Battle to save Dublin's HQ of 1916 Rising fails

Rashers

From the Irish Independent

Battle to save HQ of 1916 Rising fails as council sells lands for €12m

Tuesday November 18 2008

THE final piece of the €1.2bn redevelopment of O'Connell Street and Moore Street fell into place last night after Dublin city councillors agreed to sell land needed for the project. Councillors voted overwhelmingly to dispose of the lands at Moore Street, for an agreed price of €12m, to developers Chartered Lands.

But the news was greeted with dismay by campaigners who say properties on Moore Street played a vital role in the 1916 Easter Rising.

The buildings will now be included in a 5.5-acre site that will become shops, offices and apartments in what has become known as "the Carlton Development site".

Save 16 and the Dublin City Centre Alliance claim 14-17 Moore Street were the HQ for the 1916 Rising and tried to save the buildings from the development. A letter signed by family members of the leaders of the rising was handed to councillors before the meeting.

But councillors said that, in the current economic crisis, a development like this should go ahead. Fianna Fail councillor Michael Donnelly said: "I think that part of Dublin needs a huge infusion of investment. We are blessed to have the prospect of this investment, particularly at the moment."

Independent councillor Maureen O'Sullivan, who opposed the plan, said: "If a similar proposal came before Amsterdam city council about a development infringing on Anne Frank's house, would that council be very much in favour without considerable protections for the buildings and that area?"

A Save 16 spokesman, angry at the council, said: "The decision is a blatant betrayal of their duty to protect the heritage of the city."

Gillo

IMHO but the buildings are a complete $hithole, they haven't been cared for in years and are badly run down, surely if people actually cared about these building's they would have done something years ago and not wait until someone else is actually prepared to pump money into the area.

Best off pulling them down.

Dyr

run it down so ye can sell it off..classic DC tactics, shower of..

Ste.phen

Half the northside is like that, ref: Henrietta St, Parnell Square and their surrounds
Doesn't mean the developer shouldn't be given a kick and made to restore them

iMax

It's been like that for as long as I can remember, at least 10 - 15 years. Better off bulldozing the whole area & by all means erect a plaque /monument within the development.

GPO was 1916 HQ as far as I understood it. Number 16 was where the decision to surrender took place.

Why don't they take it down brick by brick & build a restored version into the development ?

dub1226

Clearly the way forward with Dublin's crumbling city centre areas is to redevelop. There are parts of Temple Bar that were gently given a positive makeover without losing the historic value of the area. Developers and protesters must make time for discussions and positive conclusions.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Well there's a few problems facing this campaign, apart from the political problems there's the fact that most Irish people in under 30 won't give a rats arse about the place.

The Celtic Tigger of the last 10-15 years has turned a sizable majority of this generation of Dub into shallow, greedy, money hungry whingers who care about nothing and no one but themselves.

So the building has been rundown and neglected over the last number of years, SO WHAT? it ain't my fault of the fault of future generations.

And this is something I'd advocate across the city, and in particular our historical buildings.. Government should issue compulsary restoration order's or the owners/landlords of these buildings. Failure to comply will/should mean we confiscate the building. And yes, while the tax payers money will be spent in the long term we're guaranteeing our heritage is passed onto future generations who might give a flying FK.

Sometimes I've love to throttle people.

Degsy

If any of signatories of the Proclamaition could see what Dublin has turned into now they'd be spinning in thier graves.

lostexpectation

hq is a bit of over statement

lostexpectation

thread with renders of dublin central shopping streets
http://www.archiseek.com/content/showthread.php?t=2087&page=136

they planning to knock some of the buildings on hery street too!

Rashers

lostexpectation wrote: »

hq is a bit of over statement

Define HQ?

Do you know the that the men and women in 16 Moore Street probably suffered more than they did in the GPO. They witnessed up close innocent civilians being killed, including a whole family and also a 12 year old girl in front of her parents. They suffered having to take the heart rending decision to surrender themselves and their men, knowing they faced execution after such a brave fight.

I recommend that anyone who doesn't know the history of Moore Street read up on it.