Monaghan County Council Offices
Monaghan County Council's new Civic Offices at the Roosky Lands establish a focused civic quarter that consolidates council functions, strengthens the public realm and acts as a catalyst for sustainable town-centre development.
Monaghan County Council's new Civic Offices at the Roosky Lands establish a focused civic quarter that consolidates council functions, strengthens the public realm and acts as a catalyst for sustainable town-centre development. The scheme brings dispersed staff and services together under one roof in the heart of the town, improving departmental collaboration, public access to services and reducing operational costs and energy use. The project provides the council with state-of-the-art facilities including a dedicated council chamber, a collaborative workplace environment, public counters, public gallery, foyer and exhibition area, party offices and all associated welfare facilities.
The brief, developed with input from the council and our workplace strategy team, prioritises functionality, efficient use of space, universal accessibility and a respectful relationship with the local character and landscape.
Sited on a drumlin overlooking the historic town, the building comprises three interlinked, stepped volumes that respond to the sloping terrain.
By overlapping rather than stacking floors, the design reduces perceived scale and maintains a sympathetic, generously landscaped interface with Dublin Street North, nearby residential properties and the surrounding natural landscape.
Universal access, pedestrian movement and the creation of public spaces are defining principles of the site strategy. The scheme connects the existing network of streets with future connections within the masterplan, integrating public paths, spaces and a public lift with the stepped architectural concept.
Sustainability underpins this environmentally responsive design. Between the stepped volumes, external courtyards drop to maximise daylight and natural ventilation of the deep-plan typology while providing visual amenity to the workplaces below. Designed in collaboration with Transsolar Climate Engineers, the low-energy, passive façade uses a fixed shading system of perforated mesh and vertical fins, complemented by fritted and high-performance glazing to balance solar control, glare, daylight and thermal comfort.
Materiality is restrained in character. Natural, robust materials such as limestone and dark-brown metal tones have been selected to integrate with the natural context of the surrounding environment.
