Madam, - We in the Irish Castles Association wholeheartedly support Europa Nostra in its strong objection - issued from The Hague on November 26th - to the erection of a four-storey hotel only 50 feet from the curtain walls of Trim Castle.
The proposed hotel would rise considerably above the curtain walls and have a profoundly adverse impact on the visual amenity of Trim Castle and environs.
The advice of the professional staff in the Heritage Service that this was inappropriate in this highly sensitive location was ignored by the minister for the environment of the time, Mr Cullen. An appeal to An Bord Pleanála was lodged by various professionals and academics, including a planning inspector and a local councillor. The development was described as "absolutely horrendous".
Sadly, this appeal had to be withdrawn at the last minute as one of the appellants was associated with An Bord Pleanála, which could have cast doubt on its impartiality.
Thus despite strong professional opposition, the application got through due to the prevailing circumstances.
Trim Castle is the largest and finest Norman castle in Ireland. The plan of its remarkable Great Tower or keep - a cross superimposed on a square, thus giving it 20 sides - is unique in European castle architecture, and its circular south gate and barbican are also unusual. Recently, some €4 million have been spent in excavating and conserving the buildings. This work was awarded one of Europa Nostra's most prestigious awards in 2002.
This has resulted in the castle becoming such a popular attraction that delays in the guided tours occur regularly in the tourist season. The main approach to the town from the south-east is dominated by the bulk of the castle and by the gothic towers of the Yellow Steeple and other churches which create a pleasing medieval ambiance. This would be destroyed by the intrusion of a large modern structure into the middle of the prospect.
Trim is an important heritage town. The conserved castle and the adjacent medieval ruins at Newtown Trim make such an outstanding complex of buildings that they are well in the running to be nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It would be scandalous to damage this opportunity by allowing such an intrusive development to go ahead. We call upon the new Minister, Mr Dick Roche, to ensure that if development of this sensitive site is permitted to continue, it be in a suitably unobtrusive form. - Yours, etc.,
EAMONN O'DONOGHUE, Chairman, Irish Castles Association, The Crescent, Galway.