York Street Buildings, York Street, Dublin 2 (RIP)

Some more old mobile phone pix dug up from the archives, these were taken approximately two years ago before these buildings were demolished. I really liked these buildings, and even though they were done in the old 'tenement' style, they were actually much more modern than that.. although I am unsure exactly what year they were built in. One of the pix shows a plaque on the frontage stating that the buildings had undergone a facelift/renovation in 1991, but obviously within 15 years they were deemed unliveable and have now all been knocked. I think the RCSI bought the last two buildings off the Corpo, the two that were adjacent to the RCSI itself (the end closer to St Stephen's Green), and this injection of cash funded the current building that is going on there. The new units will all be social and affordable housing as far as I know. Shame they didnt keep the facade of the existing one though. Adios!

4 Beresford Place, Dublin 1

Has it really been nearly four weeks since the last contribution..?? Humble apologies to our thousands of loyal readers, there have been other rather enjoyable "summer projects" and addictions that have eaten into our time here at Derelict Dublin. So we'll show this amazing little beauty to you. In a prime location, with Busaras just around the corner, and the LUAS on your doorstep, this is a four-storey over basement king size whopper not to be sneezed at. Whatever about the likes of the two-up two-downs in Cabra being temporarily blessed with the steel shutter treatement, a gorgeous redbrick like this being treated with the same level of neglect is just shameful. Perhaps the reason for its lack of human occupation is akin to the gorgeous redbrick on Clonliffe Road; here the neighbours are The Irish Catholic newspaper - rather you than me, brother. As per the Prospect Square properties, whoever has the keys to this gaf seems to think that slapping a lickle bit of nice primary colour paint onto the front door will somehow cover up all the other dilapidation of the building.

Slightly meandering here. A friend of mine with a keen but non-professional interest in planning matters and the like, once expressed a serious hatred for "facade retention". To him the other meanings of the word facade - a front for show or exhibition purposes but with nothing of substance behind it - was a perfectly fitting dual description of this practise. A good example of this is the retention of some old stone frontage at "Wallace Towers" aka The Italian Quarter as you cross the Milennium Bridge. You've got some nice brickwork propped up with nothing behind it - or in this case, some hyper-modern apartments and newly built from scratch Italian cafes and restaurants. Whats the point in keeping the front of the building, he said, if you're going to crush the rest of it into the ground? I wasnt sure I agreed with him, because for most people the memory of a building, especially private dwellings along the quays or Georgian residences, is what they see on the outside. Never or seldom the interior. What would FitzWilliam Street look like if they had kept the facade for the ESB HQ? Granted it wouldnt be the same, but it would surely be better than the current travesty.

Anyway. Food for thought. We'll try to be more regular with the posting in future. Honest. Try.
Here's a couple more pix to keep you juicy. Check out that ripped out wiring on the doorbell. Mmmm...