Over €1m ‘wasted’ on failed Cork eco village

Over €1m of taxpayers’ money has been “wasted on a white elephant housing project” in Co Cork which an expert said should never have been contemplated in the first place, it has been claimed.

Some years ago, the Department of Agriculture decided to give a section of land owned by the agriculture college on the outskirts of Clonakilty to Cork County Council.

Seven years ago, the local authority and the Department of Environment earmarked the land at Dararra for an “eco village” and drew up plans to develop 77 affordable houses, 15 social houses, and a number of serviced plots on the site.