Sir, – The letter from Robert Ballagh (July 29th) revealing the situation at the Broadstone station in Dublin filled me with dismay.
Anyone who is familiar with the magnificent building by John Skipton Mulvany, which was once the terminus of the Midland Great Western Railway, will be appalled by the grim concrete wall that is now being built in front of it and which will totally distort the vista from nearby Constitution Hill.
The Broadstone building is just one of several remarkable buildings in the area. Across the road is the Kings Inns and nearby are the famous Black Church, the original Mater Hospital and the neo-Gothic parish church on Berkeley Road.
Twenty-five years ago, a local community action group campaigned vigorously to have the Blessington Street Basin restored, and Dublin City Council eventually did precisely that. The action group then turned its attention to the Broadstone station building, hoping to have the magnificent vista restored, but eventually the group ran out of steam.
All these years later, one can only hope that if the public becomes aware of what is currently being built behind the usual barricades, the Luas authorities will revise their plans and replace this hideous wall with a more sympathetic structure.
– Yours, etc,
JERRY CROWLEY
Chapelizod,
Dublin 20.