Grave Architecture: Mapping Dublin City Council's Derelict and Vacant Sites Registers

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24-25 Prussia Street, Dublin 7

Cleared site, formerly 24-25 Prussia Street. The Randalswood billboard, reading 'this is the very first heartbeat of a new community,' is affixed to what was the exterior wall of 23 Prussia Street; which was occupied and ran as a social centre by squatters' group That Social Centre in 2021.
Cleared site, formerly 24-25 Prussia Street. The Randalswood billboard, reading 'this is the very first heartbeat of a new community,' is affixed to what was the exterior wall of 23 Prussia Street; which was occupied and ran as a social centre by squatters' group That Social Centre in 2021.
Cleared site, formerly 24-25 Prussia Street. The Randalswood billboard, reading 'this is the very first heartbeat of a new community,' is affixed to what was the exterior wall of 23 Prussia Street; which was occupied and ran as a social centre by squatters' group That Social Centre in 2021.
Billboard advertising Randalswood Ltd. and the McGrath Group.
24 and 23 Prussia Street before demolition. Graffiti on no. 23 reads 'Trans liberation now!', 'thatsocialcentre,' and 'ACAB.'
24 and 23 Prussia Street before demolition. Graffiti on no. 23 reads "Trans liberation now!", "thatsocialcentre," and "ACAB."



Place name: 24-25 Prussia Street

File number: DS479

Eircode: Dublin 7

Notes: The adjoining 23 Prussia Street was occupied by squatters' group That Social Centre in 2021, who named the site Sunnyvale. In a statement posted to their Instagram on 10th September 2021, the group aimed to "take a space that has been left to rot by profiteers, and turn it into a place of energy, community, and resistance," as housing and to be used as a social centre by community groups "working towards radical change," (That Social Centre). The team used the warehouses behind nos. 24 and 25 to host bike repair cafes, meetings, gigs, and film screenings. On the 27th October 2021, hired security stormed the property and violently evicted the occupants. Security smashed toilets, poured engine oil on peoples' beds, and damaged the roof so that "when it started raining later that night, water was just pouring into the building… basically an inch of water all over the house," (Brody). It was revealed that the High Court Order used to evict the residents dated to 2018 and referred to an unrelated group of occupants (Wilson). The site became uninhabitable due to the evictors' damage, and residents were forced to vacate. Graffiti tags left by residents reading 'trans liberation now,' 'that social centre,' and 'sunnyvale,' are preserved on Google Maps Streetview and in documents submitted for Mary McGrath's 2026 planning application.

Past use: Nos. 24 and 25 Prussia Street were constructed as domestic residences ca. the mid-nineteenth century. According to Google Streetview imagery, windows and doors were boarded up before 2009. Between 2014 and 2017 the interior was gutted and the second storey was removed. This essentially chopped the houses in half and left the remaining ground floor walls open to the elements. Warehouse units to the rear of the site have been used as a car mechanic, a mobile home sales lot, and a steel fabricator.

Future use: The lot was purchased by Mary McGrath in 2018 (O'Loughlin). In 2026, McGrath received permission to construct 102 build-to-rent apartments onsite. The demolition of nos. 23, 24, and 25 Prussia Street - as well as ancillary warehouses - was complete by April 2026. Directly adjacent to the site is the ongoing development of a 373 bed purpose-built student accommodation by Lyonshall Ltd. The two developments are representative of property developers prioritising instability and speculation over permanent, affordable housing solutions.

Architectural significance: 24-25 Prussia Street, before the removal of their second storeys, contributed to the nineteenth century character of the streetscape. Ten buildings (nos. 4-6, 14, 15, 17, 29, 55-59, and 67) on Prussia Street are included in the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.

Works cited:
Brody, Pariesa. '"They Broke in Using Brute Force": Irish Activists Protest Attempted Eviction from Vacant Building.' The Observers, 29 Oct. 2021, https://observers.france24.com/en/europe/20211029-ireland-dublin-activists-eviction-vacant-building-prussia-street.

O'Loughlin, Ann. 'Court Orders "squatters" to Leave House at Centre of Stand-off in Stoneybatter.' Irish Examiner, 24 Nov. 2021, https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/courtandcrime/arid-40751937.html.

That Social Centre. 'Statement.' Instagram, 10 Sept. 2021, https://www.instagram.com/p/CTqIy2ysqFT/.

Wilson, Jade. 'Homeless People Evicted from Space Used as Squat in North Inner City Dublin.' The Irish Times, 27 Oct. 2021, https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/homeless-people-evicted-from-space-used-as-squat-in-north-inner-city-dublin-1.4712241.