Dublin’s Pheonix Park will be closed to the public for nearly two days next week during Donald Trump’s visit to the capital, the Office of Public Works (OPW) has confirmed.
The closure is to facilitate the US president’s meeting with Uachtarán na hÉireann Catherine Connolly at the Áras on Saturday, September 12.
Members of the public will be denied access to the park from 11pm on Thursday, 10th September until the Saturday at 6pm during which time all gates and roads will be closed.
The closure means that members of the public will not be allowed to visit attractions in the park such as Dublin Zoo next Friday and Saturday, but it is understood access will be facilitated for staff.
During Taoiseach Micheál Martin’s visit to the Oval Office on St Patrick’s Day, when Ms Connolly’s criticisms of his war in Iran were raised by members of the media, Mr Trump referred to her as “he”.
Their meeting will be a “brief courtesy visit”, sources with knowledge of the preparations said, and will not be on the scale of visits by former presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
Mr Trump is likely to fly into Dublin Airport on the Saturday morning, following his attendance at the 9/11 commemorations in New York the day before.
His schedule of events in the capital will be confined to Phoenix Park, which will be locked down for the duration of his visit, meaning the potential for protesters to disrupt it will be limited.
He is likely to travel to Phoenix Park by helicopter amid a significant security operation.