Rathmines post office sale “short-sighted” says Hayes

Eoin Hayes, Social Democrats candidate for Kimmage-Rathmines, has called Government to bring the post office in Rathmines into public ownership.

In recent weeks, An Post has announced that they were looking to sell the post office as it looks to overhaul the national post office netowrk.

Hayes said should the sale go ahead, it would “represent a significant loss for the village.”

“Given the historical significance of the site and the need for a vibrant public space in Rathmines, now is time for action from Dublin City Council and the Government to support our growing communities.,” he said.

The recent Rathgar Residents Association AGM, heard concern from residents about the potential closure in Rathmines.

Hayes noted that people in Rathgar are reliant on the post office in Rathmines, members of the association expressed concern over the sale of a long-standing public building for private use.

After 90 years of An Post operating at the site, the closure of the post office will be a significant loss to Rathmines. It is disappointing that An Post did not consult with the community on this.”

Hayes also called on the Minister for Communications and local TD, Eamon Ryan, to reverse this decision by An Post.

“If Green Party politics means loss of community spaces, I think it’s going in the wrong direction,” Hayes stated.

Hayes said the potential closure is emblematic of a “decline in community facilities and public spaces in one of the most vibrant parts of our city.”

“As I’ve gone door-to-door speaking with residents in the area, there’s a universal concern that this is the latest in a long line of loss of prized community facilities in the local area,” he said.

“Across the country, towns and villages are losing public spaces and the opportunity to host public meetings, events and community groups. If the Rathmines Post Office is sold to the highest bidder, the Government will have forfeited the opportunity to keep a crucial public space for the people of Rathmines and the surrounding areas.”

In recent weeks, the potential closure of the post office in Phibsborough has come to the public’s attention – post offices on both Northside and Southside are under threat of closure.

Hayes said that the potential closures are representative of “Government parties’ short-term political thinking.

The Social Democrat candidate pointed to a number of famous buildings in the area going into decline.

He noted that the Rathmines Town Hall, where Handel’s The Messiah was performed and where Éamon de Valera resigned from Sinn Féin to found Fianna Fáil, has been on lease to the Rathmines College of Further Education since 1980.

As recently as 2014, local political representatives have expressed a desire to return this historic building to a public space, he noted.

“Government should work with Dublin City Council to buy the post office site and provide a much-needed public space for the people of Rathmines to host local groups, meetings and events.”