The Health Service Executive (HSE) has announced that the former Baggot St Hospital in Dublin, now viewed as redundant to their operations, will be entered onto the State’s register for disposal. It stated that the dated establishment is not feasible for delivering future public healthcare services. HSE’s chief, Bernard Gloster, had, back in January, communicated to the Department of Health about the cessation of services from the hospital for quite some years now, with the facilities lying dormant.
Some activists have proposed that the premises could be repurposed to shelter asylum seekers or individuals fleeing from Ukraine or be transformed into a Viking museum.
Gloster disclosed that the HSE is contemplating using the Haddington Road aspect of the hospital site as the venue for a new primary care centre. However, he added that the remainder parts of the site are in a state of disrepair. He stated that the refurbishing for any potential future usage as a healthcare unit is not straightforward due to general building regulations and technical necessities specific to healthcare structures.
The protected status of the building has shifted the HSE’s concentration towards the Haddington Road section of the site, which is deemed as being more potential in establishing a primary care solution in accordance with service requirements.
He further emphasised that the hospital site possesses considerable commercial worth as it has been declared redundant by the HSE and is listed on their record of vacant properties. Upon its entry onto the State register for disposal, other state departments will be informed. If any external party expresses interest in acquiring the property, the process will be administered as per regular property transaction and disposal procedures. In case the HSE identifies any potential future use of the property before its disposal, they will be evaluated as part of their continuous infrastructure review.
This facility, initially known as the Royal City of Dublin Hospital was constructed in 1832 and shut its doors in 1987. Sections of it on the Haddington Road side were functioning as a drug treatment centre and communal centre until 2019.
The Pembroke Road Association, a local body, submitted a proposal last summer to the department citing concern for the deteriorating status of an emblematic building. They pointed out its adverse impact on the neighbourhood, while also emphasizing the specific and intense worry amongst the Upper Baggot Street traders and themselves regarding the potential collapse of the chimneys.
A proposition to convert the principal hospital building linked to Upper Baggot Street into a Viking Dublin museum was shared by the association. This proposal, they suggested, would not only preserve the building’s internal structure but also fit well with the vast ward areas that could be utilised as exhibition galleries, thereby maintaining the integrity of the building.
However, on Wednesday, the HSE stated their plans to lodge a future development application towards transforming a section of the former hospital site into a primary care centre for South Dublin inner city. According to them, this application is presently in the stages of preparation and will be submitted shortly. The HSE also clarified that they have yet to decide on a schedule for the disposal of the rest of the hospital site and its structures, which are no longer required for healthcare purposes.