Sir, - We refer to your article "King of Towns" on July 6th. The many thousands who crowded to Dun Laoghaire seafront to enjoy the JFK might have noticed what a grand place Dun Laoghaire was, and that there is much to admire and celebrate in the town.
However, for Dun Laoghaire/ Rathdown County Council to sell a portion of the public gardens of Dun Laoghaire's central square (the Pavilion Gardens) as a "commercial site" for high rise apartments is akin to Dublin Corporation disposing of Stephen's Green, or Galway Corporation promoting apartments in Eyre Square.
This does not augur well for the future of Ireland's only entirely 19th century town. It seems that Dun Laoghaire is facing the same crisis vis a vis its 19th century core as Dublin did with its Georgian heritage a decade ago. We in An Taisce would like to see the town's heritage maintained and enhanced by the council, rather than being sold off in order to save the cost of running its parks and redeveloping its publicly owned theatre.
We would again urge the council to have the courage to buy back the Pavilion Gardens, in the interest of the townspeople and of our national heritage. The restoration of the town's central square gardens, and the incorporation of a recreational complex, would meet current needs and acknowledge our responsibility to future generations.
If the present trend continues, Dun Laoghaire will consist of a few 19th century buildings sandwiched between high rise apartment blocks and shopping centres, with traffic jams from the M50 to the ferry. Notwithstanding historic and social considerations, the inevitable traffic chaos generated by this development has been accepted before any traffic plan has been finalised.
Yours etc..
Chairman,
Dun Laoghaire Association of An Taisce, c/o Tailors Hall,
Back Lane,
Dublin 8.