A planning application to demolish a farm courtyard owned by Coolmore Stud owner John Magnier is based on the “derelict” and “dangerous” nature of the buildings there, according to a letter to Tipperary County Council.
A demonstration organised by Hedgerows Ireland took place at the farm location at Parkville, just outside Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, yesterday evening (Thursday, October 3) to protest the demolition of the farm courtyard.
Hedgerows Ireland, which is a non-government organisation (NGO) set up to protest against hedgerow removal in Ireland, said in the run-up to the protest: “Our group has reason to believe that the hedgerows and landscape features are at imminent risk of removal, and the farm buildings in due course, if permission is granted by Tipperary County Council.”
According to a letter, dated September 11, sent to the planning section of the county council by an engineering consultancy firm on behalf of Melclon Unlimited, which is owned by Magnier, the demolition of the structures in question is being proposed due to their “derelict” and “dangerous” state.
The letter said the company is seeking permission to demolish existing derelict buildings at the site.
According to the letter, the site appears to be split into three separate units. The roof has apparently fallen in on two of these units, and the remaining roof structure is “in very poor condition”, and would also fall “a matter of time”.
The letter also stated that the floor is undermined due to an underlying void and there are cracks in the walls.
The letter claims that the roof truss suffers from “low-quality assembly” and that, as result of this and the weight of the roof, the walls are bulging in a manner the letter said “would be considered severe”.
“Overgrown vegetation throughout appears to have interfered with the structural integrity of all the buildings. Overall, the buildings are considered to be in poor condition and are dangerous. Our client wishes to demolish the buildings and incorporate the area into the adjoining pasture,” the letter says.
The public notice signaling the company’s intent to seek planning permission for the demolition said that the lands “contain a derelict yard of rubble stone construction”.
“It is heavily overgrown and crumbling and is now a serious health and safety concern,” the notice said.
The protest organised by Hedgerows Ireland went ahead as planned yesterday evening, with organisers saying some 70 people attended, which is said to have included farmers.
In a letter to John Magnier dated July 26, Hedgerows Ireland and the Clonmel Historical and Archaeological Society said that the built structures at the site “date back over 150 years and are a wonderful testament to the craftsmen who used locally-quarried limestone and lime mortar to created these irreplaceable reminders of an earlier era”.
Representing Hedgerows Ireland, Alan Moore told protesters that one of the reasons the demonstration was being held was “to protest at the buying up of land by billionaire investors”.
Moore called on John Magnier to meet with Hedgerows Ireland and other organisers of the protest to discuss their concerns.