Dublin city councillors have voted to protect five more buildings on Moore Street associated with the Easter Rising for their national historical importance.
The elected members unanimously passed the motion on Monday night against the recommendation of council management, which said the council could be exposed to compensation claims if the buildings were made protected structures.
People Before Profit councillor John Lyons proposed the protection of the properties, which include a building held and occupied by Michael Collins during the Rising.
Dublin City Council managers said there were between 8,500 and 9,000 buildings on the register of protected structures – by far the largest number in any local authority in the country.
The area of Moore Street had been subject to an evaluation and conservation assessment prior to a decision to grant planning permission to developer Joe O'Reilly's Chartered Land to redevelop the site, councillors heard.
Only the national monument buildings at 14-17 Moore Street are currently protected.
The five properties included in Mr Lyons’s motion are the O’ Brien’s Mineral Water Building, Henry Place, which was occupied by volunteers in 1916; the White House, Henry Place, which was occupied and held by Michael Collins; No 10 Moore Street and the bottling stores at the rear of 10 Moore Street and Moore Lane.
Also on the list is the Hanlons premises at 20-21 Moore Street, the building where the surrender order was accepted by volunteers after consultation with Thomas Clarke, Joseph Plunkett, Michael Collins and Sean Mac Diarmada.
Councillors were told that including buildings which already had planning permission on the list of protected structures may expose the city council to compensation claims.
Management advised against their inclusion but said that if councillors decided to pass the motion, a detailed evaluation and statutory process would have to take place.
Mr Lyons said he was very disappointed with the council’s response. He claimed the level of indifference to urban heritage shown by the council had been “frequently quite shocking”.
The whole terrace in Moore Street told a story and he believed it was hugely important that the history of it be preserved and told in the future.
The council owns two buildings on Moore Street, which it uses as a waste depot. The rest are in private ownership.
A significant number of buildings on the street, including the Ilac Centre and the 1916 National Monument building, are owned by Chartered Land. The company has permission to build a shopping centre on a 2.7 hectare site stretching from the former Carlton cinema on O’Connell Street to Moore Street, and planned a revamp of the street in that development.
While planning permission was granted for the shopping complex in 2010, no work has started and a spokeswoman for Chartered Land said last month the scheme was “on hold pending a recovery in the Irish economy”.