Submitted
to the City Council, just ahead of the deadline of 30th November:
To
whom it may concern,
As a Waterford person, I am delighted at the
prospect of the development of the North Quays.
As somebody who worked on the R & H
Hall\Waterford Flour Mills site for twenty years, and as a member of Waterford
Archaeological and Historical Society, I was delighted to see, that part of the
North Quays Master Plan was the preservation of the
Hennebique Warehouse.
This
building is the last remaining tangible link to a site which was part of the
thriving maritime history of Waterford. Grain stores, a water powered flour
mill and a box factory occupied this site in the 19th century, an
ancient ferry operated from the site to the city.
However,
I am now puzzled as to why the Council,
who state in the Master Plan that the building will be considered in any future
development, now brings forward a plan to demolish it. The latter seems
contrary to all the aspirations/policies in the draft Master Plan.
I
believe that the thrust of a recent engineers report to the Council is that too
much physical compromise would be needed to enable its adaptive reuse. He does
not actually discuss how it might be reused, merely stating that "it is
difficult to see what future use the building could serve”, I disagree.
The North Quays Master Plan aspires to the
provision of a visitor centre, exhibition space and other cultural amenities. I
see no reason why The Hennebique Warehouse couldn't be adapted to these and
other uses. Here are some examples:
·
Maritime museum (In a city with such a maritime heritage, there have
been many calls for a Maritime Museum, the major obstacle was to find a
location, here is a readymade and most appropriate location)
·
Industrial Museum.
·
Gallery\Exhibition Centre.
·
Visitor Centre.
With a nine storey building it would be
possible to have a combination of some, if not all, of the above.
The floor to ceiling height has been cited as a
disadvantage, again, I disagree. The floor to ceiling height is 2650mm, except
the top floor, where it is 3800mm! On a recent visit to Tullamore in County
Offaly, I paid a visit to the Tullamore DEW experience, where the old Bond
Store is now a very attractive and successful visitor centre, the floor to
ceiling height in the reception area and gift shop is 2000mm.
I appeal to the City Council to preserve this
iconic building, I do not use the word iconic lightly, the Oxford Dictionary
defines an Icon as -
A person or thing regarded as a representative
symbol or as worthy of veneration. Whilst the Hennebique Warehouse is not worthy of
veneration, it is most definitely a representative symbol of the history and heritage of this site.
Not only is it listed in the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage as a
building of National importance, it was part of the fabric of a once thriving
site which gave employment to people from Ferrybank, the City and surrounding
areas, in some cases, to 2 and sometimes 3 generations of the one family and it
contributed to the social and economic life of the city for over 100 years.
While
the Hennebique Warehouse stands it will be a palpable link to the heritage of
the site, the port and indeed, the city.
Yours
Sincerely,
Michael
Maher
