Vol. 462 No. 4
67 Mr. Lawlor asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht the overall approach to the preservation on the remains of a 13th century Friary in Temple Bar, Dublin 2, recently uncovered in development work; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the proposals of the Office of Public Works have been ridiculed by a number of interested groups; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4784/96]
The overall approach is to preserve archaeological remains where possible. It is also desirable that those remains be available for viewing by the public. Unfortunately in the case referred to by the Deputy planning permission has been given for a development which if it goes ahead as presently proposed means that foundation walls which have been uncovered cannot be preserved in situ. A number of options have been outlined to me by the National Monuments Service none of which are completely satisfactory. I am considering these in the context of many disparate views as to how the site should be treated in order to determine the best way forward.
