Plans to restore Leinster Lawn to be reviewed

Plans to restore Leinster Lawn, which was paved over almost 10 years ago to create a “temporary” car park for the Dáil, are to be reviewed at an Oireachtas Commission meeting next week. A delegation from the Office of Public Works (OPW) is to appear before the commission to discuss plans for a two-storey underground car park, underneath Leinster House, which would facilitate the reinstatement of the lawn facing on to Merrion Square. Leinster Lawn was replaced by a car park in July 1998 as a “temporary” measure during the construction of new facilities for Leinster House. The planning permission for the work at the time required that the lawn be reinstated after the works on Leinster House were completed in 2000. However, this was never done. The car park on the lawn is now mainly used by Dáil staff and journalists. Politicians have their own reserved spaces to one side of the lawn or in front of Leinster House. The facility is available free to all serving and former members of the Oireachtas.

The Irish Times