I propose to share my time with my friend from Trinity College. The purpose behind this motion is clear and straightforward and I believe the Minister will have no difficulty supporting what I propose.
A number of important listed buildings in Dublin have recently been destroyed in mysterious and suspicious circumstances, in some cases following the refusal of planning permission and in others apparently to force a situation where planning permission becomes inevitable, but in all cases to make a mockery of the planning regulations and the purpose behind the listing of buildings, which is to preserve intact buildings of historic and architectural value. We all know what happened recently to Merrion Hall, just down the road from here.
I want to concentrate this morning on a more recent happening — the destruction of 30 Kenilworth Square, Rathmines. This house was built by the Eason family in the mid-1800s. It was listed for conservation by Dublin Corporation in their development plan. It was soundly constructed and well maintained at the time of its sale to Galesberg Trading in 1989. Galesberg Trading sought permission from Dublin Corporation to demolish No. 30 and to build a block of 12 flats and four two storey houses at the rear. Permission was refused by Dublin Corporation on 25 January 1990. Galesberg, as was their right, then appealed to An Bord Pleanála. In August of that year An Bord Pleanála granted permission for the four two storey houses at the rear but there was no word on the appeal to have the main house demolished. An Bord Pleanála did not do then what they should have done, which was to send the developers off with a flea in their ear for their effrontery in seeking to have a listed house demolished. There then followed a sadly too familiar saga. No. 30 stood empty, showing every sign of neglect. The ground floor windows were broken. There were no locks or alarm. The inside was stripped and the power was cut off. Tons of rubble were dumped on the base of a listed cypress tree. Portaloo cabins were placed in the front garden, attracting vagrants and, most significantly of all, it was learned that there was no insurance on the building.
Various local groups were perturbed by what had happened. They made their views and fears known to An Bord Pleanála who were written to on the matter. Then, lo and behold, almost 17 months since Galesberg applied to have the house knocked down, with nobody having heard from An Bord Pleanála, on 13 May this year there was not one but three fires in this house. There was evidence of petrol used in substantial quantities. There is no doubt among those who have investigated the matter that the house was deliberately torched. As there was no insurance, there was no insurance investigation although the Garda are actively pursuing their inquiries and they have no doubt that the fire was started on purpose.
Following the fire, Dublin Corporation examined the building. They said the walls were sound. When An Bord Pleanála were informed of this by the local residents, who made very clear their concern at what might have happened, within a matter of weeks the board awoke from its slumber, broke its 17 months silence, and gave permission to have the house demolished. This was done within a matter of hours. A listed building became once more a heap of rubble. The law and by-laws were shown to be totally ineffective.
What happened in Kenilworth Square is not an isolated case. It is happening far too frequently and it is becoming a national scandal. In this case the primary responsibility lies with the developers — Galesberg Trading Limited. They allowed the house to remain open, unprotected and uninsured. They allowed it to be there as a target for vandals. If they did not cause the fire directly then they made it possible by their neglect. They, in a sense, invited the fire to take place. They are the only known financial beneficiaries. They stood to gain substantially from what happened. The whole thing stinks to high Heaven.
An Bord Pleanála, too, must take a major share of the blame. From the word "go" they should have said what Dublin Corporation said: this is a listed building, it will not be demolished, end of story, go away. They did not. They delayed for 17 months and they took no action whatsoever during those 17 months to ensure that a listed building was preserved and within weeks of the fire taking place they said it could be demolished in spite of the fact that Dublin Corporation had said it was structurally sound.
Any public process must be open and accountable. An Bord Pleanála have shown in this case, as in others, that they are neither open nor accountable. The low level of public credibility in An Bord Pleanála at present is a national scandal. That is a horror story in the area of conservation that I want to put on the record.
The vast majority of developers are responsible. They have the conservation of the area at heart and if they want to make a profit they also respect the architectural integrity of where they are working. In this case that has not been so. Through the failure of the law and An Bord Pleanála something has happened which has deprived this area of Dublin of a very important architectural asset.
Dublin Corporation, led by former Senator Alexis FitzGerald, recently passed a motion on the destruction of the house in Kenilworth Square. I want to put on the record what Dublin Corporation have asked the Minister to do. They want a Bill to be taken through all Stages before the summer recess which would place the full responsibility of caring for listed buildings on the owners and that in advance of purchasing such a building the potential purchaser should be made aware of his or her responsibility. The corporation in their all-party motion, passed with the support of all parties on Dublin Corporation, asked:
That the Bill would delete section 56 (2) (a) of the Planning and Development Act, 1963, relating to compensation and the two year period following a fire and instead request the Minister for the Environment to permit the chief planning officer or the assistant city manager responsible, Dublin Corporation or with an appeal, the Board of An Bord Pleanála, who believe that damage to a listed building, the subject of a planning application was damaged or destroyed maliciously (whether or not anyone was convicted for causing such damage or destruction). (b) To refuse any such planning application, unless and until the said listed building has been reinstated, to the condition it was in prior to such damage or destruction. (c) Where possible that ownership should ensure that listed buildings are not vacant and instead are occupied at least temporarily whilst reasonable planning applications are made; if this is not possible that they either instal an alarm system or at least block up the structure to a standard provided by way of regulation under the Act and ensure that the building is inspected by a competent architect, engineer, building surveyor at least every three months and a written report provided to the owner and that the report include a comment on the state of the roof, walls, gutter and downpipes and the electrical installation. (d) That the Bill would include severe penalties for not observing the intended purpose of the Bill and that ownership should by an appropriate period following the passage of the Act consult with the relevant planning authority, satisfy them on the adequacy of the intended protection and advise the relevant authority in writing when this protection is in place and furthermore as to who is responsible for the keeping of the relevant file relating to the property in question. (e) That the same provisions be applied to State or semi-State owned listed buildings and that the "consultation" privilege in the 1963 Act be removed.
I do not expect the Minister who is not from the relevant Department to answer me this morning but there is great concern and justified outrage at the failure of the due process to protect listed buildings.
Until we can establish the principle that just as in environmental matters the polluter pays so too will those who have responsibility for protecting listed buildings who stand to gain from their destruction, and until we can ensure that they will not gain from what is happening in mysterious circumstances, then unfortunately this saga will continue.
