2015:313 - LEHAUNSTOWN PARK, Dublin

Monitoring was carried out for initial vegetation clearance at Lehaunstown Park, Laughanstown, Dublin 18 between 30 November and 11 December 2015. The clearance works were undertaken in advance of future redevelopment of the site within the Cherrywood Strategic Development Zone. The remains of Lehaunstown Castle, DU026-093, are located at the core of Lehaunstown Park. The house and associated features are also designated as Protected Structures in the Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Development Plan (2010–2016; draft 2016–2022). Prior to this phase of works the site was heavily overgrown, having been derelict for numerous years. The surrounding parkland includes late 19th-century stables and remnants of outbuildings shown on the late 19th- and 20th-century OS maps. The park is enclosed by a high boundary wall and is situated within Laughanstown townland to the north of Lehaunstown Lane and 120m east of the M50.

In general works involved the monitoring of clearance of small bushes, saplings, high grass and dense patches of brambles. The vegetation was thinned manually with hand tools, and then scraped back with a mechanical excavator equipped with a smooth-edged bucket. Where present the mulch layer underlying the vegetation was retained. These works involved the pruning of ivy coverage from the boundary wall.

The foundation footings of four outbuildings associated with concrete plinths were exposed during clearance. These correspond with buildings shown on the early 20th-century 25 inch OS map. No previously unrecorded features of archaeological potential were identified at this time. This licence was extended in 2016 to include monitoring of further works including site investigation pits and excavation of ESB trenches. An updated summary will be submitted for this work once complete.