In the historic Liberties area, southwest of the central core of Dublin, the Timberyard project repairs the fracture that the road engineering works for the new Cork Street corridor left on the local landscape. The social housing scheme provides a new street frontage, articulating the transition between the existing one- and two- story houses behind the site and the six-story blocks proposed by regulations. Forty-seven units are distributed at either end of a triangular courtyard that becomes a new community space at street level, reactivating the traditional pedestrian paths that go through the residential fabric. In contrast to the typical perimeter block that leaves an isolated central void, this building promotes social activity inside the block by placing the entrances in the courtyard and visually connecting the dwellings and the civic spaces.

The hardwood windows are offset from one other in the walls to reflect the complexity of the layout within, and to emphasize the continuity of the brick surface. The walls are modulated with recessed porches and terraces, as well as projecting bay windows to give depth and diversity to the building’s edge.