City Hall insists every effort is being made to address North Main Street dereliction 

Cork City Council has said every effort is being made to deal with issues faced by pedestrians and businesses on North Main St.

A section of the public footpath outside the buildings at numbers 62-65 has been closed off to the public since last summer, with pedestrians having to either cross the road or step into the street to go around hoarding.

Green Party councillor Dan Boyle sought an update on the works on the buildings, questioning when the footpath will once again be available for use.

In response, the city council said it is actively working on it “with a view to remedying the issues raised by the local communities and traders as quickly as possible”.

However, it said the issue is complex and it is using all the legislative tools at its disposal.

A grouping from across departments in the city council has come together to “fully and comprehensively address this situation in a coherent and thorough manner”, it said.

“We continue to work with those responsible for the building to remove the external building supports and internalise the same within the footprint of the building at 63 North Main St,” said the council.

“As soon as this work is complete the hoarding will be removed immediately and the footpath will become fully accessible again.”

The hoarding is in place to protect the public from the dangers posed by the external building support structures.

The city council has said that without them, the building would be in danger of collapse.

“Most recently, works have been completed to improve the sightlines in the vicinity of the hoarding as well as repairs being carried out to the hoarding which had become damaged,” said the council.

“Issues which have been raised with regards to litter have also been followed up and are being actively pursued.”

The council also highlighted that North Main St is open for business.

It said that the part of the street which is inaccessible is “a very small portion of the overall streetscape”.