‘It looks like a TY project’ – Dubliners weigh in on new Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre design

Fiona Frawley

Last week, the redesign of the St Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre in Dublin City Centre was unveiled to the public after being approved by Dublin City Council.

Since then, opinion pieces and hot takes on the new exterior have been rife, with a smug cohort rushing to comments sections and Twitter threads to haughtily inform the masses “Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre isn’t even that old, LOL”.

Indeed, it’s not that old – the Centre as we know it was unveiled in 1987, with a target demographic of “young, middle class (women) with a great deal of spending power“. While Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre may be no older than your friendly neighbourhood millennial, its Victorian-inspired exterior with domed roof, arched windows and flower baskets has become a landmark for Dublin city centre and is loved by locals and visitors alike.

As a Dubliner, it’s easy to become disillusioned with the charm of the shopping centre’s conservatory interior and giant clock – but tourists can’t get enough of the place. While the general consensus is that the space could do with a bit of TLC, there are very few in favour of a complete overhaul.

Dubliners have been weighing in on the new proposed design of Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre. Image via Getty.

Anyone who’s frequented Stephen’s Green will agree it’s not perfect. The 25c bathroom charge. The readily available supply of escalators to travel up a level, and what feels like none to travel back down. The mysterious top floor. But replacing it with what is essentially a glorified office with glass exteriors that could literally be from any financial district in the world is a concerning move, even by current day, hotel-obsessed Dublin’s standards.

We took to the streets of Dublin yesterday to ask people what they thought about the new design, with responses ranging from “it looks like a shipping container” to just plain “no”.

You can hear more opinions in the video below.