Dispute in Shankill where a housing development is a threat to mature trees.
Residents in Shankill south Dublin are not happy that plans to build 140 houses on a site at Dorney Court could see 150 mature trees cut down.
Opposition to the tree felling is strongest from residents living in Foxes Grove which runs along the side of the development and where most of the trees will be lost.
Celine Ryan believes that the houses could have been designed to include the preservation of the woodlands. Another resident Gregory O'Reilly says that when he bought the house 15 years ago, it was because of the proximity to the woods. Lil Smith says that residents were promised that the trees would never be touched.
While many residents are opposed to the tree felling, they are not against the housing development. They had been given assurances by local councillors that most of the trees on the site would be saved. However, one morning before Christmas they awoke to the sound of the bulldozers cutting down a section of trees. To stop further felling, residents stood in front of the trees last week.
This continued opposition has led to a split among the residents. Some say that the builder has full planning permission and is offering to plant more trees than he is removing. Trish Donnelly is happy that the builder has given residents the concession of trees to border their gardens. She fears that if the protest carries on, residents will lose the trees and end up with nothing. Peig Coyle agrees and says there is no point in pursuing any protest as the builder has full planning permission.
Protesters continue to lobby the builder, local politicians and the planning authorities. They feel they were lulled into a false sense of security after a tree preservation order was won for the area about three years ago.
Albert Smith of the planning department at Dublin County Council says that the councillors were aware of the plans and it is quite obvious that the development can not take place without some effect on the trees. A lot of the trees that will go are not young and are not healthy.
The better trees would be preserved.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 6 March 1984. The reporter is Alasdair Jackson.
