Sligo County Council has voted not to go ahead with the planned demolition of an 18th-century farmhouse in Easkey to allow time for it to be assessed by an architect.
The Irish Landmark Trust has expressed interest in Ivy House and will decide if it meets its criteria for restoration and management.
At a meeting of Sligo County Council yesterday, the county manager, Mr Hubert Kearns, said a letter of objection to the demolition was received last week. "It is fair to say there has been a case put forward that it is of some importance from a heritage point of view," Mr Kearns said.
A motion put forward by Labour's Mr Declan Bree to defer the demolition was passed despite strong objections from some councillors. A number of these councillors accused An Taisce of being "more interested in crows than people".
Councillors passed an amendment put forward by Sinn Fein's Mr Sean MacManus that work on the housing scheme should proceed while the building was being assessed.
Mr Nicholas Prins of An Taisce said Ivy House was "a very rare survival of a surprisingly intact unadulterated 200-year-old two-storey vernacular farmhouse". He said the council would be commended if it could integrate a prestigious Landmark Trust project into its housing development.