by Mat Churchill

Public feedback on the Council's proposed lagoon location is being ignored if it has been received via media outlets, a reliable source close to the project has said.

In a recent The Newsport article, around 60 people expressed their views in unambiguous fashion, but despite their passion these reader comments appear to have fallen on deaf ears.

The source said that at a Waterfront Development Committee meeting held on Friday 29 April, a Council spokesperson had stated that only comments made through formal Community Consultaion channels ie. phone surveys and comments received at the Council's shop front in Macrossan Street, would be taken into account.

"(It's a) sham consultation process. They (Council) have presented their views and talked down other options. They do not want their minds changed."

It is also believed that prominent local architect Gary Hunt's resignation had not yet been accepted by the Waterfront Development Committee, and "there are moves to get him back."