Redesigning the cities

Sir, – Michael McDowell is quite correct when he says that, "Dublin City Council has the identical rights that the 18th-century Wide Street Commissioners had to reconfigure and redesign the capital city" ("Let us redesign to draw desperately needed people back to our cities", Opinion & Analysis, November 25th).

However, a considerable difference between now and then is the growth of the legislation (and the legal profession) between then and now.

I know of a single notorious case of a Georgian building in the north inner city that Dublin City Council has been trying to acquire with a compulsory purchase order for over 20 years, but the procedure remains tied up in legal wrangles, during which time the building remains derelict and housing waiting lists grow.

Perhaps he could have a word with his colleagues in the Seanad or Four Courts? – Yours, etc,