well what about the developments popping up in the shannonside ?

Is that where the new orbital route is supposed to go? There was a plan to extend the street from the Cathedral through where St. John’s Pavilion is and onto Sexton St.

@Tuborg wrote:

Yeah, a new link road is being built between Cathedral Place and Sexton Street as part of the orbital route, St John’s pavillion is to be demolished to make way for it.

If its “a huge site” as D-A-V-E refers to, then it’s possibly Costelloes yard, which is right beside John’s pavillion. This is the proposed site for the new courts complex but that project is very much in its infancy and there is no guarantee that it will even get off the drawing board. I must take a spin out that direction and have a look for myself!

ya costellos yard looks like the rite place, it looked like the whole area was cleared and there was a few builders carrying wheelbarrows etc into the site so something is deffinately underway

@foinse wrote:

Go ahead for Limerick opera centre

Planning permission has been granted for the £250 million Limerick Opera Centre, the largest development ever planned for the city centre.

It is hoped that 25,000 square metre retail/restaurant complex by Belfast-based Regeneration Developments will counter the growth of suburban shopping centres and draw visitors back into the city.

The site in Patrick Street of the new Opera Centre & shopping complex
Heritage bodies such as the Irish Georgian Society have made submissions stressing the architectural sensitivity of the Rutland Street/Ellen Street/Patrick Street/Bank Place quarter but the project has the support of Limerick Co-ordination Office and Mayor Diarmuid Scully.

“This is vitally important for Limerick City and a sign of the renewed confidence in Limerick that an investment of this magnitude is coming to this city and I very much welcome it,” said the Mayor.

Senior planner Dick Tobin said further information on services for the development, car-parking, traffic strategy and on what frontllges are to be retained or otherwise was submitted by the developers as requested by City Hall.

Potential objectors now have a three-week window in which to make submissions.
Mayor Scully said while he respected people’s right to object on heritage grounds, “there’s a danger that heritage sumetimes gets in the way of what’s right for the city.”

There were buildings in the area, some of which date from the 1770’s, “that are not far off being condemned” and might have to be torn down in any case, the Mayor said, adding that the developers had been consulting with Limerick Civic Trust on heritage and conservation matters.

To this end, a £2.5 million museum at the Patrick Street birthplace of 19th century Limerick diva Catherine Hayes will form part of the appropriately named development.

The developers have predicted that the project could bring over 100 000 people into the city weekly and have knock-on benefits for the Hunt Museum and other city centre attractions. Up to 500 jobs could be created in the construction phase and 1,000 fulltime jobs after it is completed.

What archive did you pull this from? Diarmuid Scully hasn’t been the Mayor of Limerick for years (thank God).

does anyone know of any realistic time construction will start?

Sarsfield Bar to reopen as cultural cafe

By Alan Owens

ONE OF Limerick’s most iconic pubs is to be reopened as a cultural centre, in the short-term at least.
The Sarsfield Bar, or “Spirit Store” as it is also known, lies on the corner of Rutland Street and Bank Place opposite the Hunt Museum.
The landmark pub has lain derelict for years, and in latter years has been earmarked as part of the pending Opera Centre development.

However, before that development goes ahead, the bar is to open as a cultural centre for the months of August and September.

The Sarsfield Bar will become the Spirit Store Art Cafe for the next two months, the project being the brainchild of Marlyn Lennon of Limerick School of Art and Design.

A host of diverse cultural activities will take place there, including talks, performances, debates, discussions, screenings, readings and meetings with musicians, writers, visual artists, film makers, collectives and various clubs and societies.

“The idea is that all interested people in Limerick will attend and contribute to this exciting project,” explained local man Paul Tarpey, who is helping to get the project off the ground.

“This inclusive experiment is an open invitation for all of Limerick to experience, absorb and creatively contribute to an exciting project. There will be a collection of diverse cultural activities taking place in the unique environment of a Limerick landmark,” he said.

Mr Tarpey explained that the Spirit Store Art Cafe will “seek to infuse this reclaimed space” with a busy programme of arts activities.
It will open on Sunday, with a preview this Saturday at 5pm.

The cafe will be open Tuesday to Sunday, from 12pm “until sunset”. Coffee will be served free or with a donation, but no food will be served.

© Limerick Leader

Nice to see the Sarsfield Bar being brought back to life, if only for a few weeks. It’s criminal that its been allowed to rot away for the last number of years. At this stage, it’s in need of a fairly thorough conservation job!

Also, the article is completely wrong in reporting that the Sarsfield Bar forms part of the Opera Centre. It of course remains independent of that project!:rolleyes:

@D-A-V-E wrote:

the first floodlight is up in the gaelic grounds, on the side of the macky stand and clare side terrace..its absolutely HUGE! dworfs thomonds floodlights!

the other floodlight is up beside it, im guessing the other 2 are going up for the end of the week

@Griff wrote:

The 2 on the Clareview side just dont look right imo…

ya they look vey strange, its because the flodlights are inside at the bottom of the terrace and uncovered stand

District Court on move to Butler’s Henry Street building (Limerick Leader)

THE Irish Prison Service has confirmed that Limerick District Court will be relocated to a more secure location on Henry Street close to the city’s garda headquarters.

The Limerick Leader revealed in July that the Office of Public Works was
in negotiations with two developers in the city, and it is now understood that the proposed new site for the district courthouse is the former post office which is part of a major redevelopment project by Robert Butler Group.

Meanwhile, Mayor Kevin Kiely said if he did not get a firm undertaking from the Department of Justice and the Office of Public Works that the courthouse is indeed going to be moved, he is “going to take a conscious decision and not accept any further dignitaries at City Hall.”

The mayor, who welcomed the German Ambassador to Limerick last Thursday, said: “I am not going to put them (visiting dignitaries) in a situation where they could get caught up in a fracas outside the courthouse, like what happened last Wednesday.”

Successive mayors have called for the relocation of the district courthouse, which currently forms part of City Hall on Merchant’s Quay, because of the often chaotic scenes on the steps of the building in front of tourists visiting St Mary’s Cathedral, and members of the public who attend Limerick City Council offices.

Mayor Kiely, who worked at the former post office from 1976 to 1986 said the building on Henry Street is ideally suited for a courthouse.

“There is a courtyard area in the plans, and it would be ideal for prison vans and patrol cars and it wouldn’t be seen by the general public. “It would solve the problem of the courthouse, once and for all,” he said.

The Mayor said the Office of Public Works should sign contracts with the developer and agree a design brief for a permanent court, not just a temporary facility.

Space in Henry Street Garda Station is at a premium, and Mayor Kiely suggested that the building across the road from the station should house the Traffic Corps and detectives.

I can’t believe this move is being seriously considered, I think it’s a terribly short-sighted decision. Clearly the court needs to be moved away from City Hall but this just isn’t the answer.

The Council are obviously desperate for a solution after the numerous unsavoury incidents that have occurred over the last few years. But have they not considered the consequences of moving this circus right into the centre of town?:rolleyes:

can anyone tell me whats happening opposite the fire station? there seems to be a lot of road works there, also inside a big site there too, also by the maternity hospital on the ennis rd, are they making a bus lane there?