Community of Rathmines will not accept removal and sale of its assets
Community of Rathmines will not accept removal and sale of its assets - The Labour Party
- Postal service to be moved in late August/early September
- Once cleared of the iconic 1930s building, An Post intends to place it for sale
- Demo will take place 11.30am-12.30pm June 21st
On foot of rumours of the imminent closure and sale of Rathmines Post Office, Local TD and Labour Leader Ivana Bacik TD sought and received clarity regarding Rathmines Post Office. She has called for a halt to the sale of Rathmines Post Office.
Deputy Bacik said:
“On foot of rumours circulating of its imminent closure, relocation or sale of our beloved post office in Rathmines, I sought clarification from An Post and can now say that it is expected the main post office will be relocated, either in August or September.
“Once clear of the building, An Post will place it on the market. The art deco post office was built in 1934 by the OPW. The diverse community based in this area is already poorly served by publicly owned buildings, with public services diminishing.
“Rathmines has a population equivalent to Drogheda, but as a community is lacking in the provision of social services. The Citizens Information Centre and Community Partnership only recently closed their services in Rathmines.
“The Minister for Communications Patrick Donovan and the Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers must consent to and sign off on any disposal of land, buildings or other material assets by An Post. I am therefore calling on both Ministers to give our community their word that they will not sign off on the sale and that they will work with local representatives and residents to find a way to keep the building in community use. The State should not be selling the family silver!
“We have been working hard to find a way to keep the building working for the benefit of our community and I continue to advocate creative and collaborative solutions, alongside local Councillors Fiona Connelly and Dermot Lacey and others. However, the news that moving the service may take place in a matter of months, and the sale of the building may take place soon thereafter, means we must now up the ante.
“On 21st June at 11.30am, we will join with local activists and users of the service to demonstrate against the proposed moving of the service and subsequent sale of the building. I urge all those who share our concerns to join us. Ní neart go cur le chéile. We must keep up our efforts to save our services, and to protect our public amenities that belong to our community. “