Sale of old Baltimore railway station a 'tragedy', says heritage group

Hopes of creating a maritime heritage centre in one of the county's most important coastal locations were dashed recently when the local community were told the site had been sold by Fáilte Ireland

FÁILTE Ireland’s decision to sell an historic building in Baltimore to a private developer has lost the village its best hope of creating a maritime heritage centre, according to the secretary of a local development group.

Mary Jordan, the secretary of Cuas – which is the trading name of the local maritime heritage group – believes it is ‘a tragedy’ that no value has been placed on the area’s maritime heritage. ‘We are perhaps the only coastal country in the world that does not teach maritime history at any level of our education system,’ she said.

Cuas traditional boat builders, archaeologists, sailors, and historians had offered Fáilte Ireland a unique, dynamic, working centre at the railway station in Baltimore, she said. ‘We cannot understand why they consistently rejected our offer, especially as it would be at no cost to Fáilte Ireland,’ she said, just two weeks after Fáilte Ireland launched a major five-year plan to promote tourism in the West Cork region.

When Fáilte Ireland consulted with Cork County Council, she said they produced a draft lease agreement and asked Cuas to produce a business plan. Cuas did as was requested and drafted a three-year business plan that was certified by an accountant who described their preparatory work as rigorous.

When Cllr Paul Hayes (Ind) raised the issue at a meeting of the West Cork Municipal District last Monday, he pointed out that Fáilte Ireland was given the building by CIE for the benefit of the community. He asked why the Council had not entered into a lease agreement with Cuas and the municipal district officer, Jacqueline Mansfield, said it was her understanding that the business plan was ‘not adequate’ and that there would have been a risk to the Council to go forward with the arrangement that was on the table at the time.

The former railway station in Baltimore.

But Mary Jordan said Cuas had not only carried out a survey of the station but they had also raised the €64,000 required to carry out necessary refurbishment works. ‘The cost was estimated at €64,000 and we raised that through donations and charity events,’ she said. ‘We also ran a boat-building course for university archaeology departments.’ That event attracted 40 participants from 13 countries, most of whom were university heads at departments of maritime archaeology. At the time, Mary said they gave a commitment to send their post-grad students to Baltimore for their practical modules.

‘Baltimore has lost that possibility now,’ she said. ‘If it had gone ahead, our business plan proposed running a sustainable operation delivering courses, programmes, and visitor activities with emphasis on education.

‘The jewel in the crown would have been a maritime museum in the old railway station itself. Intel Ireland had even committed to providing all of the technology required for an interactive visitor experience,’ she added.

Baltimore and the islands have a rich fishing history. The Baltimore Fisheries School was, for example, the first purpose-built boat-building school in the world.

‘It opened in 1887 yet we have nothing in our landscape in Baltimore to acknowledge that fact,’ said Mary.

‘A few short miles away is Old Court and the last wooden boatyard in Ireland. Several books have been written about this incredible resource, so how easy would it have been to extrapolate that and create an exhibition space that would have been the envy of other countries?’ she asked.

Local photographer Kevin O’Farrell has produced a beautiful book, Hegarty’s Boatyard – Last Surviving Traditional Wooden Boatyard in Ireland, as well as Hegarty’s Boatyard – Building Conor O’Brien’s Saoirse.

A major photography exhibition by Kevin O’Farrell about Hegarty’s boatyard went on display at the National Maritime Museum in Falmouth, Cornwall in May 2021, making it the first exhibition to leave Ireland under Brexit regulations. ‘If our maritime history can be recognised in other countries why can’t it be recognised in our own? asked Mary.

The secretary of Cuas told The Southern Star that the Minister for Heritage Malcom Noonan was very disappointed to hear that the station had been sold. She said he had expressed a wish to Fáilte Ireland that it be developed as a heritage centre.

The station was in pristine condition when it was handed to Fáilte Ireland, according to Mary, and it deteriorated under their watch.

The property, which is listed on the website of Cushman and Wakefield, has been marked ‘sale agreed’ but the company declined to comment.

Meanwhile, no one knows what the developer has planned for the old station and the 1.3 acre site. ‘There is no indication, at this stage, if it is to be used for tourism-related projects, residential housing, or as a private development,’ said Mary.

‘At this stage, we fear that this location is lost to Cuas but it is not the end of Cuas. With the support of the Minister for Heritage we will continue to campaign for a maritime heritage centre.’

With some sadness, Mary pointed out that the boat the Saoirse – which was built for Conor O’Brien at the Baltimore Fisheries School 100 years ago – was the first yacht to sail around the world, but there was no suitable public space in Baltimore to commemorate that event this year.

The sale was reported days after Fáilte Ireland launched a major ‘destination experience’ tourism plan for West Cork at a well-attended launch in the Celtic Ross Hotel.

When asked how the sale of the heritage property, and the community’s hopes for a museum in the building, would fit with the plan to offer visitors more ‘experiences’, the tourism body sent this statement: ‘Fáilte Ireland’s recently launched five-year destination and experience development plan aims to drive and sustain tourism in West Cork and Kenmare with a focus on improved development, and strengthening the promotion of the area’s unique features through the delivery of priority projects and hero experiences that seek to maximise the key strengths of the area ... The sale of the Baltimore property was managed by Cushman and Wakefield estate agents.

‘Prior to the sale, the building was unoccupied and in line with Fáilte Ireland’s policy on surplus properties, it was placed on the open market earlier this year inviting all proposals. Cushman and Wakefield reviewed all proposals and made recommendations to guide Fáilte Ireland, and as this is a state asset, all proceeds from the sale of the property will go directly to the central exchequer, not to Fáilte Ireland.’