R&H Hall is coming down: Video shows demolition of iconic Cork Docklands building
It’s the end of an era.
Workers have started tearing down parts of Cork’s R&H Hall building as part of a project that will see the structure replaced with a “new sustainable landmark building”.
The O’Callaghan Properties project, granted planning permission in May 2023, comprises around one million sq. ft. of development to include residential, office, hospital, and mixed-use development.
In these images and videos captured by local photographer Lucy Sheehy, an enormous claw gets to work on removing the crumbling walls of the 80-year-old former grain silo.
@luc.yshthe demolition of cork’s iconic r&h hall begins
Sadly, because of design and structural impediments and deterioration, it was not possible to conserve or to safely re-purpose the buildings. The same was not true of the older Odlums Mills building, further eastward on Kennedy Quay which is to be restored and reimagined with retail, café, residential, and office uses.
The new building will occupy the same footprint, referring its design to the industrial characteristics of the silos.
As part of the demolition process, O’Callaghan Properties has embarked on a comprehensive archaeological recording and conservation process with respect to the historic industrial machinery within the R&H Hall complex.
The recording, conservation, and demolition process is anticipated to take six months.
Some of the industrial machinery within the silos, such as the grain dryers, extends to virtually the entire height of the buildings and the safe dismantling of many of the items to a storage facility will take place prior to their re-installation in parts of the Kennedy Quay project.
