Spire of Dublin
The Spire of Dublin (also known as the Monument of Light) is a large, pin-like monument 120 metres (393 ft) in height. It is located on the site of the former Nelson Pillar on O'Connell Street in the Irish capital, Dublin.The Spire, a design by Ian Ritchie Architects, is an elongated cone, having a diameter of 3m (10 ft) at the base, narrowing to 15cm (6 in) at the top. The world's tallest sculpture, as cited officially at http://www.thespire.ie , it was originally intended that the Spire be completed by 2000 in honour of the new millennium, but construction was delayed because of difficulty obtaining planning permission and environmental regulations. It is constructed from eight hollow tubes of stainless steel and features a tuned mass damper to counteract sway.
Why was it built?
The monument itself was commissioned as part of a redesigned street layout in 1999. O'Connell Street (The widest and most famous street in Ireland; formerly Sackville Street) was perceived to have gone into decline from the 1970s. Some people blamed the appearance of fast food restaurants and the opening of bargain basement shops, all using cheap plastic, visually unattractive and obtrusive shop fronts, the existence of a number of derelict sites, and the unilateral decision in 1966 of the IRA to blow up the Nelson Pillar, as reasons for the decline in a once famous and attractive street.
In the 1990s, plans were launched to improve the streetscape. The excessive number of trees in the central reservation, which had overgrown and obscured the street's views and monuments, was reduced dramatically. Statues were cleaned and in some cases relocated. Shop-owners were required to replace plastic signage and frontage with more visually-attractive designs. Private car traffic was re-directed where possible away from the street, with its number of traffic lanes reduced, to allow more 'public ownership' of the street for pedestrians. The centrepiece of this regeneration was to be a replacement monument for Nelson Pillar, the Spire of Dublin, chosen by a committee under the then chairmanship of the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Alderman Joe Doyle from a large number of submissions.
Further changes in the street, including the creation of a new plaza in front of the General Post Office (GPO) new tree plantings, and the erection of buildings on the street's two derelict sites, were planned for 2005. The middle of the street in the past year has been extensively renovated, with new trees and ground. The object is to make the street more pedestrian-friendly and less congested. In 2004 the Luas Red Line opened connecting Tallaght to Connolly Station. The Luas crosses Lower O'Connell Street.