Green-light for Stephen’s Green demolition “not the end” say campaigners
Organisers behind the campaign to Save Stephen’s Green have said that “it is not the end” as plans for its demolition have been given the go-ahead by Dublin City Council (DCC).
Organisers behind the campaign to Save Stephen’s Green have said that “it is not the end” as plans for its demolition have been given the go-ahead by Dublin City Council (DCC).
Yesterday, the green light was given for a €100m redevelopment, which includes the demolition of the main facade of the iconic city-centre shopping plaza.
“While this is a disgraceful decision, it is not the end of the campaign,” said one campaigner behind Save Stephen’s Green (SSG).
“We will be appealing DCC's decision to An Coimisiún Pleanála and will be asking for the public's support in the coming weeks.”
Speaking to Aontacht, they highlighted that the newly approved plan is “practically identical to the one that was submitted two years ago with the exception of the new facade”.
Initial plans lodged in 2023 were greenlit by DCC, but blocked by An Coimisiún Pleanála on the grounds that they "lack[ed] a strong sense of original aesthetic and would not achieve a sufficiently high standard of placemaking, urban design and architecture at this key city centre location".
Office use comprised the largest component of the original scheme, making up 35,043m2 of offices and ancillary spaces.
“The focus by the developers is to include as much office space as possible while limiting retail and driving out small businesses,” said SSG campaigners.
“Stephen's Green Shopping Centre is far from the perfect building, but it has enormous potential. Instead, the developers are pointing out all its faults and using this as a justification to knock the building down and build an 8 storey building which will include 6 storeys of offices.
“On top of that, the design they propose to justify the so-called ‘rejuvenation’ is so inappropriate to the extent that it's offensive. It should also be noted that the planners asked for the building's facade to be redesigned significantly. Instead, the architects added a canopy and a tree at the entrance and the scheme got permission.”
They are encouraging the public to share the campaign to preserve the building far and wide to highlight what is happening.
“We have posted a link to the petition and a list of emails of politicians to contact over this. Support for our cause is almost unanimous and it's an example of planners not acting in the public interest.”
Having been approved by DCC, the new scheme will again be brought before An Coimisiún Pleanála for consideration.
