Madam, - I wish to take this opportunity to correct a number of inaccuracies contained in V.M. O'Shea of An Taisce's letter (July 15th) in relation to the proposed delisting of buildings from the Record of Protected Structures as part of the Review of the Dublin City Development Plan. Contrary to Ms O'Shea's assertion, the buildings were assessed by the conservation office of Dublin City Council before being proposed for delisting.
Until the introduction of the Planning and Development Act 2000 there were no established criteria in existence for planning authorities to assess and therefore include buildings for protection in development plans. Dublin City Council operated a two-tier listing system, i.e. List 1 and List 2 which reflected an order of significance of their architectural merit.
The Act provided for the first time criteria by which buildings were to be assessed. The Act stipulated that buildings proposed for inclusion on the record must demonstrate "special architectural, historical, artistic, scientific, cultural, archaeological, social or technical interest." An assessment of the Record of Protected Structures, with particular reference to buildings which were previously included on "List 2", was undertaken. They were reviewed against the now established legal criteria and were found not to be of special interest. There is, therefore, no contradiction on the part of Dublin City Council in now proposing their deletion, as they were never previously assessed against these criteria.
In relation to Ms O'Shea's comments on Dublin City Council's "poor" record of architectural conservation, the following may be of interest: €25 million was invested in recent years in the conservation/restoration of buildings in Dublin City Council's ownership which are protected. A further €4.3 million was allocated by Dublin City Council to 361 protected structures in private ownership under the Conservation Grant Scheme.
This investment, together with the many area-based regeneration projects carried out in recent years, has significantly reduced the level of urban blight which was such a characteristic feature of Dublin in the past.
Dublin City Council is conscious of its obligations to ensure that the built heritage of the city is conserved and protected and our policies and actions in recent years demonstrate this commitment. - Yours, etc.,
JIM KEOGAN, Deputy Planning Officer. Dublin City Council, Wood Quay, Dublin 2.