Historical Fairview Oil Mills to be assessed for future plans at complex

SOUTH Dublin County Council is to engage a conservation engineer to carry out an assessment of the historical Fairview Oil Mills in Corkagh Park.

The Mill harks back to the days of Clondalkin’s early agricultural past, and was a producer of various materials, including linseed rape oils, bricks and linen.

Located near the Cherrywood entrance to the park, over the last 20 years the uninhabited building has deteriorated structurally, and has seen drug-dealing activity in the vicinity of the site in recent years.

A group of local people have made efforts try and preserve the site, including Tony Kavanagh, who was               “born and reared” in the Mills, and Cllr Francis Timmons (Ind) who managed to get the preservation of the site inserted as an objective of the new county development plan.

Cllr Timmons said: “Following my work on this, SDCC is to engage a suitably qualified Conservation Engineer to carry out a condition assessment of the structure this year. The assessment will include recommendations for works and also a method statement which will determine the next steps regarding the complex. I view this as a very positive step. There is a long way to go, but it is significant progress and I will be keeping it on the agenda.”

With tourism a key objective by the council for the Clondalkin area plan, Timmons believes history and heritage are a vital support structure for this strategy.

Fairview Oil Mill is included on the National Inventory of Archaeological Heritage.

‘’Unfortunately, due to huge overgrowth, the Oil Mill is a hidden treasure. It is a vital part of the Vision for Clondalkin document that has been circulated to all the directors and the county manager of South Dublin County Council. I have been told the Vision document will be considered as part of the tourism strategy and the Clondalkin Local Area Plan,’’ said Cllr Timmons.