Sir, – Thank you for highlighting the dereliction in Mallow (“We got an awful shock walking along the main street and seeing places boarded up”, August 18th). It’s a lovely town with great people and businesses, but the opportunity for both aesthetic restoration and practical improvements are obvious. We can find clever ways to utilise these available spaces, like accessible, age-friendly homes, pop-up shops or creative reuse centres. I think it’s time for us in Mallow and similar places in Ireland to call for town halls and get the ideas flowing. – Yours, etc, VALERIE SMITH,Mallow, Co Cork.Sir, – It was very disappointing to read about the demolition of Mallow’s old Central Hotel – its protected status clearly didn’t save it from the wrecking ball. It begs the question: how can a protected structure be allowed to fall into such disrepair that it eventually has to be demolished?There must be a better way to preserve our built heritage than the current system. As many experts have observed, our planning laws are too blunt; a heritage property has either protection or none at all. If we are serious about protecting our architectural heritage and tackling dereliction, a more flexible and graduated approach to preservation orders, similar to other countries, should be considered; one that encourages owners to restore and repurpose derelict older properties.If our planning laws allow protected buildings to deteriorate to the point where they can ultimately be knocked down, then there is something seriously wrong. – Yours, etc,FERGAL O’LEARY,Ring Terrace,Dublin 8.