Council ‘lacks evidence’ to back up compulsory purchase of 22-acre site

A LOCAL authority was accused yesterday of failing to provide enough hard evidence to support its decision to compulsorily acquire 22 acres of prime land in Cork docklands.

Cork City Council was also accused of “blackening the name” of the Munster Agricultural Society, which leases the key Showgrounds site from the council.

It is the largest of five sites around Pairc Uí Chaoimh which are the subject of the council’s compulsory purchase order (CPO).

It wants the land to develop the massive Marina Park which it said will help attract developers to invest in the €2 billion docklands strategy.

But David Holland, senior counsel representing the society, said the council’s decision to issue the CPO was based on nothing more than vague, and in many instances, unrecorded observations by city officials.

He grilled three senior officials yesterday on the second day of a Bórd Pleanála oral hearing into the CPO at which the council produced 11 pages of previously unreleased documents.

They included a nine-page document from the GAA which outlined its expansion plans for the Showgrounds. It also contained commercially sensitive information relating to the GAA which the hearing was asked to respect.

Mr Holland suggested to Pat Ledwidge, director of the council’s docklands directorate and the man who signed the CPO order, that council officials had formed nothing more than an opinion that the Showgrounds site was under-utilised.

“Where is the evidence? It seems you want to take this land from my clients on the basis of impressions of city officials. There is no clear evidence,” he said.

The Showgrounds had at least 90 days of activities in 2005, way more that the council suggested, he said.

Mr Ledwidge defended the decision-making process which led to the CPO.

He said the council first outlined its vision for the Showgrounds site in the 2001 Docklands Strategy and again in the 2004 City Development Plan. He said the council’s stance on the under-utilisation of the Showgrounds was based on reports from officials after years of observation.

Senior planning policy official, Ann Bogan, admitted under questioning that the GAA would be facilitated on a portion of the Showgrounds if it moved on plans to expand Pairc Uí Chaoimh.

However, she said that a car park would not be compatible.

It emerged on Thursday that the Cork County Board had outlined its expansion plans, which include the development of a car park and a conference centre, to city manager, Joe Gavin, in writing in 2004.

However, it emerged yesterday that Mr Gavin did not make Ms Bogan aware, at an official level, of the GAA’s proposals.

Mr Holland accused Mr Gavin of keeping Ms Bogan in the dark on the issue.

“Is it not absolutely extraordinary that the city manager kept this from you, either deliberately or not?” he asked. However, Ms Bogan said she did not feel disadvantaged by not having access to the documents.

“It is reasonable that the GAA be accommodated to some degree to ensure the viability of the stadium. But the over-riding council policy is to accommodate a public park,” she said.

It also emerged yesterday that the Munster Agricultural Society rejected an offer of €1.8 million from the council to buy out its interest in the Showgrounds site.

Mr Holland also questioned senior parks official, Liam Casey, on assertions that the nearby Atlantic Pond was over-utilised, supporting the need for the development of Marina Park.

Mr Casey admitted his comments were based on undocumented observations but said he could produce evidence on park attendance figures to back the claims.

The hearing will continue on Tuesday.