RELATIVES OF THE 1916 leaders have called on the Government to press on with the preservation work on the Moore Street buildings, without delay.

In a statement today the group said they support the Government decision to restore the four houses on Moore Street and honour the area with a 1916 Commemorative Centre in time for the centenary.

The said that now is the “time for action” and are urging the Government to get underway immediately with the preservation work on the buildings that have been “lying vacant and unprotected from the elements”.

Preservation

The campaign group, made up of John Connolly, grandson of James Connolly and Nuala O’Rahilly-Price, lobbied for over 15 years to save No. 16 Moore Street, however a Government decision included three contextual buildings at numbers 14, 15 and 17 and the former Victorian warehouse premises at 8 and 9 Moore Lane. The group also lobbied to secure funding for the project.

Nuala O’Rahilly-Price said they “wholeheartedly” welcomed the announcement in February that NAMA was prepared to finance the National Monument.

John Connolly maintained that they got the best advice available from Shaffrey Associates Architects, who assured them that the terrace of No’s 14 – 17 Moore Street retains the vast bulk of original pre-1916 fabric.

He said the other buildings proposed for regeneration by opposition groups were built post 1916 or have been identified as been in ruins prior to 1916.

He said:

The time for discussion and consultation has passed. We do not want a situation where another winter passes and the significant buildings on Moore Street, 14 – 17, are left to fall into disrepair as a result of flooding, vandalism or general neglect.

“We are assured by the Minister and owner that the necessary funding is in place, and the all consents with the State and An Bord Pleanála are secured. The onus is now on the Government to see this through. We are urging all those with a vested interest in this important project to support this decision and allow regeneration works to begin before it’s too late,” he concluded.

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