Plans to demolish the iconic ‘Tin Shop’ near Donegal town have been shelved.
Two weeks ago, Donegal Daily reported that the owner, Eithne Martin, had lodged a planning application seeking permission to raze the corrugated structure along the main N15 road near Barnesmore Gap.
The former shop, which was erected around 1915, and closed in 2006, is listed as being of regional importance by the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (NIAH).
This week, however, Ms Martin has written to Donegal County Council confirming that the planned demolition of the much loved structure will not now go ahead.
“I wish to withdraw my previous application to demolish the tin shop at Clar,” according to documents on her planning file.
“I can confirm that the structure will be made safe with a view to full restoration.”
In her initial application, she said the building was unsafe and feared debris would be blown during high winds onto the busy Donegal town to Ballybofey road.
Members of the public expressed disappointment when news of the planned demolition broke. However, there will be a collective sigh of relief at confirmation it is to be restored.
According to a 2007 NIAH report, the ‘charming and quite picturesque’ former shop retains its early form, character and much of its early fabric.
“It was probably initially built as a temporary structure, hence the use of a cheap material such as corrugated-metal, but it has survived in good condition,” the report stated.
However, the building has fallen into a state of disrepair in more recent years.
According to local information, this structure may have been originally built as a meeting house or an Orange Hall, and possibly moved there from another location. There is a ‘Wesleyan Methodist Meeting House’ indicated on a 1907 map just to the south of the present site of this building.
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