Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
INDEPENDENT COFFEE SHOPS in Dublin city could soon be offered more public leases after two local councillors called out the increasing dominance of larger, chain café businesses being awarded rental agreements.
Management at Dublin City Council last night said it would look at the possibility of issuing targeted adverts for café sites it owns so that small and independent business owners have a better opportunity to win rental contracts.
It came after Sinn Féin councillor Anthony Connaghan and independent councillor Vincent Jackson highlighted last night that chain cafés have frequently been awarded contracts for the sites, despite councillors previously voting to support local businesses.
Both councillors also asked if it was at all possible for smaller businesses to compete for leases without having to go through an extensive procurement process. They argued it would make it simpler and easier for independent vendors to compete.
Dublin City Council own and lease a number of coffee cabins and allocated café spaces around the parks and sports grounds in the city.
Businesses must first respond to an expression of interest, or an advert, outlining their desire to lease the site from the council. Respondents that have proven track records at other locations and the relevant staff training and qualifications are often granted leases.
In return for the use of the site, a cheap, at-cost rent is charged by the council which will often cover services such as cleaning the on-site lavatories and general maintenance. Elected councillors get an opportunity to accept, and later extend, the lease of the site.
A vote was held last night to grant a three-year lease to The Tram Café Ltd, a chain of Irish coffee shops with seven existing locations in the Dublin city area, for a café space located in Johnstown Park in Glasnevin, Dublin 9.
Layout of the site offered in the rental agreement to The Tram Café Ltd last night. Dublin City Council
Dublin City Council
Every councillor agreed to grant the contract to the café chain, for which the council will receive at least €24,500 for the lease. An optional two-year extension is included in the contract, costing an additional €18,000, at the discretion of another vote at a later date.
Before the contract was agreed, Sinn Féin’s Finglas councillor Anthony Connaghan and independent councillor for Ballyfermot Vincent Jackson asked if it would be possible for the council to make it easier for independent vendors to get contracts.
Advertisement
“I don’t have an issue with granting the licence here,” Connaghan said, explaining that it has taken “several years” for the council to find a tenant for the site. He said, however, that councillors have previously voted to support local and community businesses.
“From my own experience, the last few tenders for coffee units seem to have gone to bigger, established groups [...] it’s hard for a local business to compete with them,” he added.
Sinn Féin's Anthony Connaghan speaking during last night's council meeting. The Journal
The Journal
Connaghan asked if the council could issue an advertisement that targeted and welcomed bids from smaller, independent coffee shops to host their business at the council-owned sites.
He also asked if it would be possible if the current procurement process – the method in which the rental contract is awarded to businesses – was made simpler for independent operators.
Jackson echoed Connaghan’s question, adding that he has assisted in operating services on council-owned spaces with community groups in the past and found that it is often the case that the local authority receives “a tiny amount of money” for the sites.
He argued that the low-cost associated with renting the site from Dublin City Council should be all the more reason for the executive to award the rental agreements to small, independent cafés.
“I think, going forward, there are opportunities for us to assist young people in developing career prospects across the board – in our communities across the city,” he said.
“Community groups don’t have the capacity that the big players have. And, an awful lot of the time, charging people €4 – €4.50 for a cup of tea or a cup of coffee puts it beyond what we’re trying to do in our parks and our open spaces.”
Responding to both questions, assistant chief executive of Dublin City Council Anthony Flynn claimed that the council has previously issued advertisements that have promoted local businesses to apply for public sites with “limited success”.
“Maybe it’s time that we do it again,” Flynn said. “We’ve no issue, in the context of the development department, considering, where appropriate, an expression of interest and promoting local enterprise.”
He said awarding contracts to independent businesses fits into the management’s existing policies and various local development and enterprise plans. He added that he was of the view that it would also support local training and employment.
“We’ve no issue with going out again and having a look at that, where appropriate,” he said.
Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone...
A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article.
Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
40 Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
If you like your coffee it’s a no brainer to go to the independents. Some of them would really surprise you with the efforts they put in sourcing blends.
I would question how many of the indépendants are actively expanding or have the revenue to increase locations. Larger companies would have better access to capital better ability to expand than the small companies. Larger companies are about scale so more venues = more sales = more money.
But overall, coffee shops are a dime a dozen. We already have too many..
@Ciaran: not where I live w e don’t. But you do get , I don’t know what to call them really, shops that sell teas and coffee and it’s worse than piss. But I’m all for coffee shops that sell the real thing
The problem isn’t large chain stores, it’s the very strict zoning laws which Dublin City Council enforces against small businesses which keep them down. If we abolished single-use zoning throughout the city centre and allowed multi-use zoning for independent coffee shops and other similar businesses, it would allow them to build underneath apartments that they don’t own without having to go through a tedious planning permission regulatory process. In any case, I’m sick of the Dublin City Council and other people blaming coffee chains for the problems that independent stores face. Companies like Starbucks and Costa offer good-quality coffee at a reasonable price. If they didn’t, people like myself wouldn’t keep going back and buying coffee off them.
@Frank O’Hara: people without taste buds have been around for years Frank. You accept awful because you don’t know any better. You probably go to McDonald’s for a happy meal on your birthday
@Bennett blaster: Ah Bennett, resorting to the immediate ad hominem attacks because you don’t want to engage in an honest discussion about what the problems are that face independent coffeeshops. I don’t “accept awful”, I choose to go to Starbucks because they always give me a high standard of coffee which is very good value. I have been to many different coffeeshops, both small and big. Starbucks has never given me a coffee that hasn’t tasted nice so if you’re offended by that, kiss my ass buddy.
@James Brennan: I personally think it’s delicious James. It’s also very good value. No one is forcing you to go buy your coffee there so no need to make such a fuss about it. Apart from a place called Hatch Coffee which is about 10 minutes from where I live, I always just get my coffee in Starbucks.
@Sal Paradise: I guess we will agree to disagree. I personally consider Costa’ menu to be reasonable and relatively cheap for the product that you are getting. They also have a very good selection of different types of coffee drinks that you can order.
@Dave G Doe: The reality is that standards are lower here, Irish people don’t like ‘quality’ the majority prefer service station tar (more ‘honest’ or some bs) Same of everything in Irish society. High speed train? Too posh, be laughed at through missing teeth
@Pork Hunt: Most of the independent Irish coffee shops close at 15.30. Try getting a coffee other than take away or multi national after that time. Profits must be great!
Man arrested in connection with 'deliberate ignition' of major fire in Mourne Mountains
Updated
26 mins ago
14.5k
Vatican
Pope Francis makes first public appearance in St. Peter's Square since February
57 mins ago
915
US Tariffs
Trump adviser Elon Musk says he wants free-trade and 'zero-tariff situation' between US and Europe
18 hrs ago
62.1k
163
Your Cookies. Your Choice.
Cookies help provide our news service while also enabling the advertising needed to fund this work.
We categorise cookies as Necessary, Performance (used to analyse the site performance) and Targeting (used to target advertising which helps us keep this service free).
We and our 164 partners store and access personal data, like browsing data or unique identifiers, on your device. Selecting Accept All enables tracking technologies to support the purposes shown under we and our partners process data to provide. If trackers are disabled, some content and ads you see may not be as relevant to you. You can resurface this menu to change your choices or withdraw consent at any time by clicking the Cookie Preferences link on the bottom of the webpage .Your choices will have effect within our Website. For more details, refer to our Privacy Policy.
We and our vendors process data for the following purposes:
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
Cookies Preference Centre
We process your data to deliver content or advertisements and measure the delivery of such content or advertisements to extract insights about our website. We share this information with our partners on the basis of consent. You may exercise your right to consent, based on a specific purpose below or at a partner level in the link under each purpose. Some vendors may process your data based on their legitimate interests, which does not require your consent. You cannot object to tracking technologies placed to ensure security, prevent fraud, fix errors, or deliver and present advertising and content, and precise geolocation data and active scanning of device characteristics for identification may be used to support this purpose. This exception does not apply to targeted advertising. These choices will be signaled to our vendors participating in the Transparency and Consent Framework.
Manage Consent Preferences
Necessary Cookies
Always Active
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Store and/or access information on a device 111 partners can use this purpose
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development 146 partners can use this purpose
Use limited data to select advertising 116 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Create profiles for personalised advertising 85 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Use profiles to select personalised advertising 85 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Create profiles to personalise content 39 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Use profiles to select personalised content 35 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Measure advertising performance 136 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Measure content performance 61 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources 76 partners can use this purpose
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Develop and improve services 84 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Use limited data to select content 37 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
Use precise geolocation data 47 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Actively scan device characteristics for identification 27 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Ensure security, prevent and detect fraud, and fix errors 93 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Deliver and present advertising and content 100 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Match and combine data from other data sources 73 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Link different devices 55 partners can use this feature
Always Active
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Identify devices based on information transmitted automatically 91 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
Save and communicate privacy choices 69 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say