It’s time for more scrutiny of swapping grass pitches for astroturfs, some councillors and academics say. The change may mean the pitches can withstand more use, but it also means they won’t absorb as much rain, or sustain as many creatures, they say.

As developer plans a new community with hundreds of drive-up homes, a councillor suggests another vision. “It’s not that the people who live there don’t have cars,” he says. “It’s that the neighbourhood is not a car park, and the car parking is on the edge.”

Seeking a few more months to steady their immigration status, some university graduates fall undocumented and lose jobs. Since June, there’s been a shift in how the Dept of Justice has ruled on these applications – more rejections, says immigration solicitor Imran Khurshid.

Now that the council has stopped taking horse manure, it's piling up in the Liberties, councillors say. “So the council is allowing horses in Dublin City,” says horse owner David Mulraney. “But they’re not allowing them to put their horse manure anywhere.”

In Cherry Orchard, a new alliance is working towards the goal of a cooperative grocery store. It’s one of the initiatives being pursued by the Dublin 10 Food Alliance, in a push to help ease the acute food poverty in the area.

A requirement that cyclists wear helmets and hi-vis would be a challenge for bike-share companies. The government seems to be considering making helmets and hi-vis mandatory for people using some category of bikes, though it’s not totally clear which.

In Beaumont, students work to make a big impact on the environment through little changes. In order to ensure the continuation of life on this planet, everybody has to get involved, says Grace Collier, a member of the school’s Eco Committee.

After a long delay, new community safety forums for Fingal are up and running. Such “local community safety partnerships” are being rolled out nationwide, generating both hope – and criticism.

Live in Fingal and wish you could push your kids out to play on the street? The council says it wants to hear from you.

A requirement that cyclists wear helmets and hi-vis would be a challenge for bike-share companies. The government seems to be considering making helmets and hi-vis mandatory for people using some category of bikes, though it’s not totally clear which.

In Cherry Orchard, a new alliance is working towards the goal of a cooperative grocery store. It’s one of the initiatives being pursued by the Dublin 10 Food Alliance, in a push to help ease the acute food poverty in the area.

The Department of Children is not yet committed to a key measure to support children in care who are a risk to themselves. Advocates are calling for the full implementation of an expert report on special care.

As the years pass, the sea rises and nothing is built, some begin to doubt the council can defend Clontarf and Sandymount from the tides. “The current state structures cannot deliver,” said Labour Councillor Dermot Lacey. A council manager disagreed: “We can deliver and we will deliver." (2023)

Councillors finally got sight, this week, of plans to squash carbon emissions in Ballymun and Ringsend. But will funding follow to make possible these ambitions?

It’s time for more scrutiny of swapping grass pitches for astroturfs, some councillors and academics say. The change may mean the pitches can withstand more use, but it also means they won’t absorb as much rain, or sustain as many creatures, they say.

As developer plans a new community with hundreds of drive-up homes, a councillor suggests another vision. “It’s not that the people who live there don’t have cars,” he says. “It’s that the neighbourhood is not a car park, and the car parking is on the edge.”

Seeking a few more months to steady their immigration status, some university graduates fall undocumented and lose jobs. Since June, there’s been a shift in how the Dept of Justice has ruled on these applications – more rejections, says immigration solicitor Imran Khurshid.

Now that the council has stopped taking horse manure, it's piling up in the Liberties, councillors say. “So the council is allowing horses in Dublin City,” says horse owner David Mulraney. “But they’re not allowing them to put their horse manure anywhere.”

A friend of Phil Lynott has been taking him on a posthumous tour. Their story started in a Walkinstown hall.

For 50 years, Meals on Wheels has been delivering in Balbriggan. And 100-year-old Eoghan Ó Ceallacháin has been there for the whole journey.

In Swords, a network for autistic people and their parents grows. “I can't sit around crying about what I don't have ... looking for someone else to solve my problems,” Caroline St Leger says. “I need to be part of the solution.”

Required to be open, a pedestrian route via a Cork Street co-living complex is frequently closed. Councillors say the council has opened a planning enforcement investigation.

In justifying its plan to abandon its Wood Quay HQ, Dublin City Council refuses to show its homework. It's generally more environmentally friendly to renovate existing buildings than to abandon them to the wrecking ball, but other public organisations could follow suit.

Chatbots are being considered for providing legal counselling to people seeking asylum, documents suggest. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission doesn’t believe chatbots are suitable “in provision of legal counselling”, a spokesperson said.

Lack of speed-limit data from Dublin City Council is hampering a “lifesaving” technology in cars. The council is now over 18 months late in meeting a legal deadline to publish a digital map of speed limits on city streets.

Who gets paid €270m to home children in Tusla’s care – and how do they perform? Three quarters of the children placed in residential care in Ireland live in commercial accommodation. Inspections of the largest owners’ children’s homes show a mixed record. (w/ The Currency)

Why are 200 homes in Crumlin and Inchicore taking so long to build? They’re the kinds of sites that recent government measures have been intended to accelerate.

John Blek’s aching folk music is comfortingly familiar, writes Dean Van Nguyen. “I’ve found myself drawn to The Midnight Ache during the recent rainy days.”

John Blek’s aching folk music is comfortingly familiar, writes Dean Van Nguyen. “I’ve found myself drawn to The Midnight Ache during the recent rainy days.”

Do gardaí need martial arts training? A motion from a Dublin city councillor suggests they do.

Councillors differ on how to respond, right now, to anti-social behaviour by kids. Are there short-term responses that would help?

Councillors finally got sight, this week, of plans to squash carbon emissions in Ballymun and Ringsend. But will funding follow to make possible these ambitions?

A friend of Phil Lynott has been taking him on a posthumous tour. Their story started in a Walkinstown hall.

In justifying its plan to abandon its Wood Quay HQ, Dublin City Council refuses to show its homework. It's generally more environmentally friendly to renovate existing buildings than to abandon them to the wrecking ball, but other public organisations could follow suit.

Who gets paid €270m to home children in Tusla’s care – and how do they perform? Three quarters of the children placed in residential care in Ireland live in commercial accommodation. Inspections of the largest owners’ children’s homes show a mixed record. (w/ The Currency) www.dublininquirer.c...

Dublin-based social club is For the Girlies. The inspiration? "I was like, Oh my God, what's happening with my life?” says founder Sarah Ó Tuama. “Like, is this what being an adult is? It's so boring.”

For 50 years, Meals on Wheels has been delivering in Balbriggan. And 100-year-old Eoghan Ó Ceallacháin has been there for the whole journey.

In Swords, a network for autistic people and their parents grows. “I can't sit around crying about what I don't have ... looking for someone else to solve my problems,” Caroline St Leger says. “I need to be part of the solution.”

Chatbots are being considered for providing legal counselling to people seeking asylum, documents suggest. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission doesn’t believe chatbots are suitable “in provision of legal counselling”, a spokesperson said.

Required to be open, a pedestrian route via a Cork Street co-living complex is frequently closed. Councillors say the council has opened a planning enforcement investigation.

Why are 200 homes in Crumlin and Inchicore taking so long to build? They’re the kinds of sites that recent government measures have been intended to accelerate.

Lack of speed-limit data from Dublin City Council is hampering a “lifesaving” technology in cars. The council is now over 18 months late in meeting a legal deadline to publish a digital map of speed limits on city streets.

Who gets paid €270m to home children in Tusla’s care – and how do they perform? Three quarters of the children placed in residential care in Ireland live in commercial accommodation. Inspections of the largest owners’ children’s homes show a mixed record. (w/ The Currency)

The council’s new tree strategy includes focuses on climate change resilience, biodiversity. There will also be a dedicated tree page on Dublin City Council’s website, to keep residents abreast of tree works in their area, the council's tree officer said at a recent meeting.

The council should buy the Martello Tower on the coast near Donabate, Fingal councillors urge. It’s listed for sale, and councillors say it’d be a great feature along existing and planned walking and cycling routes that run right by it.

The 238 bus in Tyrrelstown is “canceled, canceled, canceled”, residents say. At a recent meeting, councillors backed a motion calling on the National Transport Authority to sort it out.

The council’s latest plans for Mountjoy Square are being contested by those who want more sports facilities added. In 2019, the council abandoned a previous planning permission application amid similar tensions between Georgian restoration, and sports uses.

Fingal should introduce hidden-disability parking spots, councillors say. These could make it easier for parents with autistic kids, for example, to park closer to where they need to go.

A decade ago, the council stripped a playground out of Tyrrelstown. Now some residents want it back. The council said it was removed because of antisocial behavior. Councillors say having play spaces is how to prevent antisocial behavior.

In Drumcondra, a man has been putting off needed surgery as he faces into homelessness. He fears not having a place to stay while he’s recovering, so he’s searching, hoping, and waiting.