Cork city flood scheme protesters eye local elections

Save Cork City mull next moves after successful legal challenge

Campaigners behind the successful legal challenge to the €6m Morrison’s Island flood defence scheme in Cork are targeting next year’s local elections.

Save Cork City (SCC) say they have been approached by at least two people who are considering running for election next May in opposition to the Office of Public Works’ (OPW) €140m flood defence scheme.

SCC spokesman John Hegarty said it is too soon to predict the outcome of these discussions and whether SCC will support these potential candidates or run their own.

But he said: “The design proposals for Cork’s flood defences will be a key local election issue next year.”

He again urged city management to engage with SCC on the range of issues linked to the city’s flood defences as a result of the judicial review.

“Initial statements saying they will plough ahead without change aren’t promising, but we can hope,” he said.

SCC led the successful legal challenge against the Part 8 planning process for the Morrison’s Island public realm and flood defence project.

The scheme, which integrates flood defences into a quayside revamp, would have delivered the first flood defences proposed as part of the OPW’s controversial Lower Lee flood relief plan —the largest flood defence scheme in the history of the State.

SCC launched a judicial review of the Morrison’s Island Part 8 and, on Tuesday, the council and SCC agreed to a High Court order quashing the planning.

The agreement was reached on the basis that the council failed to comply with its obligations under the EU Habitats Directive 1992 in relation to its Part 8. The council was also ordered to pay SCC’s legal costs.

The council must now prepare a new environmental screening report for a Part 10 planning application through An Bord Pleanála. It will delay the scheme by at least six months.

Officials have insisted, however, that there are no plans to change the design.

Now in an open letter to the city’s 31 councillors, SCC said while they “deeply regret” having to file for a judicial review, they did so in the interests of the city.

“Our group which was initially composed of architects and urban designers, engineers and environmentalists, academics and historians has now expanded to include concerned citizens from all aspects of the city including local residents, property owners, business owners, and significantly property developers,” they said.

We have over 13,000 supporters online and our numbers are growing. People don’t want Cork destroyed when there are alternatives.

The group urged councillors to call a halt to the Morrison’s Island scheme claiming that they haven’t been given “full information” about it, and said the winning design from their international design competition for the area should be reconsidered.

“The most economical solution to flood protection with the least environmental impact and that protects the most amount of the city is the best solution for Cork,” they said.

“Save Cork City propose to protect the city with a tidal barrier at Little Island based on our extensive research and advice from international bodies.

“Our primary goal is to protect historic Cork and promote the best future we can for Cork in terms of urban development and the economy.”

“We see this as fully compatible with the needs of a growing city and welcome new and exciting projects for Cork combined with the opportunity to protect the social and physical character of the historic city centre.”