On Westmoreland Street in Dublin over the course of a day hundreds of people will pass by, the vast bulk of which paying attention to their own lives and little else of the world around them. Some however will be looking around wondering how to either improve their environment or at least maintain it. In this case the built urban environment and how to go about preserving the character of their historic city because if they don’t do it no one will.
Westmoreland Street and its surrounding area just south of O’Connell Bridge in Dublin has come to the attention of the National Heritage Trust, an Taisce, earlier this week for the dearth of “cheap garish signage” and “lower-order shops” that it now comprises. Their concern is that Dublin’s civic and architectural historic core has become a swamped by tasteless and ill considered clutter as a result of the City Council’s failure to bring enforcement to breaches of planning laws.
As such, they have lodged a complaint with the city authorities in which they lay the blame for the decline and “reckless neglect” of the capital’s urban heritage firmly with the Council and expect them to bring enforcement to those in breach of planning permission. Unauthorised shop-fronts and signage, particularly of the temporary, plastic variety, are the foundation on which their complaints are made, with some business having been permitted to operate for without planning permission for several years. “Low-order shops” compete with each other for attention and complete a street frontage made up of otherwise dead frontage. They say this is a city-wide problem, which’s true, but it tends to be somewhat more acceptable in some parts than it is in others.
An Taisce have been in existence for over 60years as the National Trust for Ireland. In their role as impartial monitor, it is their quest to uphold (and not create as their President, Eanna ni Lamhna, was quick to point out) planning policy in the country. In that time they have consistently sought to realise their role in society, much to the antipathy of many with particular vested interests prior to 2008. Almost as often as An Taisce are found to be complaining over a planning issue, individuals are found to be complaining about An Taisce with the Healy Rae family in Kerry among their more pronounced detractors; “Why must An Taisce stick their noses?”
In medieval times, bloodstained bandages were wrapped around a pole and placed outside barber shops. Back then barbers were the contemporary surgeons and even dentists – the bloodstained pole outside indicated the function of that which went on inside. There’s no chance An Taisce would ever approve of such practice today on a hygiene basis alone, but in the timeless tradition of form following function there was a reasonably sound argument for it. Could it, perhaps, be argued that the ‘cheap garish’ nature of the signage goes some way to describing the function of what goes on in the fast-food outlets of Westmoreland Street? And at least their ‘low-order’ shops bring an activity to the street in contrast to their dead-fronted neighbours such as at Bewleys which closed in 2004 and wasn’t replaced by another tenant.
It comes down to taste of course. There was also reported in the Irish Times last week that a drive-thru McDonalds had been refused planning permission in Sandymount, Dublin 4. The McDonalds restaurant was originally objected to on health of local children in nearby primary schools who promote healthy eating policies, with the initial refusal ultimately on the basis that the proposal would run contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area. Suspicious minds may also be quick to wonder whether garishness so often associated with the golden arches would just be too out of character with the leafy suburb. An Taisce seemed to steer clear of this of this particular planning matter, where in many other similar circumstance they would be quick to send a letter of protest.
In that same report they issued concern over Parlament Street as well. They (along with many others) have in the past raised concern over O’Connell Street. In this instance though, the focus was just south of the Liffey where they say the law is being broken. Supermac’s had been refused permission for certain signage and alterations made to the shopfront in October 2009 and Charlie’s 3 Chinese takeaway, had been refused permission for its shopfront and to operate as a fast-food restaurant in 2005, but strangely has remained open.
According to Supermac’s Managing director, Pat McDonagh, the signs referred to by An Taisce were temporary and Supermac’s was in the process of applying to the council for permanent projecting signs needed to attract customers. “An Taisce musn’t know there’s a recession – without these signs, which are less garish and more delicate than the flat signs, people could walk by and not even know we’re there,” he said.
There are many who question the necessity of an Taisce – largely those keen to build one-off homes in rural areas with spectacular opportunities to frame views with a bay window. Generally speaking, an Taisce are only ever heard of when they are objecting or complaining over some environmental matter. Chief among moans over An Taisce are found is that it really could be anybody (for a membership of €45) in any part of the country making the complaint and that that person may never have even been to where they are complaining about.
If An Taisce don’t monitor Ireland’s heritage however, who will? For the morally conscious and proud Irish, their existence has a sound rationale. The objections come as investors ask what merits their attention and what doesn’t.
Town Hall Square in Copenhagen is another capital with a rich heritage in its civic core – yet here, the historic architecture is adorned with neon advertising screens and bright (perhaps garish) lights. Piccadilly Square in London is similar albeit on a much larger scale to Supermacs and Charlie’s 3, yet their gaudy signs have become iconic. They are contained locations in the city centres. Edinburgh retains its historical town centre largely void of plastic temporary signage, but that seems as much a tourism strategy as a heritage one.
At home however, there is another relevant case study – on High Street in Kilkenny City, it’s primary thoroughfare, no plastic or temporary signage is permitted. The same policy is place for O’Connell Street in the capital, but in Kilkenny it seems to work, so much so that even the gaudy Euro 2 and Westmoreland Street offender Supermacs sit comfortably on the streetscape alongside more tasteful shop fronts.
For their part, Dublin City Council have said that the submission received from An Taisce “will be investigated and where appropriate enforcement will be taken,” and that they received just shy of 1,000 complaints last year, and investigated all of them. They didn’t specify how many of those complaints came from An Taisce.
Over the course of twenty-four hours on the historical core of south Dublin City, on Westmoreland Street there will pass by hundreds of people. There will be some, perhaps plain clothes an Taisce members looking up lamenting the indifference of fast food outlets to the importance of old buildings. There will be the rush hours when no one even notices the old buildings or savagery of their contemporary decoration. There will be the fast food outlet owners wondering how to better bring attention to their already ‘garish’ signage so that people will still know where to go for a ‘Snack box’ or a 3-in-1 in this recession, and then, at around about half-two in the morning, there will be glary eyed individuals stumbling from out from Fleet Street and Temple Bar and they’ll need the ‘garish’ signage so that they know where to go next.
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