Cobblestone trad music pub: Hundreds protest plan for hotel

Hundreds of people protested through Dublin city centre on Saturday afternoon over proposals to develop hotels around the Cobblestone pub in Smithfield and at Merchant’s Arch in Temple Bar.

While the popular traditional music pub is a protected structure and would be retained as part of the proposed development, its owners fear the outdoor area and the back room venue would be lost.

Meanwhile, An Bord Pleanála recently approved a plan for the development of a four-storey over-basement hotel along Merchant’s Arch, the narrow walkway connecting Temple Bar Square to the Ha’penny Bridge.

Protesters gathered at Smithfield Square at 1pm before heading along the River Liffey to Merchant’s Arch and then up to Dublin City Council offices at Wood Quay.

A wooden coffin that read “RIP culture” was carried by protesters, who chanted “homes not hotels”, “culture not vultures” and “save the Cobblestone”. Traditional musicians also played at the square and outside the council’s offices.

‘Furious’ over plans

Tomás Mulligan, manager at the Cobblestone, said he was “furious” about the development plans, adding that his father has been leasing the pub for the last 30 years.

“They want to gut the beer garden, the back bar and the area to the side…we’re going to lose 70 per cent of our operational area. It’s going to starve us out of this building. We won’t be able to feasibly operate,” he said.

“I think people are just sick of this stuff. This is killing Dublin, this erection of mindless concrete. We don’t need a hotel, we’ve got one right across the road that you can get a room in any time you want.

“We’ve got a hostel down the way, the Generator, and along the Luas line three hotels have popped up over the last year even. There’s enough places to stay, there’s no need for this but mindless greed.”

Mr Mulligan said the pub had been a “home” for himself and his sisters, who all learned music there.

“People come to Ireland to come here. They come in and they’ll say, ‘We read about you in the Aer Lingus magazine’,” he added.

“There’s lessons going on here, fantastic musicians come here from all over Ireland as well as the world. Noel Hill was here last night… Steve Martin came in and played the banjo here one time.

“Everyone has come here that has any link to Irish music. To lose this place would be akin to abolishing mecca for musicians. It’s so important. You can’t kill us. If you do, what is this for?”

Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin, one of the organisers of the event and a musician, said more than 25,000 people have signed an online petition against the plans for the Cobblestone.

“We’re looking for people to get in as many objections as possible before November 4th to Dublin City Council. The proposals would change the Cobblestone completely and suck the life out of it,” he said.

“I think a lot of people are very angry over the lack of democracy in how the city is planned. We’ve obviously got a massive housing problem and we’re building hotels left, right and centre, and we’re also destroying cultural and historical sites in the process.”

‘Completely shocked’

Singer Niamh Bury said she was “completely shocked” to learn of the proposed development of the Cobblestone.

“I’ve helped run a session called ‘The Night before Larry got Stretched’, which happens once a month, and it’s been going for nearly 10 years and it’s just a really important session for singers wanting to learn traditional songs. It’s really cross-generational, it’s all about sharing, and anyone can just walk in and we’ll welcome them,” she said.

“I never thought anything like this could be possible. The Cobblestone is a second home to thousands and thousands of people. It means so much to so many people, it’s shocking.

“Everyone rallied so quickly, it’s been great. It’s almost like when a family member is in trouble to a loved one, you don’t think about it, you just act. I feel like that’s been the response to this whole thing. The Cobblestone is about family and community – and people would do anything to save it.”

Alexandra Day, who recently started playing the fiddle, said the Cobblestone “is so important for new musicians coming up”.

“I haven’t been playing the fiddle that long myself but you have the most experienced musicians there and it’s really welcoming to newbies like myself,” she said.

“It’s such an important space for learning. All of the parts of the Cobblestone that would be lost are where all of the music and the lessons really happen.”