In June “emerging plans” were released by the Dublin City Council, concerning College Green, the iconic plaza just outside Trinity’s Front Gate. The Grow College Green project to transform the area was launched a few months later, in September, coinciding with European Mobility Week. The project is in partnership with the National Transport Authority. The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Councillor Ray McAdam stated: “Through Grow College Green, we want to create a space that is welcoming to everyone – families, students, workers, visitors and local communities.”
Richard Shakespeare, CEO of Dublin City Council, also commented: “Grow College Green is a once in a generation opportunity for Dublin. This project will deliver a world-class, pedestrian-priority public space at the historic heart of the city.”
According to the project’s website, the reimagined space will be an accessible, pedestrian and cycle-friendly space with limited vehicle access. It will increase the sustainability and biodiversity of the area by planting new trees, better stormwater management and better air quality. The transformed area will provide a “new public space for everyday uses and events”.
The project is in its preliminary development stages, with the design team incorporating feedback from the emerging design consultation held in June 2025. Further public consultations are planned to complete the preliminary design by the end of 2025 and submit a planning application in the first half of 2026.
As College Green lies on the “doorstep” of Trinity, this transformation will have wide repercussions for the college community. Jane Stout, Vice President for Biodiversity and Climate Action at Trinity, stated: “As a key city centre stakeholder, Trinity College Dublin strongly supports the Grow College Green project and believes it would be transformative for the city.” Later, saying that “reimagining this public space on our doorstep is vital to how our campus functions and is critically important to us…. It can’t happen soon enough!”
However, this project will undoubtedly impact the college community further – it will affect the businesses around Dame Street, as well as change the tourist travel patterns around “Dublin’s biggest trip attraction in the city centre” – the College itself.
According to team CIVIC, the engineering company responsible for the execution of the plan, the aim is to transform College Green into “an inclusive, welcoming, safe and vibrant pedestrian-friendly space connected with nature.”
