Dublin town planning competition: Ashbee and Chettles New Dublin - A Study in Civics

The Dublin town planning competition of 1914 was an important event which attracted much international attention. However, little research into the competition or the submissions was undertaken until comparatively recently. For the most part the Dublin competition had become synonymous with the winning entry, Dublin of the Future: The New Town Plan, prepared by Abercrombie and Kelly and Kelly. Often referred to as ʹthe great town plan for Dublin", Dublin of the Future was the only one of eight entries to have been published and, until recently, it was thought to have been the only entry to have survived. Geddes, as one of the adjudicators for the competition, had considerable reservations about the applicability of Abercrombieʹs proposals. Indeed Geddes had gone out of his way to praise the entry by C.S. Ashbee and G.H. Chettle, since ʹno other Report expresses a fuller and more comprehensive grasp of civic problemsʹ. This paper outlines the context and terms of reference for the competition, together with some general reference to the winning entry by Abercrombie et al. The core of the paper outlines Ashbee and Chettleʹs ʹStudy in Civicsʹ, including their approach to zoning, local administration and the widespread housing, unemployment and related issues. The emphasis in their report on issues such as Dublinʹs park network, the potential of the Liffey quays, the enhancement of public buildings and the provision of hospitals will be examined. Finally, Ashbee and Chettle, following on the teachings of Geddes, devoted an extensive section to institutions and above all to the role of universities in City development. The work by Ashbee and Chettle in their Dublin town planning competition entry is set in the wider context of the ideals of C.S. Ashbee in particular.