bar. There's always a few lads hanging around on Eustace Street, but it doesn't seem to deter anybody; the attraction is worth the slight discomfort. I can see Talbot Street becoming like that too with time.

Well i'm a northsider and i cant think of one reason that i'd walk down Tablet Street.

As for it becoming another Temple Bar..well,i'll believe it when i see it!

bumper234

chopper6 wrote: »

Well i'm a northsider and i cant think of one reason that i'd walk down Tablet Street.

As for it becoming another Temple Bar..well,i'll believe it when i see it!

Dealz.

chopper6

bumper234 wrote: »

Dealz.

Nah there's one nearer where i live.

Aard

chopper6 wrote: »

Well i'm a northsider and i cant think of one reason that i'd walk down Tablet Street.

As for it becoming another Temple Bar..well,i'll believe it when i see it!

"Tablet Street" lol

Yes I have a superficial impression of the street. Maybe I just have a case of "wasn't as bad as I was expecting". It seems to be very functional for the people who live in the area. You mightn't go out of your way to go there though. Also, I'm under no illusion that it's not a very different place at night.

I didn't mean that it'd become a Temple Bar in the sense of tourists and an "artsy vibe", just gave TB as an example of a place where junkies and the rest of us co-exist relatively peacefully.

bumper234

chopper6 wrote: »

Nah there's one nearer where i live.

We're not all as lucky as you.

arybvtcw0eolkf

chopper6 wrote: »

Well i'm a northsider and i cant think of one reason that i'd walk down Tablet Street.

Its always been a kip.

Even when I lived in Sherriff St and East Wall I'd hurry through that street, its never had anything going for it.

italodisco

10 points awarded for tablet street lol

chopper6

bumper234 wrote: »

We're not all as lucky as you.

There's plenty of shops selling wagon wheel mulitpacks,thin binbags and easily-broken gardening tools

Seriously though,Tablet Street is a functional street for those that live in the area,it has its compliment of shops and eateries which is fine,i personally have no business down there so i tend not to venture and even then i wouldnt exactly be afraid of my life.

Marlboro st is another matter,especially the top end and the bottom end...it feels safe neither at night nor in the morning and there are a couple of scabby looking laneways and boarded up shops to add to the overall feeling of unpleasantness.

AsianDub

I'm not saying that Talbot St. isn't gritty but it's not all bad. 101 Talbot, Le Bon Crubeen, Dealz, South Asian food shops, household shops, pizza places for students/backpackers, Halls Camera shop, one or two other cheap eat cafs. I think the street has character! Yes, sometimes it's undesirable but grow a pair I work close by and if I don't want to spend a lot on lunch I go there, if I want a household item, cheaper toiletries, spices or just a big bag of Haribo I go there. It has its uses

bumper234

chopper6 wrote: »

There's plenty of shops selling wagon wheel mulitpacks,thin binbags and easily-broken gardening tools

Seriously though,Tablet Street is a functional street for those that live in the area,it has its compliment of shops and eateries which is fine,i personally have no business down there so i tend not to venture and even then i wouldnt exactly be afraid of my life.

Marlboro st is another matter,especially the top end and the bottom end...it feels safe neither at night nor in teh morning and there are a couple of scabby looking laneways and boarded up shops to add to teh overall feeling of unpleasantness.

Agree about Marlborough street and as others have said Westmoreland st/Aston quay have become the latest hangout for them. I went into starbucks this morning on Westmorland street (not the old Bewleys the other one) and there was 3 of them in there. One was asleep with feet on the chair and the other 2 were just sat there (one had an open can of cider) and the 2 poor girls behind the counter ****ting themselves.

Aard

Yes I was surprised that there were some very nice looking shops and restaurants along the street. Capel Street seems to be the Northside street du jour; I wonder if when rents go up there, will Talbot Street be the new cool place? It's ideally located between OCS and the IFSC, and there's the Luas and the Dart right beside it.

All that is probably about five years away at least though. Maybe I'm getting a little bit carried away...

chopper6

There's a fair few around Nausea St at certain times of the day and they seem to migrate twoards Westmoreland St later on.

Anybody standing outside Carrolls shop for any length of time will be hassled for change or cigarettes pretty quickly...there's always plenty of empty valium or zimmo packets on the junction with Fleet st too.

chopper6

Aard wrote: »

It's ideally located between OCS and the IFSC, and there's the Luas and the Dart right beside it.

...

The IFSC is fine and dandy during the day...then in the evening it's a ghost town...it is never going to be the lifestyle hub or cultural quarter harry crosbie et all promised when he started doing the area up.

And O'Connell St isnt Oxford St either...it's a mishmash of cheapo fast food joints and shops selling cigarettes and lotto...pretty much a dump tbh.

Ben D Bus

chopper6 wrote: »

Well i'm a northsider and i cant think of one reason that i'd walk down Tablet Street.

The 101 Talbot
The Italian Connection
Le Bon Crubeen (I think it's reopened after the fire!)
The Roasted Bean coffee shop
Halls Cameras
Real butchers shops
Big pharmacy with a huge selection of smellies (fragrences, not the customers ).
The old tea time express shop is still a proper cake shop
Proper DIY shops
SuperValu & Tesco
Molloys lounge isn't a bad boozer
3 hotels and a Carrolls tourist shop

That's just off the top of my head.

Edit: Just seen AsianDubs similar post. I wasn't cogging

chopper6

Ben D Bus wrote: »

The 101 Talbot
The Italian Connection
Le Bon Crubeen (I think it's reopened after the fire!)
The Roasted Bean coffee shop
Halls Cameras
Real butchers shops
Big pharmacy with a huge selection of smellies (fragrences, not the customers ).
The old tea time express shop is still a proper cake shop
Proper DIY shops
SuperValu & Tesco
Molloys lounge isn't a bad boozer

That's just off the top of my head.

It's come a long way in 20 years then....there used to be nothing down there bar an off licence and a camera shop.

My biggest issue would be walking through Nth Earl st to get there...teh place is usually riddled with junkies.

I mean they're probably not going to do me any harm it just pisses me off to look at them.

Aard

chopper6 wrote: »

The IFSC is fine and dandy during the day...then in the evening it's a ghost town...it is never going to be the lifestyle hub or cultural quarter harry crosbie et all promised when he started doing the area up.

Exactly, so IFSC workers will have to go elsewhere for after-work beers or dinner. It's not gonna happen around Mayor Square since the rents would be astronomical, but maybe there's opportunity on Talbot Street.

There was a thread here a few weeks/months back about a lack of places to go for coffee or to eat around OCS. There seems to be pent up demand just waiting for an opportunity.