RELATIVES OF the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising will discuss plans to set up a bronze sculpture of the Proclamation in Dublin’s Moore Street with Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht Jimmy Deenihan today.
The ongoing campaign aims to preserve the area’s links to the Easter Rising and prevent commercial development.
“Our plan is not just for a museum – the entire area needs regeneration. This plan is supported by all of the 1916 families. They have never come together before this,” said campaign spokesman Patrick Cooney.
The document HQ16: A Citizens' Plan for Dublincentres on the sculpture as a national monument within a market area. Members of the Connolly, Ceannt, Plunkett, Daly, Clarke and MacDonagh families will ask Mr Deenihan to adopt this as the city's official centenary project. The Minister is chairman of the Oireachtas 1916 Centenary Committee.
Patrick Cooney, great-grandson of Thomas Clarke, says a proposed development involving a retail centre is “very short-sighted”. The area, linking Upper O’Connell Street with Moore Street, is under development by Chartered Land, owned by Joseph O’Reilly. Granted planning permission last year, he intends to build restaurants, apartments, retail units and a car park in a large development.
Cllr Cieran Perry will also attend the meeting today, asking on behalf of Dublin City Council for the surrounding area to be given national monument status.