People Before Profit’s John Lyons wants the mid-19th century building to be added to the Record of Protected Structures list
At tonight’s meeting of Dublin City Council an emergency motion proposed by People Before Profit councillor John Lyons to protect the historic, Famine-era Model School in Glasnevin was passed unanimously; speaking shortly after the meeting Cllr Lyons said:
‘It is quite unbelievable that such an historic building, a school built more than 150 years ago during the Famine era that would put a lot of recently built school buildings to shame in terms of its quality, currently has no statutory protection. I believe the Model School should be assessed in terms of its architectural, heritage and historic value and should be afforded the protection of being added to the Record of Protected Structures list.’
The site on which the school is situated is due to be auctioned by the Office of Public Works (OPW) tomorrow afternoon, sold to the highest private bidder and the school could potentially be demolished, according to Cllr Lyons, who believes the OPW has questions to answer, as does the government: ‘All appropriate lands in the ownership of state and semi-state bodies should be developed for public and affordable housing as should be done in this instance. The Model School can be protected and preserved, and the site could be sensitively developed to supply much needed public and affordable housing on the site. Why the OPW has not consider this option is a mystery.’
Dublin City Council Moves To Protect Historic Model School In Glasnevin.
