MEMBERS of the public have described as ‘wanton waste’ the money spent on a sign at Wolfe Tone Square in Bantry.
Some have called for an investigation into the project, which replaced a former bricked shelter with benches at the same location.
A spokesperson for Cork County Council confirmed to The Southern Star that the total budget for the project was €670,000, a figure that included €500,000 in grant funding from Fáilte
Ireland.
The news has shocked many locals, especially given the timing – just days after it was revealed that €326,000 was spent on restoring a former fireman’s shelter on Patrick Street in Cork city, now relocated to City Hall, and last year’s revelations over the now infamous €350,000 bike shed at Leinster House.
Some people commenting online noted the new structure replaces a four-sided bus shelter, yet provides no shelter now. A Council spokesperson described the project as ‘The Sign’.
The spokesperson explained ‘The Sign – which is streamline in design – provides an uninterrupted and spectacular view through the sign portal out onto the harbour.’ He said the large stainless steel sign was erected as part of a larger ‘wayfinding signage’ project – namely the Bantry Destination Town Project – which was co-funded by Cork County Council and Fáilte Ireland.
‘The sign, which is modern and classic in design, is intended to act as a gathering and information point for all persons, locals and visitors to the town alike,’ he said. ‘And it contains a number of storyboards which provide a snapshot into Bantry’s rich history.’
The spokesman concluded that these storyboards ‘should ideally be read in conjunction with the other recently-installed storyboards and signs erected at strategic locations around the town for a greater understanding of Bantry’s importance, locally and nationally’.
Comments online have been less kind. Sam Simpson said: ‘People used to be able to sit and take shelter from the wind and rain. Now, there is nothing except a useless slab of aluminium.’
John McCarthy said The Sign was ‘another waste of taxpayer’s money’.
Tomás O’Sullivan said he had no objections to the aesthetic, or indeed the structure, but added: ‘Anyone who has ever spent 30 seconds on the square when the wind is blowing can attest there is no way this structure is ever going to provide any kind of shelter.’
Susy Greaves called it ‘a wind tunnel’. She said: ‘I’m glad I am not relying on it to keep me dry while I read a sign. Really? What a waste of resources and an eyesore.’
Tara O’Leary asked: ‘Wouldn’t it be better to fix the roads? They are a disgrace. What are people paying tax for?’
Former mayor Mary Hegarty was among a handful of people who welcomed The Sign as a ‘fabulous’ addition to the square, saying it shows ‘really cutting-edge design’.
But it was Gerard Lynch’s comment – ‘Bantry’s very own bike shelter’ – that seemed to strike a chord with many others, while Kieran Bennett accused management in County Hall of being ‘purveyors of wanton waste’.
