Madam, - James Pike is clearly among the select band salivating over the prospects of the Poolbeg peninsula becoming the new Klondike ("Are high-rise buildings the future for Dublin?", Head 2 Head, September 17th).
In justification he states that "the population of the Dublin region can be expected to grow by at least 700,000 over the next 25 years".
We have heard this line from planners for the last decade and more, but so far nobody has explained why this should be.
Before we utterly destroy a city that was once renowned for its wide streets, fine architecture and benign quality of life, can someone please explain what would be gained by the untrammelled expansion compared with what would be lost? - Yours, etc,
MAURICE BRYAN,
Conservation Adviser,
Butterfield Park,
Rathfarnham,
Dublin 14.
Madam, - I disagree with James Pike's defence of high-rise development in Ballsbridge, but he is correct in identifying the area around Dublin port as being suitable for such buildings.
Ballsbridge is a historic village of Dublin, tarnished for too long by creeping commercial buildings. No high-rise development should be allowed there or in neighbouring Sandymount.
Dublin port is a perfect site for a new city quarter. Michael McDowell vividly described the area as a "container farm", where vast amounts of land in the centre of Dublin is wasted as a store for shipping containers.
His plan to move Dublin port should be instigated immediately by the government. This would help stop the continuing sprawl of Dublin city and defend our historic villages from over development. - Yours, etc,
JOHN KENNY,
Monkstown Valley,
Co Dublin.