Sir, - Some 30 years ago I was one of a group of architectural students who occupied Hume Street in an effort to halt the destruction of Georgian Dublin. We remained in occupation during Christmas 1969 and were later to face the bulldozer in a brave effort to stop the destruction of one of the finest Georgian streets of Europe. While unsuccessful in our stand, I feel we can take some small credit for the more enlightened approach that the planners of Dublin Corporation adopted from then on.
Hundreds of thousands of tourists now flock to our city every year to view and appreciate not only the Georgian squares and buildings which thankfully remain, but also the many historical and archaeological sites dotted around our country. Indeed, the great number of interpretative centres now in evidence must surely bear witness to an Irish pride in Irish culture. Although missing the "most magic moment" (Chris Stillman, Letters, December 23rd), RTE's solstice show further stressed this national pride. From this perspective, therefore, it is inconceivable that another Hume Street could occur today - or is it?
A body named the Dublin Port Company, which controls land and sea in the centre of Dublin, proposes to fill in 52 acres of sea in the city's very heart. This, in my opinion, amounts to a far more serious act of destruction than even that of Hume Street all those years ago. It contrasts dramatically with developments taking place in progressive cities throughout Europe where waterways are being developed as amenities to be enjoyed by people. The Port Company is using a 1933 Foreshore Act to facilitate this process and it requires only the signature of the Minister for the Marine to achieve full approval.
It seems rather extraordinary that the erection of an extension to a private dwelling of greater than 247 sq ft requires a much more rigid process than that of the Dublin Port Company. The latter's proposal is the equivalent of 15 times the size of Croke Park. I thought my protesting days had ended, but alas no!
Sean Dublin Bay Loftus retired from public life happy in the knowledge that he had succeeded in stopping the same body from building an oil refinery and gas caverns in Dublin Bay. He has now, however, felt it necessary to return to oppose this current proposal. This is not merely a Clontarf or Dublin issue, but a national one. Frank McDonald, where is your voice? Where are the protesting voices of today's architectural students? Who has heard the disapproving cry from An Taisce, Living City groups, and all of the other preservation societies?
In this age of information technology the lack of notice or want of information will not be accepted as an excuse in future years for inadequate action on this matter. Coverage of the Hume Street issue by your then environment correspondent was, I think, one of the factors which resulted in the student occupation in the first place. I appeal to The Irish Times to now echo this earlier concern and emphasise the appalling vista which faces us in the new millennium if the proposal of the Dublin Port company is accepted. - Yours, etc.,
Pat O'Brien, Chelsea Gardens, Clontarf, Dublin 3.