Central Plaza (formerly the Central Bank of Ireland Building) Dublin.

Safe Spaces Virtual Tour Field Note

Place: Central Plaza (formerly the Central Bank of Ireland Building)

Central Plaza (formerly the Central Bank of Ireland Building) was designed by Irish architect Sam Stephenson of Stephenson Gibney & Associates and completed in 1978. It remains one of Dublin's most recognizable examples of Brutalist architecture and was highly controversial when it was built because of its scale and modern appearance among the surrounding historic buildings.

What makes the building architecturally unique is that it is Ireland's only suspended office building. Instead of stacking each floor on columns from the ground up, the two reinforced concrete service cores were built first. A large steel roof structure was then constructed, and each office floor was suspended from it using paired high-tensile steel Macalloy bars (visible externally as the distinctive black suspension rods). During construction, each floor was assembled at ground level and then hoisted into its final position before being permanently suspended from the roof structure. This engineering system created the large, column-free plaza beneath the building.

Date: July 18, 2026

One-Sentence First Impression

A remarkable feat of engineering that no longer feels like a place designed for people.

1. Body Signal

At first, I stopped in the middle of the plaza to determine my orientation. I was alert because very few people were sitting near the planters. Most people were simply crisscrossing the plaza. There did not seem to be a logical place to land or an obvious direction to travel once entering the space.

2. Spatial Architecture

The plaza contained planters with trees along the front edge facing the street. At the rear of the plaza, near the building, were staircases leading both up and down, but it was unclear where either one led. To the right was a heavy flow of pedestrian traffic entering from the street behind the building. There was no dominant visual pull toward any particular area.

3. Sensory Inputs

There were green trees and scattered planter boxes, but they were all in direct sunlight.

At the bottom of one staircase was a shaded area and a vertical green plant wall beside the lift, but there was nowhere to sit or rest in the shade. It functioned only as an entrance to the restaurant.

The staircase leading to the darkened office spaces was marked by a large WeWork sign that felt like a gatekeeper, discouraging people from approaching.

The Krispy Kreme in the center of the plaza was crowded, and its entrance was confusing.

I found myself drawn instead to a large area of shade on the far right side of the plaza, created by the neighboring building. A pigeon was tucked quietly into the corner with its head beneath its wing, apparently trying to nap.

4. Safety Mechanism

Nothing.

The planters created almost no usable shade. The large golden orb sculpture added to the feeling of coldness and austerity. The staircases led to destinations that felt exclusive rather than welcoming. The heavy pedestrian traffic reinforced the feeling of "stay out."

5. Stressor or Friction

The lack of purpose and the chaotic pedestrian circulation, combined with cold concrete, pink granite, black suspension rods, and dark, dirty windows, made this feel like an unfriendly space.

6. Transferable Design Lesson

Honestly, only the vertical plant wall—a small, easily missed feature downstairs that seemed primarily intended to hide the lift.

7. Emotional Resonance

Disappointment that an architectural wonder has been abandoned, cheapened, and forgotten.

8. Monetizable Insight

Spaces need containment.

They need clear orientation, clearly defined boundaries, and places where people naturally feel invited to pause and land.

9. What Made Me Feel Safe?

Hiding in the shaded corner of the plaza with the birds, away from the chaos.

10. What Would Make Me Feel Safer?

A directory.

A continuous border of trees.

Shaded seating areas.

A way to interrupt or slow the heavy pedestrian flow entering from the rear street.

11. Would I Recommend This as a Safe Space for Highly Sensitive People or Neurologically Challenged Individuals?

Never.

12. Sense of Place – Why Here?

Before the buildings existed, what qualities of this landscape may have attracted people? What elements of the natural environment influence my nervous system independent of human design?

None that I could identify.