Occupy Cork group leaves building after court move

A GROUP occupying an unfinished office block in Cork city centre and who wanted to turn it into a community resource centre yesterday agreed to vacate the premises after a court granted an injunction to the owners of the building ordering them to leave.

Padlake Ltd had sought the interlocutory injunction against three named defendants, Liam Mullaney, Patrick Buckley and Mark John Redmond, over their occupation of Stapleton House at the junction of Smith Street and Oliver Plunkett Street in Cork.

Yesterday at Cork Circuit Court, Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin granted the injunction against Mr Mullaney and anyone else aware of the ruling, ordering them to vacate the premises while the other two defendants, Mr Buckley and Mr Redmond, both undertook not to enter the building.

Jim Duggan for Padlake Ltd said his clients had bought the premises on October 18th, 2006, and although the recently constructed office block was not connected to electricity, water and sewerage services, the owners were in negotiations to lease the building.

He opened an affidavit from Padlake Ltd director Barry Doyle in which Mr Doyle said the defendants and others associated with the Occupy Cork movement had unlawfully entered the premises by breaking a padlock on the Smith Street entrance on January 1st.

He said the defendants and the Occupy Cork movement had posted a video on the internet of them entering the building entitled “A Christmas Gift to Cork” and they had advertised plans to rename the building the “Cork City Centre Community Resource Centre”.

He also said the defendants had held a céilí and a disco in the building and given that there were open lift shafts and a risk of fire from mobile generators, the owners were seriously concerned that somebody might be injured on the premises.

Mr Doyle said Padlake Ltd had been struck off the register of companies on about February 25th, 2011, for failing to file annual returns to the Companies Registration Office but it had since been restored to the register.

Defendant Liam Mullaney, in an affidavit, said the Cork Community Resource Centre was an umbrella organisation for voluntary and community groups and they had taken possession of the building peacefully without forced entry after an anonymous donor gave them a key.

Judge Ó Donnabháin said he accepted Mr Mullaney and others might, through their occupation, have forced Padlake to re-register the company but he refused an application by Mr Mullaney to let the matter go to trial over the issue of title.

He granted an injunction against Mr Mullaney ordering him and anyone else in the building to vacate the premises.

OCCUPY CORK: REACTION

Occupy Cork spokesman Liam Mullaney yesterday expressed hope that the group’s occupation of Stapleton House in Cork city centre would help stimulate public debate in relation to what social dividend was ensuing from vacant buildings.

“I’m delighted that more and more people are beginning to ask questions about the social dividend from Nama taking over these type of properties,” said Mr Mullaney, adding that he would accept the court’s ruling and would now vacate the premises.

“It wasn’t solely about demonstrating against Nama. The idea of establishing a community resource centre is very close to my heart and we were going to become a limited company by guarantee and go for charitable status and we were very close to doing that.

“I think the ideas and concepts we had for the building are massively important for the city and we will continue on with that programme.”