A social research consultant enlisted by the developers to liaise with the communities close to the proposed Spencer Dock development was dubbed by local people the "minister for propaganda", the Bord Pleanala hearing was told yesterday.
Mr Joe Mooney of the East Wall Residents' Association said residents were shocked to hear that Dr Kieran McKeown was associated with the development, and that he should be aware of the feelings of the local communities towards him.
Dr McKeown made a submission on behalf of the developers, saying that he had drawn up an action plan on community liaison and tried to make contact with communities through the Inner City Organisations Network (ICON), but that they did not wish to meet him.
He said he had decided not to make contact with groups affected by the project, namely, the North Port Dwellers' Association, the North Wall Community Association and the East Wall Community Association.
"I made this decision on the grounds that to do so would be divisive, harmful to the community and not a useful basis on which to build a process of community consultation," Dr McKeown said.
Mr Gerry Fay, of the North Wall Community Association, said: "The only consultation I saw was with the developers with the aim of looking for planning permission . . . Your appointment was only a knee-jerk reaction to the lack of community consultation."
Dr McKeown said he was appointed by the developers in June 1999. But Mr Fay pointed out that planning permission for the development had already been sought by then and the residents were therefore never consulted.
"What you were looking at was a done deal," he said. "Let's go back to square one and then we'll engage in consultation and partnership.
"Given your background in social disadvantage and that you have written books on Karl Marx, do you not have a problem standing there beside plans clearly designed to dislodge communities?"
Mr Dermod Dwyer, chairman of the Spencer Dock Consortium, said: "We are aware of the depth of feeling among the communities and are sympathetic to the depth of feeling, but we want to move forward here rather than look back."
CIE was also at yesterday's hearing to answer questions arising from its submission on Wednesday. "Like trying to pick up mercury with a fork," was how the chairman, Mr Des Johnson, described attempts to get CIE to outline its plans for an overground rail option to Spencer Dock.
CIE confirmed that there would never be an overground heavy-rail link to Spencer Dock, regardless of whether the proposed development went ahead. "An overground option is dead and buried. It's not a runner," said Dr Ray Byrne, former group head of programmes and projects in CIE.
Mr Johnson said that a map showing the overground option was unclear and "appeared to go through the wall of the National Conference Centre". CIE said this was because plans for the centre were not finalised when the map was drawn.
In answer to questions from Mr Colm McCarthy, representing Mr Dermot Desmond, another objector, Dr Byrne said that the docklands area could at present be reached by overground freight rail, linked to lines going to Belfast, Maynooth, Sligo, Waterford, Cork and Limerick.
Mr McCarthy asked: "In suburban rail terms, is the site of great importance because of the links into these lines?"
Dr Byrne agreed that it was.