Sir, – Graham Hickey of the Dublin Civic Trust (Culture, September 5th) believes that because Georgian buildings in the north inner city have not been “gutted” that they “offer a greater opportunity to foster a vibrant residential community”. In fact the opposite is true.
Georgian buildings are typified by being four or five stories high, with no lifts, high ceilings, no damp proof courses or insulation, and limited modern plumbing or wiring. Most such buildings have no dedicated parking to the front, nowhere to put wheelie bins or store rubbish, and often have steep steps to the front door. These features make them very expensive to heat, difficult to get around and not very conducive to modern living, especially for the elderly or those with young families. Additionally in very many cases Georgian terraces have been subject to in-fill developments to the rear that have eliminated rear garden space and vehicle access, and that block light.
Georgian terraces are much less practical than modern apartment buildings which have underground parking, lifts, roof-gardens, communal bins and so on. This is why Georgian houses have commonly been sub-divided into small one bedroom units, attractive only to childless people with no car and limited means. They repel both families and prosperous professionals, instead facilitating a transient, indigent population and thus are the antithesis of housing required for a stable and prosperous community.
Well-meaning heritage enthusiasts must realise that real people cannot live in the past. – Yours, etc,
JOHN THOMPSON,
Shamrock Street,
Phibsboro, Dublin 7.