Council defends Sky Garden FoI refusal

CORK’S city manager has defended the withholding of information about Diarmuid Gavin’s controversial Sky Garden project which is funded by the taxpayer.

Tim Lucey last night described as “commercially sensitive” the information City Hall has refused to release to the Irish Examiner under Freedom of Information (FoI) legislation.

The Irish Examiner lodged its FoI request in June, which was refused. An appeal was turned down this month.

Mr Lucey told councillors last night that the council is still in negotiations with the garden designer about completing the garden and installing it in a city park.

“Disclosure of information under recent FoI requests at this juncture in the project development would be likely to seriously compromise the council’s position in relation to negotiating phase two of the contract, not least in relation to value for money, which would clearly not have been in the public interest,” Mr Lucey said.

He was responding to written questions from Cllr Ted Tynan who has consistently criticised the spending of public money on the project, which is expected to cost up to €2.3 million.

“I was hoping this nonsense would end but it hasn’t. I want the manager to lift the smokescreen,” Mr Tynan said.

But Mr Lucey said the council has “no issue whatsoever” with full disclosure once “all contractual arrangements are executed”.

“The FoI Act provides for this and also for non-disclosure of commercially sensitive information, a category under which this project currently falls,” he said.

He said the final cost of the project is being finalised with Fáilte Ireland, which is covering 83% of the costs.

The tourism body has also refused to release information relating to the project under FoI following an appeal by Cork City Council.

Mr Lucey said: “I therefore expect to be in a position in the near future to bring to council a full brief on the project prior to moving ahead with arrangements to deliver the final overall project at the Mardyke. This will include information on costs.”

The council has refused twice to release over 1,600 documents relating to the Sky Garden, including photographs, letters, emails, invoices and minutes of meetings and phone calls.

The Sky Garden’s signature “flying pod”, which won gold at the Chelsea Flower Show, has been in storage in the city’s Showgrounds since June.