Quay repairs needed before event centre construction can begin, Cork councillor says

THE damaged quay wall by the South Gate Bridge will need to be repaired urgently ahead of any construction work on the event centre, a Cork City councillor has warned.

Independent councillor Kieran McCarthy told The Echo he would be calling on Cork City Council to address subsidence along the quay wall on French’s Quay, damage which he predicted could only worsen whenever construction begins on the planned event centre.

“We can’t just wait for the wall to collapse,” Mr McCarthy said, noting that French’s Quay provides one of the city’s busiest traffic arteries.

Mr McCarthy added that many of the city’s quays are damaged and neglected.

“The tide comes in twice a day and takes away mortar, and many of the quay walls haven’t been fixed or replaced in quite a while.

“We need to repair the quay walls as soon as possible, because waiting another five or ten years is just not sustainable,” Mr McCarthy said.

The damage at French’s Quay, which has become visible at low tide, comes as the Cabinet agreed this week to allocate a further €7m to the event centre proposed for the adjacent former Beamish and Crawford site.

This latest allocation comes on top of the €50m already committed by the State to the project.

Mr McCarthy, who is a local historian and author, said it had been suggested the event centre construction could start by the end of the year.

“Nothing can start if the quay wall is under pressure, and any hard engineering and drilling down would affect it even more,” Mr McCarthy said.

“So, it’s important that the quay walls are surveyed, and not just a temporary plaster put over it, because whatever hard engineering is planned for the event centre, the whole area is going to come under pressure.”

A spokesperson for Cork City Council said the council was aware of the subsidence to the quay wall at French’s Quay.

“We are currently assessing it with a view to determining what temporary works are required in the short term to avoid further deterioration of the quay.

“Any temporary works required will take place ahead of the planned repair and strengthening along this quay wall due to take place later in 2022,” the Council spokesperson said.