Replacing a stone wall

hadook

We live up a cul-de-sac, right off a busy N road. The turn into & the width of the cul-de-sac is just over one oil truck in width (experience talking there :rolleyes: ) and there's a 6 foot old stone wall running alongside on our land. This wall used to completely enclose our property before we bought it but sections fell out onto the N road (causing it to be closed for a day) and were removed.

We were thinking of removing at least a portion of the wall where it meets the N road to make the turn in a little safer & easier (7 vans in one year have lost a front light cluster to taking the turn too tight) and possibly removing the wall the entire way along & replacing it with a post & rail fence. The wall isn't in great condition in some parts.

Anyone know do we need permission to do this or can we just remove it as it's on our property? The neighbours hate the wall with a passion so they won't object to it going.

I can't seem to find who would be the right person to ask about it & I'm getting fed up of leaving messages for various people in Meath Co Council.

JohnBoy

have another accident

rooferPete

Hi Hadook,

Many of these walls were built during the famine, a kind of FAS scheme by the wealthy land owners of the day.

They couldn't give money for nothing so the one's who were resident here came up with the idea of walls around the estate to create work and justify paying the men enough to live on.

It beat sending the men and their families to the work house where conditions were horrific, that could be why you are having a hard time getting a straight answer from the council.

From a practical point they probably agree the wall is a hazard and should be demolished, from a historical point they can't be seen to condone demolishing what some regard as part of our heritage.

I have the name and location of the person who will most likely give you an answer, email roofconsult@eircom.net if you really think you want the answer they are likely to give.

.

hadook

Hi rooferPete - thanks for that. I'll send you a mail as soon as I've finished picking part of the wall out of the laneway & putting it back into my garden. :rolleyes: One of the neighbours had an accident and there's now a section of 2' high wall decorated with some scratches of red paint.