Simon Open Door 2021 - Booking Now Open

We are proud to to be taking part in this year’s Simon Open Door campaign once again, to help raise awareness of homelessness in Ireland. Last year the practice raised almost €2,200 for this amazing cause.

RIAI Simon Open Door is a partnership between the Simon Communities of Ireland and the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI). Since the campaign began in 2005, the RIAI Registered Architects and the Irish public have raised over €1.2million.

In return for a €95 donation, homeowners can receive an hour-long consultation with an RIAI Registered Architect to discuss building, rebuilding or renovating their homes.  All participating Architects are giving their time and expertise for free.

You can book a slot by clicking on the following link: RIAI Simon Open Door | Select an Architect | Open Door 2021.

How the Online Consultation Works

You can book an Architect by Location or by skill (e.g. if you own a historic home or you have protected structure building you can book a Conservation Architect).

After booking your consultation, the Architect will contact you and arrange the most suitable online platform to use.  To make the most of your consultation the Architect may require some basic information from you in advance of your meeting. For further information on ‘What to Bring to your Consultation‘ and ‘What to expect from the Online Consultation’ visit the 'For Clients' page.

All consultations take place online and all funds raised go directly to the Simon Community  to support their work in tackling homelessness.

Spread the word about the RIAI Simon Open Door campaign by using the hashtag #RIAIsimon.

March Madness

March has been an incredibly busy month for the team at PONA. We have been appointed on several exciting new projects and have seen an unprecedented number of enquiries come through regarding residential and commercial schemes in both Ireland and the UK. Despite the ongoing Covid crisis, we are progressing well on site on a number of essential projects including a new build house in Skryne, Co. Meath.

New house taking shape at Skryne, Co. Meath

We had a number of successful planning grants in March also, which are sure to keep us extremely busy in the months ahead, as we look forward to construction sites across Ireland opening up again in April.

New build house in Bective Co. Meath granted planning permission in March 2021.

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New build house in Ethelstown, Kells, Co. Meath granted permission in March 2021

The end of the month saw a flurry of planning applications submitted for one-off houses on behalf of clients eager to avoid the incoming planning changes which will form part of the new Meath County Development Plan. We believe these changes will make it extremely difficult for the majority of people looking to building one-off houses in a rural setting, although the detail of the proposed changes is yet to be revealed.

Planning submitted for a new contemporary farmhouse at Athboy, Co. Meath

Watch this space…

Planning has been submitted for a contemporary barrel-vaulted extension to a traditional cottage in Castlepollard, Co. Westmeath. We’re excited about this one…

NEW WEBSITE – NEW PROJECTS – NEW IDEAS

We are delighted to finally share our brand new website, which showcases a small number of projects from the hundreds we have completed over the last 12+ years as a practice.

Despite the ongoing Covid pandemic, we have continued to deliver many high-quality design and construction projects across Ireland and the UK. We are still busy working on many more at various stages in the design, development and construction process, and we look forward to revealing some of these new projects with you here in the coming months.

2020 also brought some joy, despite all its difficulties, in the form of the completion of one of

our most significant buildings to date. The brand new Park Rí retail and food destination in Kells, Co. Meath, one of the very first projects our office worked on in 2008, finally opened to slightly quieter fanfare than anticipated (due to ongoing restrictions). However, this wonderful new facility has brought a much needed lift to the town and beyond, and we’re sure will be a huge success when it opens fully and it is once again safe for people to dine out again.

Keep an eye on our site for more photos of Park Rí in the weeks ahead.

Park Rí Kells opened in late summer 2020

We have many exciting projects in the pipeline for 2021/22,  including a range of new houses and extensions in Ireland and the UK, a new standalone creche facility in Dublin City Centre, a factory showroom in Meath and lots more. 

Stay tuned for regular updates on our website and social media.