At long last we may see the Clontarf baths reopening. A little-known company, Abbeybeg Ltd, has just lodged a planning application to develop a two-storey building to house a crafts centre, restaurant and tea rooms, an art gallery and small offices. The man behind the company is none other than David Cullen, of the Turk's Head pub in Temple Bar, who has been successfully dabbling in housing sites in and out of the city. Cullen tried to offload the baths three years ago but there were no takers because of the vigilance of local conservation groups. The baths - privately owned for over a century - cover an area of 5.5 acres including three acres of tidal waters.

Part of the original site was handed over to Dublin Corporation when it was building the promenade in 1939 but the remainder has pre-63 planning status as a public baths.