Planning permission which was granted to UCC for the construction of a €10 million art gallery and restaurant near the Western Road entrance to the college has been upheld by An Bord Pleanála following an appeal. When completed, the new complex, on four levels, will be open to the public.
The project was included in Cork's submission for the European City of Culture 2005 designation which the city was granted, against stiff opposition, last year.
It marks a departure for UCC in terms of commercial activity on campus but is very much in keeping with the stated aim of bringing the town closer to the gown.
The new restaurant and art gallery will be in the lower grounds, running parallel to the River Lee and the Western Road, where tennis courts were previously located. Residents on the other side of the road objected on the grounds that traditional views of the UCC campus would be blocked out. However, UCC says that award-winning architects O'Donnell Tuomey have produced a sensitive design.