There have been renewed calls for a solution to a standoff at a heritage site in Celbridge in Co Kildare, as a protest there enters its second summer.
OPW staff have returned to work at Castletown House after an eighteen month absence, but service vehicles are still unable to access the site.
Castletown House is owned by the State and its estate has been open to the public for three decades.
In September 2023, following the private sale of nearby land, an entrance and car park near the M4 was closed to the public and OPW staff.
New access routes were proposed by the OPW near Celbridge village, but some locals objected and this group, who call themselves the Gatekeepers, have kept a presence at the gates ever since.
That led to most OPW staff not accessing the site, services such as a cafe closing down and the site not being fully maintained.
Last month it was announced that staff would return to Castletown in May but service vehicles remain unable to access the estate because of a dispute over them using an areas called Lime Avenue, which has been a traditional pedestrian route.
That means that a return of services such as toilets and bins and an extension of opening hours has not been possible, while much of the site remains overgrown.
Local resident Fiona McCarthy, who was walking with friends on Lime Avenue, said she wants to see a resolution to the dispute as she misses the markets and other events that once took place in the estate.
"They both need to come together and find a solution. There has to be a middle ground somewhere where they can meet," she said.
However Stephanie Jackson, who grew up in the shadow of the estate, said she agrees with the Gatekeepers stance but wants to see Castletown return to normal operations.
"We want to keep Castletown preserved as it always was, and back open to the public and keep it clean. It's a shame what's happening, to be honest."
The Minister of State for the OPW, Kevin 'Boxer' Moran, has said he will meet with all the groups involved in the comings weeks in a effort to find a resolution.
The OPW will apply for planning permission in the comings weeks to construct a new carpark on nearby site, he said, but in the meantime some vehicle access on Lime Avenue will be required.
"What I want to do is to open Castletown dawn to dusk, but I have to get service in. Its a 250-acre site that needs people in it, but it also needs to be serviced. That's the cleaning of the toilets, that's the bin lorries. These are necessary central service and we are talking here four to five vehicles a day."
The Gatekeepers group have said they would be happy to meet the Minister but their concerns have not been addressed.
Spokeswoman Jackie De Lacey said they want any service vehicles travelling up Lime Avenue to have a person escort them.
"We didn't want vehicles on the avenue, but we understand that they had to have essential vehicles and we went along with that, but that they were walked up in line with the OPW standard operating procedure.
"Right now they've changed that and they want to have them escorted by another vehicle and we feel it's unsafe because they'll be travelling at 10 kilometres per hour, and that's too fast for the pedestrian traffic."
Another group, the Save Castletown Committee, said it has put forward a proposal for reopening in February 2024 that should now be revisited to "unlock progress" and that they "wait in hope" for a meeting with the Minister.
The Chairperson of the Castletown Foundation, which has responsibility for the historic contents of the Georgian mansion on the estate, has said the State has a duty of care to resolve the issues with access to the estate.
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In a statement, David Sheehan also set out the historic significance of the property.
"The property, originally purchased by Desmond Guinness from the Conolly Carew family in 1967, is the premier classical house built in Ireland in the 18th century.
"It became the headquarters of the Irish Georgian Society and subsequently into the ownership of the Castletown Foundation, a charitable body.
"It is of both national and international importance due to its exceptional art, architecture and its wonderful contents.
"Ownership was transferred into State hands in 1994 when it was gifted to the people of Ireland by the Castletown Foundation. It is has been managed by the OPW on behalf of the State since then.
"Investment in the property has seen the house transformed over this time. This has allowed tours of the house, seminars, events, a music programme, free school visits, as well providing a cafe in the wing," he said.
"As it now stands, the house and cafe remain closed to the public since late 2023 when the lands to the north and east of the house were acquired by a new owner.
"The new owner has closed the access which used to be available to traffic coming from the M4. In conjunction, with this certain local residents decided to oppose entry via the Celbridge gates to the estate; the use of the Lime Avenue from Celbridge village for both vehicular and pedestrian access being at the core of this dispute.
"A small but vocal group, claiming it has universal support, has asserted, inaccurately, that this route has always been a pedestrian one and they do not want to allow any form of vehicular traffic using it, including for operatives, maintenance and repair crews," Mr Sheehan added.
He also said the State has a "duty of care to see this access issue is speedily resolved".
The OPW has said it will continue to work towards the reopening of the site and the Minister is due to meet with all of the groups in the area next week.
