St. Fin Barre's Cathedral (William Murphy)

The Irish Georgian Society submission for the proposed new Cork City Council Heritage Plan 2021-2025 highlighted the following opportunities to promote the city’s architectural heritage:

• Newly published and forthcoming publications on the built heritage of Cork City provide important new sources of information. The Heritage Plan could use these resources to generate greater awareness of the importance and the need for the conservation of Cork’s historic building stock. Of particular note in this regard are ‘Buildings of Ireland - Cork City and County’ (Yale, 2020) and the pending Cork city themed volume of ‘Irish Architectural & Decorative Studies, the Journal of the Irish Georgian Society’
• Cork City has experienced a huge level of development in recent years which should present an opportunity to promote investment in its rich stock of historic buildings. In championing the city's architectural heritage, the Heritage Plan should seek to promote urban regeneration through events such as the "Unlocking Upstairs" event held in 2019 and through the promotion of the Living City Initiative.
• The recent expansion of the boundaries of Cork City presents new opportunities but also challenges for its built heritage, especially as the city grows. Blarney is one such area which is now facing pressure from development and where a sensitive and informed approach to any new building works is essential. The Irish Georgian Society has proposed that the Heritage Plan seek to highlight the town's built heritage through initiatives such as the Heritage Council's Town Centre Health Check scheme. Special seminars on the town's built heritage could also be considered, possibly based on those the Irish Georgian Society has delivered for Westport in association with Mayo County Council.

The public consultation for the Cork City Heritage Plan remains open until 30 April on www.corkcity.ie