Welcome to Kenilworth Square

Protect Kenilworth Square is an initiative by residents of Kenilworth Square and the wider Dublin 6 area. In April 2024, we were deeply shocked to learn of the devastating redevelopment plans for the Square by The Congregation of the Holy Spirit (the Spiritans) who own the parkland of Kenilworth Square.

On 22 August 2024, astonishingly, the Spiritans, who also own St Mary’s College Rathmines, were granted a Section 5 Exemption from Planning Permission from Dublin City planners for Phase 1 of their Kenilworth Square Redevelopment Plan. This Exemption allows them to replace a grass rugby pitch with a full size (100m x 70m) 4G synthetic pitch, install a 1.2m high fence around it and cut down eight healthy, mature trees, all without planning permission.

They will apply for planning permission for the rest of their plan: six 18m high floodlights, a ten room pavilion, a Car Park inside the Square, and much more. This will be Phase 2 of their outrageous full plan for Kenilworth Square.

Who knows what a Phase 3 would entail? The Kenilworth Bowling Club on nearby Grosvenor Square has a synthetic bowling surface and bar facilities. They applied recently for floodlights. The tennis courts beside the bowling club already have floodlights.

The Georgian square at Mount Pleasant in Ranelagh is fully surrounded by monstrously tall, densely-planted conifers, so that you can no longer enjoy what was once a beautiful visual amenity. Mount Pleasant has also acquired, over time, numerous synthetic playing surfaces, floodlights and a massive clubhouse, complete with a gym, a bar and lounge. Is this what the future holds for the tranquil, naturally-lit green space that Kenilworth Square currently is? Will Astroturf pitches be installed next in Palmerston Park, Dartmouth or Belgrave Squares?

We must ensure this does not happen to Kenilworth Square, one of Dublin’s finest Victorian squares, which is also a vital green lung amidst a sea of ever-expanding high-rise developments just a short distance away on Harold’s Cross Road.

In their History of St Mary’s, the school states that they bought the leasehold for £1,000 in 1947 from a Mr White, a property developer. He sold them the park, which he had bought from the residents (at a time when most of the houses were owned by landlords) for £500, because he had been refused planning permission for any development. This is ironic in view of St Mary’s College Rathmines current redevelopment plans. They describe the acquisition of the park as ‘a gift from heaven’ and ‘fortuitous.’ Indeed! It is a gift that will keep on giving, as they plan to rent out the synthetic pitch to clubs from all over Dublin, nightly and at weekends, on a rotational basis, so much that they will require floodlights, a car park, a third vehicular entrance and a ten room pavilion.

Until now, the park on Kenilworth Square has been used exclusively by St Mary’s College Rathmines for rugby training and matches on some Saturdays, as well as for occasional cricket, annual school sports days, and for their own Boy Scouts group. Residents and the Dublin public lost access to the park in 1999 when the Spiritans erected high railings around it and locked the gates. They had promised to give the residents keys if they agreed to the erection of the high fence around the park. No keys were given.

Having already constructed a synthetic floodlit rugby pitch at their school in Rathmines in 2020, which they also ‘make available’ / charge fees for, St Mary’s College Rathmines plans also to ‘make available’ / charge fees for use of the synthetic and future floodlit pitch at Kenilworth Square to GAA and soccer clubs evenings and weekends on a ‘rotational basis’. This amounts to the commercialisation of this historic Victorian square. They stated in their Rathmines pitch redevelopment application that they would not make similar changes at Kenilworth Square. Now they are underway with their plan to create a mini stadium.

Residents and locals value what the Square brings to Dublin and our community – over 155 years of history and heritage, and an environment consisting of three hectares (7.4 acres) of unspoilt parkland, a wide variety of shrubs and healthy, mature heritage trees, many dating back to the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and a wildlife population that includes squirrels, foxes and a variety of birds, including at least four recorded bat species.

Many residents of the Square and adjacent streets regularly do circuits of the outside perimeter, walking or jogging, while enjoying, through the railings, the beautiful, tranquil views across the park. All appreciate the biodiversity that thrives inside the gates of Kenilworth Square. This external amenity will be lost forever if floodlights, a synthetic pitch, a car park and densely planted conifers are permitted.

This website is intended to deepen appreciation by the citizens of Dublin of this precious natural resource, a wonderful legacy from the Victorian era.

Kenilworth Square must be protected from the Spiritans / St Mary’s College Rathmines’ wholly inappropriate development plans and proposed commercialisation of Kenilworth Square. Please support our campaign to protect the Square by signing the petition.