Trinity College Dublin has revealed its plans for a €100 million development of the north entrance to the college, which would require the demolition of six Victorian terraced houses on Pearse Street in Dublin.
Under the proposed development, which has drawn criticism from both An Taisce and the Irish Georgian Society, a major new entrance to the college would be constructed to allow the campus to be linked with the Pearse Street area and the city centre to the north of the college.
This would aim to open up the street to the local community, which the college says have been in "active dialogue" with the college over how best to improve the area.
The plans are to be submitted to Dublin City Council for planning permission later this month
However, if successful, they would necessitate the removal of five Victorian houses at the end of a terrace situated next to the college's Luce Sports Hall, as well as another house at the other side of the terrace.
These would be replaced with modern stone buildings and two new entrances to the street.
But TCD says it plans to retain and renovate the remaining seven houses in the terrace.
The majority of these would be upgraded and converted for use as student housing at upper levels, with new shops and student services buildings provided at ground level.
The final date for completion of the project will depend on funding and the outcome of the planning application. But construction could start within a year.
Only two ends of the Victorian terrace are listed as protected. As a result, TCD believes that by retaining a Victorian shopfront which extends across the five houses due to be demolished, and moving it to adjacent houses on the terrace, it can ensure these structures are preserved and renovated at some time in the future.
But Ms Valerin O'Shea of An Taisce said that although she had yet to see the completed planning application, she would be "very concerned" about the precedent which the removal of part of a protected structure to another building, in this case the faience shopfront, would set.
"Taking a protected structure status and placing it on another building is not in line with conservation policies," she said.
"They are granted protected status for where they are. The windows in Bewley's are protected in Bewley's. But it doesn't mean you can just take it and place it anywhere."
"Our feeling would be that other ways of opening up Pearse Street should be examined."
Mr Tim Cooper, head of buildings at TCD, said it had "agreed to disagree" with An Taisce, which would be given the opportunity to make its views known during the planning process.