Anti-party locals condemn glass-smashing confrontation on Cork renters' doorstep
Residents leading calls for a crackdown on house parties in Cork’s university precinct have condemned a tense confrontation at what is believed to be a rented property.
Video footage emerged yesterday of an altercation involving two men who visited a house on Glasheen Road, where a party had apparently taken place recently.
Several bags and cardboard boxes of empty beer and spirit bottles are stacked on the path leading to the front door.
One of the men bends down to inspect one of the containers before he heads towards the door and the sound of smashing glass can be heard.
A woman in the house screams: “Oh my God, get out of my house. What the fuck? Get out of my house.”
The man shouts back: “What the fuck yourself. We fucking live here.”
He then raises his voice and screams: “We have to fucking live here.”
Another man can be seen walking back and forth on the path while talking on a mobile phone.
A woman in the house says she and her housemates had not done anything. The first man roars back: “Is this your fucking... what you call not doing anything?"
The 36-second video, which was recorded from an upstairs room in the house, ends as the confrontation continues.
Catherine Clancy, spokeswoman for the Magazine Road and surrounding area residents’ association, whose members have been lining streets in the area since the weekend to highlight their concerns about house parties in the neighbourhood during the lockdown, condemned the confrontation.
She said she did not recognise the men as residents of the area, and said she had not seen them attend any of their vigils in recent days.
“These men are not acting on our behalf and we would condemn these actions,” she said. “In fact, their behaviour is adding to our upset.”
Ms Clancy has offered to meet the occupants of the house to see if the residents’ association can offer any assistance.
A garda spokesman said they have not received a complaint about any such confrontation and they do not comment on videos circulating on social media
Residents staged their first vigil on Sunday after a spate of house parties in the area, accusing young people involved of “giving two fingers to the community” and of putting people at risk of contracting Covid-19.
They said those who have moved into the area in recent weeks have no business being there because UCC is closed, and claimed that some people involved were using their €350 Covid-19 payments to move into student accommodation for the summer because their holiday plans had been cancelled.
Gardaí have contacted a number of landlords with property in the area and warnings have been relayed to certain tenants that there will be serious implications for tenancy agreements if gardaí are called to the properties again.
Separately, city officials are facing calls to close off a laneway to the city’s Lough amenity following a surge in crowds visiting the area in recent weeks and a rise in anti-social behaviour.
Large crowds have been drawn to the amenity over the last 10 days, with complaints about extensive littering and people urinating and defecating in adjoining gardens and laneways.
There have also been complaints about open drug-taking in the area frequented by families and children.
Gardaí have been patrolling the area in recent days in an attempt to enforce public health regulations.
Independent councillor Mick Finn, who called last week for the installation of temporary toilets in the area for the summer, said most local residents now favour the temporary closure of the laneway from Lough Villas to the Lough for the summer.
“It would mean a longer walk for some, but would close off residents’ properties from urinating, defecating and drug-taking,” said Mr Finn.
