Sandyford (Irish: Áth an Ghainimh) is a suburb of Dublin, located in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Ireland.

Sandyford
Áth an Ghainimh
Suburb
Commercial buildings in Sandyford east of the R133 road
Commercial buildings in Sandyford east of the R133 road
Sandyford is located in Dublin
Sandyford
Sandyford
Location in Dublin
Sandyford is located in Ireland
Sandyford
Sandyford
Sandyford (Ireland)
Coordinates: 53°16′12″N 6°13′30″W / 53.27°N 6.225°W / 53.27; -6.225
CountryIreland
ProvinceLeinster
CountyDún Laoghaire–Rathdown
Elevation
105 m (344 ft)
Population
 (2016)[1]
 • Urban
7,688
Time zoneUTC±0 (WET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (IST)
Eircode (Routing Key)
D18
Area code01 (+3531)
Irish Grid ReferenceO183263

Sandyford Business District makes up much of the suburb and encompasses 4 business parks: Sandyford Business Park, Stillorgan Business Park, Central Park and South County Business Park. Some of the multinational companies based in the area include Google, Facebook, Microsoft and AIB.[2]

Location and access edit

Sandyford is part of the Dáil Éireann constituency of Dublin-Rathdown. Sandyford village (sometimes referred to in Irish as Taobh na Coille, meaning 'woodside', the townland in which it is situated) is 9 km south of Dublin city centre, just south of the M50 motorway, accessed from the R117 road or M50 junctions 13 and 14, while Sandyford Business District is just north of the motorway.

An Aircoach service links the area with Dublin Airport 24 hours a day. Dublin Bus routes 11, 44, 44B, 47, 116 and 118 link the area to other parts of the city.[3] Go-Ahead Ireland also used to operate the 75 through Sandyford until 26 November 2023 when it was replaced with the S8.

Luas edit

The Luas Green Line was built through the Business District and the Kilmacud, Stillorgan, Sandyford and Central Park stops serve the area, the middle two lying along the eastern edge of the original district. All four of these stops are in the Sandyford Business District. Sandyford was the Green Line terminus until the extension to Cherrywood opened in October 2010.[4] The depot for the Green Line is located on the eastern edge of the Business District.

Metrolink edit

While a 2018 public consultation document proposed that the MetroLink project could have its southern terminus at Sandyford,[5] by February 2019 it was proposed that the line would not serve Sandyford and instead stop at Charlemont.[6]

History edit

Sandyford House, a pub in the centre of the village, has been an inn and coach house since the 1690s. For 200 years it was a stopping place for travellers en route to Enniskerry. From 1803 onwards, the Chatham Street to Enniskerry mail coach (a two-hour journey) stopped and deposited the region's mail at the inn, which acted as the local post office.[7]

Sandyford Business District edit

 
Sandyford Village
 
Beacon Tower, at 15 storeys was briefly the tallest building in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown
 
Luas at its Sandyford stop.

Sandyford Business District is a large business park consisting of more than 700 companies employing over 20,000 people.[8] It was officially opened in 1977[9] on a site of 120 acres and for 50 years was known as the "Sandyford Industrial Estate"; 85 acres allocated to light industry and the rest to offices.[10]

The area includes several separate business parks and sites, including Sandyford Business Park, Stillorgan Business Park, Central Park, and South County Business Park.[citation needed]

A proposal to establish a Sandyford Business District area, to include the core Sandyford Business Park as well as the other areas, resulted in the establishment of the Sandyford Business Improvement District Company (SBID) in January 2017.[11] The area has capacity for 17,500 more employees, 350,000 sq m of commercial floor space and 1,000 residential units.[8]

Companies in the business district include American Airlines, Barclaycard, Canon, Microsoft, Novell, and Vodafone Ireland.[citation needed]

The Irish Management Institute, the Irish Mint, and the Beacon Hospital are also located in the Sandyford area.[citation needed]

People edit

Notable residents of Sandyford include radio personality Ray D'Arcy,[12] singer/songwriter Paul Brady,[13] and comedian Hal Roach (1927–2012),[citation needed] while David Kennedy, the former Formula 1 driver and commentator lived for many years on Sandyford Road.[citation needed] Other residents have included:

Sports edit

Sandyford is home to the Meteors Ladies' Basketball Club. The club was founded in 1965 and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2016.[16]

Naomh Olaf Gaelic Athletic Association Club is located in Sandyford. Founded in 1981, the club has teams from under eight up to senior level, and operates an academy for boys and girls from four through seven years of age.[17]

Sandyford Cricket Club has a cricket team which celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2014.[18]

Arts and culture edit

In the centre of Sandyford village is a monument to the working men of the village, Pater and Ned.[19]

From series 3 onwards, children's TV series ROY was produced in Sandyford.

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Dublin (Ireland): Electoral Divisions - Population Statistics, Charts and Map". Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  2. ^ "Sandyford Business District defines success of suburban office market". www.irishtimes.com. 4 December 2019. Archived from the original on 4 December 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
  3. ^ "114 - Dublin Bus". Archived from the original on 26 November 2011. Archived 31 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "Luas | Luas Green Line Stops". Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  5. ^ "MetroLink - Public Consultation 2018" (PDF). static.rasset.ie. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 September 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  6. ^ "Southside section of MetroLink set to be abandoned". breakingnews.ie. 21 February 2019. Archived from the original on 21 February 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2019. The line [..] is likely to stop north of Ranelagh at Charlemont, and not continue to Sandyford
  7. ^ "History of Sandyford House". sandyfordvillage.enterprises.ie.
  8. ^ a b "Sandyford.com - The home of Sandyford on the Internet". Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  9. ^ "Sandyford Business District Strategic Study and Action Plan" (PDF). sandyford.ie. February 2020. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
  10. ^ "SANDYFORD Urban Framework Plan 2011 - 2016" (PDF). www.dlrcoco.ie. Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 May 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
  11. ^ "Sandyford Business Improvement District Company - Our Mission". sandyford.ie. Sandyford BID CLG. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
  12. ^ "My Kind of Exercise". irishtimes.com. Irish Times. 6 July 2004. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  13. ^ "Paul Brady's Jail break". independent.ie. Independent News & Media. 10 September 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  14. ^ Fanning, Ronan (October 2016). "Aiken, Francis Thomas ('Frank')". Dictionary of Irish Biography. Royal Irish Academy. doi:10.3318/dib.000070.v1.
  15. ^ "The murder of an Ambassador". irishexaminer.com. Irish Examiner. 29 December 2006. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  16. ^ "Meteors Ladies' Basketball Club". Archived from the original on 22 December 2005. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
  17. ^ "Naomh Olaf GAA". Archived from the original on 9 May 2016. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  18. ^ "Sandyford Cricket Club". Archived from the original on 7 May 2006. Retrieved 31 October 2006.
  19. ^ Pater and Ned Archived 25 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine, 1996, is a bronze sculpture by the Irish sculptor Rowan Gillespie, standing 2.4m tall.