On Thursday 12th December South Dublin County Council issued a brief statement to councillors informing them of the closure of Brú Chrónáin Round Tower Visitor Centre until further notice. The brief statement was received with huge shock and the future of 15 members of staff who work there remains uncertain at this time.
The Statement read “I regret to inform you that Brú Chrónáin Round Tower Visitor Centre is closed until further notice due to unforeseen circumstances, beyond the Council’s control. We will now examine how to facilitate the reopening of the centre as soon as possible”
According to Cllr William Carey the news has come as a shock to everyone in the Clondalkin area as it came without any prior notice of anything being of concern at the running of the visitor centre. At the heart of the problem it would seem, is the viability and profitability of the company running the restaurant. The Monks Kitchen has been a popular venue and appeared to be trading well in the centre said Cllr Carey. I also understand that they had also recently had their licence renewed following a tendering process to run the Bru Chronain centre.
Cllr Carey added, my first concern is for the 15 members of staff and their jobs. This is particularly worrying as this happens 2 weeks before Christmas. Secondly, there is the wider effect this will have on the tourism around the centre. Bru Chronain has established a regular tourist trade and a break in continuity will jeopardize that business. I am calling on SDCC to put in place a temporary management team to run the centre until a permanent solution can be resolved.
The Clondalkin Councillor continued, The Brú Chrónáin Round Tower Visitor Centre is probably the single most important piece of Heritage we have in South Dublin. To have it closed like this is totally unacceptable. Whilst it is important that the restaurant and visitor centre is run on a proper basis the facility cannot be subject to closure for commercial reasons. South Dublin County Council have a greater responsibility to the whole community to ensure that a facility such as the Heritage centre must remain open at all times.
Cllr Carey concluded, we have a local area committee meeting on the 18th December and I will be seeking to have this matter discussed as an emergency item. This is extremely disappointing to see happening as Christmas approaches. I will also be writing to the CEO of SDCC to ask what the immediate response will be to resolve this situation.
