Blackrock Business & Community Newsletter July 2021

The recent good weather has provided us all with a great opportunity to avail of the new atmosphere and new outdoor facilities in Blackrock!  As a location in which to dine/drink out, and now dine/drink in, the Village is an even better place to come to!  Together with the usual pubs and restaurants, there is also street and market food in abundance. The recently reconfigured George’s Avenue has added a whole new dimension to Blackrock. There is something for everybody as regards hospitality, and we look forward to seeing you in the village over the coming months! 

Winner of our Photo Competition this month.   The photo was taken by Pearl Barcoe.   Congratulations  Pearl.  This is a special photo for Pearl: – “My Mum passed away suddenly at the end of March and this was taken during my time saying goodbye to her and also the house I grew up in back in April. I love Blackrock and I’m so proud to call this special village by the sea my home. And even though I live away now there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of and miss it.  This picture was taken at Sunset .. the end of the day.. and at the end of the day, Blackrock is always in my heart”.

In second place Joe Kiernan.  Congratulations Joe.  “I was cycling through Blackrock and while on Idrone Terrace I saw these two dogs playing out on the seafront. The tide was out, it was a clear day and there was zero wind, so the large puddles in the sand turned into giant mirrors”.

In third place Emma McLoughlin. “This photo was taken on 10 June 2021 down over the wall at
Blackrock dart station. It almost looks like the Northern lights with the hints of pink and green in the
sky”. Congratulations Emma.

Many thanks to all who entered our fun photo competition this July.  The response was from near and far and was way more than we could have anticipated.  We had a truly difficult time choosing those photos that we thought deserved a “podium” position.  Photos came to us in many different formats and there were a few excellent images that were not in the mix purely on pixilation or similar.  Some great notes accompanied images to give context and the effort gone into this, as well as the effort made by those who didn’t make the podium, deserves honourable mention.
Keep snapping our beautiful village and its surrounds and keep your eye out for some exciting news/updates/on our social media/newsletter.  We hope to run a similar competition later in the year.

Our special thanks go to our social media team at apexmedia.ie for volunteering to be judges in this competition.

Janel, Miriam, Gerry, Siobhán, Aoife, Lauren and Emily strutting their stuff!

Blackrock Athletic Club is getting into the flow of a return to normal activity. Training sessions are back and a reduction in rates for the second half of the year is effective from August.

Please note that BAC have a waiting list for children aged up to 14. However, they welcome those aged 15 and up to join Blackrock Athletic Club and experience the physical and mental health benefits of athletics. View the membership page for more details and get in touch to try a session or two before committing. Membership prices from August are €55 for juniors (15 – 19) and €50 for those older.

Lots has been going on of late. Junior and Juvenile sections now have 20 athletes heading to the nationals in August after some brilliant performances in the Dublin Championships.

The men and women’s sections have been organising training sessions with favourites such as Blackrock Park, Dun Laoghaire, Monkstown, Clonkeen, Kilbogget and Cabinteely all being covered. The Fit4Life section of the club includes men and women and members have been organising running sessions throughout Dublin and beyond.

Email info@blackrockac.ie to get in touch. Connect with BAC on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter to get a flavour and keep up to date on the news section of the BAC website.

Philip and Daniel picking up gold and silver at Morton Stadium

BFEI is a College of Further Education located in the heart of Blackrock village offering an excellent range of professional career courses. Applications for 2021/2022 are now open. Go to BFEI.ie and use the ‘Apply now’ button to make a free online application. There are courses available across a wide range of subject areas from Design (Product Design, Landscape Design, Interior Architecture), Computing Networks and Digital Design, Community Emergency and Healthcare, Business, Accounting, Marketing and Auctioneering, to Beauty Therapy, Make-Up and Holistic Therapies. All courses offer professional qualifications as well as progression opportunities. Registration is also open for our next (virtual) Open Day on August 30^th from 1-4pm when applicants can discuss with staff whichever course they may be interested in!

The National Off-Licence Association (NOffLA) recently announced the winners of its annual Off-Licence of the Year Awards 2021 which is now in its twenty-fifth year.

The Awards, which are usually held at the Honorable Society of King’s Inns, was hosted online this year in accordance with COVID-19 restrictions.

According to NOffLA, the awards recognise and showcase excellence in the independent off-licence sector, which represents 315 specialist businesses throughout the country.

The awards highlight those retailers that offer exceptional service to customers and demonstrate excellence in retail standards, it added.

The Awards, which included 37 finalists, saw Molloys Liquor Store awarded ‘National Off-Licence of the Year 2021’.
The Bombay Sapphire Dublin Off-Licence of the Year 2021 winner was Blackrock Cellar, Blackrock, Co. Dublin.  Congrats to Joel and his team.

Nordic Elements was first established in 2013, in the basement of founders’ Helle Moyna’s house in Booterstown.  The interior design, product sourcing and retail business has now outgrown Helle’s basement and is moving to the Main Street in Blackrock.
In the new showroom at 38 Main Street they will be able to display furniture, lighting and accessories from their family of designer brands and manufacturers, products not readily available in Ireland.
There will be an edited selection of handpicked furniture brands and an enticing array of accessories, tableware, glassware, candles, textiles and gifts for every occasion.
They will also have a dedicated space for interior projects where clients can interact with their interior designers and get expert advice on home styling.
With her love of mid-century design and decoration, and her Danish roots, Helle Moyna’s Nordic Elements will be more than a shop – somewhere to acquire a stylish heirloom and a modern classic.

The Business Post reported this week that demolition works are ongoing to allow for main construction work to commence on the €64m apartment development at St Teresa’s, Temple Hill.  The development will consist of 294 apartments, conversion of St. Teresa’s House, dismantling and relocation of St. Teresa’s Lodge, single storey return of lands at The Alzeimer’s Society of Ireland and associated site works.  The main works are scheduled to start in Q4 2021/Q1 2022 and will take in the region of 5 years to complete.

*  DLR Public Participation Ezine  – To read the JULY Ezine, please click HERE

*  Remember that our new notelets featuring Blackrock Village are available for sale in Centra, Main Street.