Dublin shouldn't be "seduced into becoming a mini-Manhattan", according to George Ferguson, former president of the Royal Institute of British Architects. "It would be a real shame if Dublin thought that, in order to be a big international city, it has to have big international buildings. That's almost a Third World attitude," he said. "It's okay to do the U2 Tower, as a sort of Statue of Liberty, and put a landmark or two at the other end around Heuston Station. But what Dublin should concentrate on is what it's really good at - street life. Because it's a very social city. You can hardly walk down any street without there being a bar, restaurant or meeting place of one sort or another." Ferguson offered this advice at the end of a tour of the city by visiting members of the Academy of Urbanism of Great Britain and Ireland. They were here to take a closer look at Dublin, which is competing with London and Edinburgh for the academy's "European City of the Year" award, and St Stephen's Green, nominated as a "great place".
