Wexford will be playing in the Oscar Traynor final this weekend…
A group of residents living in the Faythe area of Wexford town have been out in full force this week protesting over the planned demolition of historic buildings in their neighbourhood.
No. 90 The Faythe, a cottage over 300 years old, is set to be demolished soon to make room for a new apartment complex. Neighbouring houses No. 92 and 94 are also set to be removed from the street to make room for this new development. The plans have been marked by controversy especially since it was reported that a An Bord Pleanála inspector had recommended the properties be preserved.
Faythe residents took to the streets on Thursday 10th and Friday 11th of April to peacefully protest against the demolition of these historic buildings and the loss of the neighbourhood’s green spaces.
Residents have also repeatedly expressed concerns to Wexford County Council about the lack of parking spaces available to local residents in the Faythe area.
The protests were coordinated in part by a newly formed Facebook page called ‘Fight 4 The Faythe’. The group issued the following statement on Facebook:
“What’s happening to our community and street could very likely land on your doorstep tomorrow. We have been ignored for far too long. We have obliged all who have come into the street visiting or for business but after a recent decision to grant permission to a monstrosity of a development on our street, we have been pushed to this. We have had enough of being told to put up and shut up. We want our heritage and street protected, we want to stop the erasure of what little green space we have left, and we want a safe street and community for all its residents, school and businesses.”
A Wexford Weekly correspondent recently met with ‘Fight 4 The Faythe’ members Helen Dryburgh and Sue Rea to discuss their concerns and their decision to protest.
“Our concern at the moment is to protect our area, prevent the houses from being demolished and protect what little green space we have left.
There have been no considerations given to the residents or the businesses of the street with this development. Ninety objections went into the council and they ignored them. An inspector came down and wrote up a sixty-three page report basically saying it’s not suitable for the development and they ignored it and are going ahead with it anyway.
The house they’re going to demolish is 300 years old. The application went through in 2023. The council ignored the concerns of the people of Wexford and the concerns of the residents of the area. We’ve no faith in any of the systems at the minute.
What we want to do with this protest is highlight the problem. This could happen in any part of Wexford. We’d like everybody to stand behind the banner and we’d like to send a message to the people running our planning office.”
After two prominent protests, members of ‘Fight 4 The Faythe’ are planning another protest next Thursday the 17th of April at 6pm.
You can read more about the mission of ‘Fight 4 The Faythe’ on their Facebook page.
Luke Bradley
Luke is a student and a lover of all things Wexford. His favourite topics include Wexford history, entertainment and local events