Spire renaming 'unlikely'
A Dublin City Council committee will today discuss a proposal to rename the city's Millenium Spire after the late Nelson Mandela.
[comment] [/comment]
It comes after a member of the public wrote to the Lord Mayor saying it would be a fitting tribute, especially because of its proximity to the Dunnes Stores branch where workers refused to handle fruit imported from apartheid South Africa.
However the proposal is already looking like a non-runner because of a rule which states landmarks can't be named after those who are dead for less than 20 years.
Councillor Niall Ring, who is on the committee, said he is not very confident that an exception will be made in this case.
"We can't make an exception - it is a policy," he said.
"For example when we were considering naming the new Luas bridge the name of my own constituency colleague the late Tony Gregory was put forward, which would have had huge merit given his role in the city over many years.
"But we couldn't consider him because of the 20-year rule."
