25 Aungier Street, Dublin 2

Place name: 25 Aungier Street

File number: DS1311

Eircode: Dublin 2

Notes: This building is a protected structure under the Planning and Development Act 2000. The nearby 21 Aungier Street, a guesthouse dating to 1667, was saved from dereliction and restored by Dublin Civic Trust in the 1990s. It is being used to house International Protection applicants. The formerly derelict buildings adjoining 25 Aungier Street, 19-24, are currently being converted from residential use to a hotel and bar/restaurant by The Dolphin group; resulting in a loss of habitable space in Dublin (BuildingInfo).

Past use: 25 Aungier Street was constructed ca. 1730-1750 as a townhouse. A shopfront was later added, reflecting Aungier Street's position as a mercantile hub. The most recent commercial tenant was a wedding store named Bridal Designs. According to Google Streetview imagery, they vacated the building between 2009 and 2011.

Future use: There is no planned use for the building. Dublin City Council's Dangerous Buildings Department completed emergency support works on the site in 2012 after previous occupants illegally removed internal floors (Lanigan). In 2015, the building's owner John Winston applied for planning permission to remove DCC's structural scaffolding and install new floors, but the application was declared invalid due to insufficient information (Lanigan). There have been no further repair efforts in the last 11 years. Neighbouring eighteenth century pub The Swan has incurred water ingress and pest damage from the derelict no. 25. Owner/operator Ronan Lynch stated that "a huge amount of work has to be undertaken in order to repair what damage is done, and future-proof my building against what could potentially happen going forward," (Lanigan). Lynch's statement demonstrates the domino effect of dereliction, where surrounding structures suffer resulting damage from the decay of their neighbours.

Architectural significance: At almost 300 years old, 25 Aungier Street is indicative of a particular moment in Dublin's architectural history. Aungier Street was planned in 1661 by Francis Aungier as "one of Dublin's first residential suburbs outside the city walls," (Dublin Civic Trust). By the 1730s, Aungier's estate was inherited by James McCartney and Michael Cuffe, who changed the face of the street by subdividing larger houses and converting them to mixed-use retail and apartments in the 'Dutch Billy' style. Though now lacking a distinctive curvilinear gable (instead having a dormer attic), 25 Aungier Street likely would have fallen into this idiom. This building - along with its neighbours - is a significant example of Aungier Street's architectural heritage.

Works cited:
BuildingInfo. 34m Hotel Development in Co. Dublin. 2018, https://www.buildinginfo.com/project/e34m-hotel-development-in-co-dublin/.

Dublin Civic Trust. 21 Aungier Street. https://www.dublincivictrust.ie/building-projects/aungier-st/history-. Accessed 2 May 2026.

Lanigan, Michael. 'Vacancy Watch: An 18th-Century Building on Aungier Street That's Empty and Rotting.' Dublin Inquirer, 6 Dec. 2023, https://www.dublininquirer.com/vacancy-watch-an-18th-century-building-building-on-aungier-street-thats-empty-and-rotting/.

National Built Heritage Service. '25 Aungier Street, Dublin 2, DUBLIN.' Buildings of Ireland, 13 Aug. 2015, https://www.buildingsofireland.ie/buildings-search/building/50920128/25-aungier-street-dublin-2-co-dublin.