Building vacant for over 20 years to be redeveloped into "flagship" facility - News - Waterford News & Star
By Darragh Murphy · Waterford News & Star · 29 October 2026

Plans have been unveiled
Darragh Murphy Waterford City and County Council are aiming to undertake the demolition of a three-storey building in Waterford city centre, and construct in its place two new buildings which will form a “flagship facility” for the Waterford Cultural Quarter (WCQ).
The proposed development is located at 25/26 O’Connell Street, which is currently occupied by a building which has been vacant for over twenty years. Behind the building is a space which is also vacant, and was most recently used as a private parking lot.
The building today The proposed new buildings will provide a gallery, studios and workshops for the arts community as well as a headquarters for the WCQ.
Two floors of commercial office space will also be provided. It is envisaged that micro-workshops, multi-functional spaces, and a commercial element such as a café and retail selling locally produced crafts and artwork will be developed.
The project will also accommodate a courtyard and a new connection between the adjoining Garter Lane Theatre courtyard and Jenkin’s Lane.
Reporting by Darragh Murphy for Waterford News & Star, funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme. Republished by News Room under the scheme’s reuse permission.
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