Sir, - Nearly 50 years ago my husband and I bought an old cottage near Westport, and we have come to love the area, regarding the cottage as a second home, and going there at all times of the year and in all weathers.Naturally over that time we have seen many changes: we ourselves have progressed from Tilley lamps and water butts to electricity and a group water scheme. Westport too has changed greatly from a quiet town, with the entrance gates to Westport House at the end of the Mall, to a bustling tourist destination. We applaud the lively atmosphere of a thriving community, but no development, it seems, comes without a downside.We must be among a minority who remember when bank managers lived "over the shop", and we recall the elegance of the Bank of Ireland House in the Mall, with its rear windows looking over a magnificent garden.
Now I see from the property pages of The Irish Times that this garden, now sadly neglected, is for sale. I wonder what will happen to it.There would appear to be a great opportunity for creating a small park in the central area - the town park now accommodates a leisure centre. Such a park would have the advantage of a gate that could be locked at night, and it would provide an oasis of tranquillity for visitors and residents alike. It would be sad if such an historic plot became the site of another supermarket, apartment block, or car park.-Yours, etc.,M. Lyndall Luce,Bushy Park Road,Dublin 6.