A Dublin 8 resident has hit out at Wetherspoon’s plans to build a 43ft-high sound barrier for its Keaven’s Port Hotel’s outdoor pub courtyard, claiming that what is planned “is taller than the Berlin Wall or the Great Wall of China”.
The UK pub giant is proposing the sound barrier to allow it to reopen its beer garden at its so-called ‘superpub’ at its 89-bedroom establishment on Camden Street.
In April 2022, JD Wetherspoon closed down the beer garden temporarily in response to locals’ noise complaints.
Now, in response to the new sound barrier application lodged with Dublin City Council, local resident Suzanne Willoughby has stated that what is planned “is ugly, bulky, overbearing and visually obtrusive”.
Ms Willoughby told the Council “it makes me angry to think that anyone thinks that building a wall which is taller than the Berlin Wall or the Great Wall of China is an appropriate solution to squeezing more punters into the pub”.
The 43ft height of the sound barrier compares with the 13ft-high Berlin Wall and the average height of the Great Wall of China at 25.6ft, though the latter reaches 46ft in places.
In her objection, Ms Willoughby states that “there is no good or pressing reason why this application should be approved. It does nothing to improve our city or the neighbourhood”.
In one of six objections lodged against the planned sound barrier, James Wickham and Lorelei Harris have told the council it is disputable if the proposed screen will reduce the noise from the inner courtyard of Keavan’s Port pub.
They state: “What is indisputable is that this will create a large new outdoor drinking space in our neighbourhood with all the attendant social issues: noise, crowding, antisocial behaviour and waste management challenges.”
Ghandi Mallak operates the Damascus Gate Restaurant on Camden Street and has told the Council that he has serious concerns about the proposed development.
Richard Duggan with a Synge Street address has told the council that “the sound emissions when the beer gardens were open previously caused innumerable sleepless nights in my house and several of my neighbours. Its closure has reversed this problem”.
A submission by JD Wetherspoons’s consultants, Brock McClure, has stated that the closure of the courtyard demonstrates JD Wetherspoon’s commitment to being a good neighbour and working with residents to resolve issues whenever they may arise.
In their 26-page planning report, Brock McClure state that “the barrier has been developed to protect all persons who will live, work or engage in other activities in the immediate vicinity of the courtyard from noise disturbance from the outside seating area”.
