Bishop Lucey Park – Cork, Ireland

“A Contemporary Public Park Redesign Rooted in History and Ecology”

Bishop Lucey Park, located at the heart of Cork City, is one of Ireland’s most important urban green spaces. LASD Studio’s redesign reimagines this beloved park as an evolutionary landscape – a living, adaptive environment that honors Cork’s cultural history while supporting urban biodiversity, social diversity, and climate resilience.

Artistic Site-plan of Bishop Lucey Park in Cork, Ireland.

This project goes beyond traditional park design. It creates a dynamic public space where heritage, ecology, and community life intertwine. The park’s new layout provides a variety of experiences, ensuring that people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities can feel connected and included.

Video walkthrough of the Bishop Lucey Park redesign in Cork, Ireland. The animation highlights inclusive public spaces, historic city walls, biodiversity-rich planting, open lawns, seating areas, and adaptive features that support community life and urban ecology.

Key Design Elements

• Inclusive Spaces for All Generations
  The design integrates open lawns, shaded seating areas, water features, and intimate gardens. Each element serves different age groups – from children’s play areas to quiet retreats for reflection – creating a truly multigenerational park.

• Evolutionary Landscape Approach
  Inspired by natural systems, the park is designed as a self-sustaining ecological network. Planting strategies emphasize native and pollinator-friendly species, ensuring year-round biodiversity support and stronger ecological balance.

• Cultural Heritage Integration
  The design respects the historic city walls and cultural context of Cork. Pathways and viewing points frame heritage features, blending modern landscape architecture with Cork’s layered urban history.

• Biodiversity & Climate Resilience
  Pollinator gardens, diverse tree plantings, and rainwater-sensitive landscapes cool the urban microclimate and mitigate flooding, while creating habitats for birds, bees, and butterflies.

• Flexible Public Realm
  Open spaces are designed to adapt over time for cultural events, markets, performances, and seasonal celebrations. This makes Bishop Lucey Park not only a green refuge but also an active cultural hub.

Side Perspective, rendering of Bishop Lucey Park

The Importance of Diverse Public Space

Bishop Lucey Park represents a new era of public park design in Ireland. Its strength lies in diversity – cultural, ecological, and social. By weaving together biodiversity support, inclusive spaces, and adaptive design strategies, the park becomes more than just a place to visit. It becomes an evolving system where:

• Children play, families gather, and communities celebrate.

• Wildlife thrives in carefully designed ecological niches.

• Cork’s heritage is preserved and experienced in daily life.

• The city gains resilience against climate challenges.

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