well what about the developments popping up in the shannonside ?
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@mickeydocs wrote:
I know it’s not related to architecture, but I’m surprised there is no mention of the terrible decision to halt Aer Lingus flights from Shannon to Heathrow.
Does anyone have an opinion?
As a Corkman I would like to offer my support to the people of the mid-west region. Commercially you cannot blame Aer Lingus for wanting to target an area of greater critical mass so as to maximize profits. Although I’m not sure if they have calculated (‘sliced and diced’ to use their own language) the cost of goodwill and brand loyalty from the Irish people.
Without wanting to get political, the government’s decision to float Aer Lingus was short-sighted in the extreme and the Provincial Ireland will suffer as a result. It is only a matter of time now before they begin to move some of the long haul routes to Belfast.
Hey Mickey, any chance of redirecting those opinions to the thread “Airports] this “Airport topic†got very messy on one of the Cork threads recently.
By the way see also Limerick Boards “Aer Lingus to cease Shannon to Heathrowâ€
As I mentioned last week, there’s been more discussions about building on the Westfields nature reserve. The plan seem completely unrealistic but we must be vigilant against this type of development, regardless of how unlikely it seems.
32-storey icon planned for pier
by Marie Hobbins
Political support not forthcomingA LIMERICK based consortium has revived its interest in a major development on the river bank from Shannon Bridge to Barrington’s Pier and beyond, a story which first broke in this newspaper.
When the story initially broke, city manager, Tom Mackey, said that the stretch of riverbank involved was mostly owned by the Department of the Marine and the Office of Public Works and he also pointed out that the area is zoned Open Space.
This week, auctioneer, Pat Kearney, said the proposed mixed residential/commercial development will include a 32 storey “iconic†building on Barrington’s Pier, a yacht club and marina, an international language college, leisure and cultural outlets.
‘What we’re looking at is a whole new vision for Limerick and with the opening of the tunnel crossing and an upgrading of the Condell Road, as well as a train station at Barrington’s Pierâ€.
Ned Sheedy, the driver of the project, said while they have yet to enter into preplanning talks, they are seeking meetings with the local councillors “to receive their advice, views and hopefully, their supportâ€.
Confirming that the main focus will be on residential development, Mr Sheedy, who originally hails from NCRd, declined to name the other stakeholders, adding the aim is to develop inner city living.
“We want to see families living in beautiful accommodation on the river – we’re talking about plenty of living space on 14 floors, all with a southern aspect. We’re looking at condominium style living with some commercial, that would house between 4,000 and 5,000 people.
“This would change the voting patterns of the city, which might not be to the liking of some politicians and as it is, we haven’t yet been able to find political support for our project which is breaking new ground and will be no threat to anyone in the area – in fact it will enhance their properties’ valueâ€.
Mr Sheedy said that the city manager had pointed out that the river bank “has been there for thousands of years and will still be there after I’m goneâ€.
City planner, Dick Tobin said that while the council owns some land on the river bank, “everything behind the bank, out as far as Barrington’s Pier, is owned by the council.
“We bought most of it to facilitate the building of the Condell Road and the Shannon Bridge and on the land side, it is all zoned Open Space
“To lift the Open Space zoning, the developers would have to do a deal with the Department of the Marine to buy land and they’d also have to get an EU Natura 2000 lifted – this is a series of sites designated as environmentally sensitive – in this case, including all of the river and the swamp, as well as the area around Barrington’s Pier which is designatedâ€.
Local councillors, Michael Hourigan and John Cronin, have expressed reservations regarding the development.
“There’s considerable concern about its scale. The Condell Road is currently used to capacity and as the question of access to the road is governed by the National Roads Authority, it’s not within the remit of City Council to grant access on to this route,†commented Cllr Hourigan. He also voiced concern regarding the environmental implications of the development, particularly in relation to the Westfields Wetlands.
Less than enthusiastic about the development, Cllr Cronin said he has no desire to meet the developers.
“I’ve no interest in yet more apartment blocks going up – I’m certainly not impressed with the Steamboat Quay complex,†he said.”
Franciscan Church Henry Street
@justnotbothered wrote:
As I mentioned last week, there’s been more discussions about building on the Westfields nature reserve. The plan seem completely unrealistic but we must be vigilant against this type of development, regardless of how unlikely it seems.
32-storey icon planned for pier
You can’t stop progress! No-matter how hard you try to stop developments like this you’re just going to have to live with it in the end! If developers with enough power and money start making plans for these sensitive sites then it’s only a matter of time before it happens! If you think this is completely unrealistic then you have no idea mate! A 32-storey building is nothing thesedays for Gods sake! Whether it’s in the those wetlands or not! I agree these wetlands should be protected, but I also believe in the growth that Limerick City has to make in the 21st century! I personally know several major developers (not including my uncle) who have been keeping their eyes on some of these stretches of riverbank… so don’t be surprised if one of these days you see a fifty or sixty-storey icon somewhere in those wetlands! A development of this magnitude can be incorporated into the wetlands quite easily actually… and you know, if certain people in Limerick don’t like it then they do have the option of moving to Cork, or Dublin!
The reality here is about MONEY!!! You wave enough of it around and you’ll see exactly what you’ll end up with! And if you think a few local cavemen “politicians” are going to put their foot on on then don’t kid yourself! Where there is massive construction/development and money there is also massive corruption! They can’t exist without each other! But try telling some people that! The thing is also, I know for a fact (100%) that there are major developments such as these coming to Limerick… so like it or not, things are going to change a lot more than you might ever imagine!
@Paris Jack wrote:
You can’t stop progress! No-matter how hard you try to stop developments like this you’re just going to have to live with it in the end! If developers with enough power and money start making plans for these sensitive sites then it’s only a matter of time before it happens! If you think this is completely unrealistic then you have no idea mate! A 32-storey building is nothing thesedays for Gods sake! Whether it’s in the those wetlands or not! I agree these wetlands should be protected, but I also believe in the growth that Limerick City has to make in the 21st century! I personally know several major developers (not including my uncle) who have been keeping their eyes on some of these stretches of riverbank… so don’t be surprised if one of these days you see a fifty or sixty-storey icon somewhere in those wetlands! A development of this magnitude can be incorporated into the wetlands quite easily actually… and you know, if certain people in Limerick don’t like it then they do have the option of moving to Cork, or Dublin!
The reality here is about MONEY!!! You wave enough of it around and you’ll see exactly what you’ll end up with! And if you think a few local cavemen “politicians” are going to put their foot on on then don’t kid yourself! Where there is massive construction/development and money there is also massive corruption! They can’t exist without each other! But try telling some people that! The thing is also, I know for a fact (100%) that there are major developments such as these coming to Limerick… so like it or not, things are going to change a lot more than you might ever imagine!
I’ve nothing against progressive developments, but surely the recent flooding in England has proved for once and for the all the ultimate stupidity in building on flood plains and wetlands. These places exist for a reason.
Considering the length of time it took to build Riverpoint, 13 storeys, I think you’re being over optimistic that the developer, is actually serious about this. Chances are he really wants to build a new steam boat quay but wants to sell it as lower Manhattan.
@justnotbothered wrote:
I’ve nothing against progressive developments, but surely the recent flooding in England has proved for once and for the all the ultimate stupidity in building on flood plains and wetlands. These places exist for a reason.
Considering the length of time it took to build Riverpoint, 13 storeys, I think you’re being over optimistic that the developer, is actually serious about this. Chances are he really wants to build a new steam boat quay but wants to sell it as lower Manhattan.
Justnotbohered, my whole point here is that with enough money anything is possible! In fact, I have little or no idea of what developers in Ireland are planning for Limerick City (apart from some professional colleagues I know on a personal basis in Europe). I only know what’s going on through you guys on this forum!
Believe it or not, I am a conservationist at heart, so I know where you’re coming from about those wetlands. Oddly enough I happen to be on both sides of the fence when it comes to Limerick… I know you have to pick a side but it’s hard to say the least. I would just love to “see” Limerick City really open up, expand and become a truly wonderful riverside city… The potential is there…it just needs to be executed properly!
Maybe you can have your cake and eat it all at once…hmm…??? I mean, how many more great plots are there between Riverpoint and Sarsfield Bridge for building high-rise buildings? Not many huh? Same on the opposite bank, what with the Hilton and those new apartments, so I guess developers will have to start looking beyond Shannon Bridge… Behind the Clarion there is a great deal of access to build many new and exciting high-rise buildings – including a Marina! A Marina behind the Clarion would be so perfect! Lets face it, the docks are dead!!! No point in going there! Limerick City must move forward and expand, I’m absolutely convinced of it! Then again, if they cleared that entire Arthurs Quay area and that damn ugly building behind it (tax office?) then you could quite easily put lots of high-rise buildings down there, huh? Take out Dunnes Stores by Sarsfield Bridge also and bring that into the picture as well and turn that whole area into something very exciting and worthwhile!
If I was to get personally involved in a development of this size in Limerick then this is one option I would definitely look at! I’d flatten everything in that whole area and put up buildings that will put a big smile on peoples’ faces! Lots of residential and commercial space, entertainment, quality shopping etc etc! Make the city centre exciting and a place where people (and not just from Limerick either) want to come to and spend time in!:)
The obvious solution is to knock the Islands field and redevelop that stretch of the river, it’s probably the nicest stretch in Limerick but it’s surrounded by social housing and some of the worse criminals in Ireland. A high rise centre there could be merged with the only medieval centre.
Sounds nice, but how far along is/are the Island Field from the City Centre? And what would you do with these criminals? Ship them out of course… but you know, some poor, honest, hard-working decent people will end up with this scum right next door!? Neighbours from hell and all that! 🙁 Not right is it?
Southern Ring Road Phase II
Fantastic aerial shots courtesy of O’hAodha 😎
Tunnel
Dooradoyle Road / Cresent Shopping Centre (Flyover)
There are also the latest photographs of the tunnel progress to be seen of the various sections on the website of “Direct Route PPPâ€
Have the Cratloemoyle and Meelick roundabouts yet to be built because I’m not familiar with them at all?
Limerick council is urged to reverse Georgian decline
Frank McDonald, Environment Editor Mon, Aug 20, 2007
Limerick City Council’s new strategy for the city centre represents a “once in a lifetime opportunity” to reverse the decline of its Georgian core, Newtown Pery, according to the Irish Georgian Society (IGS).
In its submission on the draft strategy, the society said the main purpose of a conference it organised last May was to address the continued neglect of Newtown Pery in light of the continuing and largely successful regeneration of Limerick’s riverside.
The IGS noted that Newtown Pery – Ireland’s largest Georgian area outside Dublin – had been laid out in the 1760s on a grid plan by the Italian architect Davis Ducart and had reached the pinnacle of its social and commercial success in the mid-19th century.
But decline and neglect had “left its elegant houses and streetscapes marred by over a century of ill-considered and poorly executed works: subdivided houses, PVC windows, dangling overhead wirescapes and rusted and buckling boundary railings”.
As Newtown Pery’s Georgian buildings and streetscapes “comprise one of Limerick’s major and most defining assets”, the IGS called on the city council to give priority to the development of a regeneration strategy based on successful European models.
It noted that a model for heritage-led regeneration had been developed through the Inherit programme, an EU-funded initiative aimed at promoting investment in heritage assets, so as to facilitate the regeneration of historic cities and towns.
The programme was built on the success of Newcastle upon Tyne’s Grainger Town Project – a conservation planning exercise underwritten by £40 million (€60 million) in public funding, which attracted a further £160 million (€240 million) in private investment.
The IGS submission called on the council to give Newtown Pery official status in its city centre strategy as an area of special historical, architectural and tourism interest, and to develop a rolling programme for its conservation and sustainable reuse. “Given the scale of investment required in Newtown Pery, the success of any potential regeneration scheme calls for a big vision that aims to ‘form the basis of applications to Government for major funding and other taxation incentives’ [ as the strategy says]”.
If the area was to be designated as a business improvement district, it said that for such an initiative to enhance its historic streetscapes the strategy “will need to identify both financial and technical resources to assist businesses in its implementation”.
The IGS called for the establishment of an urban regeneration partnership to manage and monitor the conservation of Newtown Pery, positioning the area as “the centrepiece for a distinctive Limerick experience” both for visitors and for the city’s residents.
Describing Limerick as “architecturally and scenically, one of Ireland’s outstanding historic cities”, the society said the regeneration of its Georgian core “will require wide support and commitment from the city council and from all relevant stakeholders”.
@Tuborg wrote:
Incidentally next door to Henry Street barracks, there are plans for a refurbishment of Estuary House, (an early 1980s office building) to provide new retail floorspace.
Estuary House Henry Street
Images courtesy of Chesser Auctioneers
Looks like the façade will get a makeover as well, any better images about?
The Park Castletroy
(€472,500) Rooney Auctioneers
Residential development for mature residents (no students please 😀 )located in the grounds of the Castletroy Park Hotel. Additional on-site amenities that all residents will appreciate include a restaurant, convenience store, bank, pharmacy and medical centre. The homes will be fully furnished and will be the perfect homes for those who seek relaxed community living.
Is there any better images of this development around?
Developer: Fordmount Developments Ltd
Architects: Burke Kennedy Doyle
052133
- Construction of 55 no. bedroom nursing home;
- 90 no. assisted living apartments;
- 49 no. two bed retirement housing units;
- Mixed use commerical building comprising of shop, 3 no. retail units, bank, pharmacy, bar, restaurant areas & cafe;
- Office building comprising of 13 no. office units;
- Medical centre and creche;
The overall development will also consist of ancillary staff facilities, administrative offices, dining rooms, visitors room, recreation rooms, day care room, hairdresser and laundry rooms; demolition of existing single storey habitable house and associated ancillary structures; plant; ESB substations; storage and waste management areas; hard & soft landscaping; boundary treatments; internal roads & pathways; pedestrian access points; surface and basement level car parking; changes in level; site services and all site development & excavation works above and below ground. Vehicular access to site from two access points
Castletroy Park Hotel
Plassey Park Road
CastletroyAnyone have more info on this one?
LIMERICK businessman Tom O’Callaghan, has submitted a three hundred million euro redevelopment plan to City Council and has not ruled out the possibility of incorporating a purpose built roof to protect shoppers from the elements
“I want to completely transform the areaâ€, Tom told the Limerick Post.
The proposed project takes in two blocks of land to the north-east and south-west of Upper William Street.
It is his intention to demolish existing buildings to enable an architecturally designed building of significant scale that assimilates into the existing streetscape.
The aim, adds Tom, is to link both sides of Upper William Street with an urban plaza/pedestrian area.
He also hopes to include a large open market, similar to that which pertains in Cork city.
O’Callaghan has already spent millions of euro in the Upper William Street area over the last nine years, owning a total of seven businesses.
Back in the early 1970s, the late Paddy Moran of Moran’s Menswear, had a similar plan to put a roof over the general William Street area.
His idea was greeted with enthusiasm at the time but never bore fruition.
The purpose of O’Callaghan’s submission is to identify a significant and dynamic project for Limerick City that will not only change the face of the public realm in Upper William Street but the lives of the citizens and will achieve sustainable redevelopment of the Upper William and Gerald Griffin Street areas of Limerick city.
The area has been identified by O’Callaghan Enterprises as a prime location for mixed development suitable for retail, commercial and residential uses. The company currently owns Alltan and Beauty, William Street Post Office, Tom’s Bar and Bistro, O’Callaghan Master Butchers and William Street Dry Cleaners.
Ladbrokes, the Centra Store and Subway are also owned by O’Callaghan Enterprises and are currently leased out. It is an objective of O’Callaghan Enterprises to invest in existing businesses and properties in the Upper William Street and Gerald Griffin Street area. The objective is to maintain an active and vibrantstreetscape to sustain and contribute to the daily activity and life in this area of the city, whilst accumulating a strategic land bank. This has been a fundamental core tenet of the company and is in contrast to other development groups who acquire property and leave it vacant over long periods pending redevelopment.
There are upwards of 60 people employed in O’Callaghan Enterprises, a company only four years old.
Saw the same story, but don’t know anything more about it unfortunately. Sounds like an interesting idea, can’t imagine how it could be executed, especially in that location. But fair dues to the man – Limerick City could do with more people like him Maybe the thinking behind it is along these lines –
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:FremontStExperience_LasVegas.JPG
yep if it was anyone else I’d be thinking pie in the sky but he makes things happen and has put a lot of work into that part of town already..interesting idea alright but we’ll have to ait and see. William Street really needs work.
@vkid wrote:
Tom plans to roof Upper William Street (Limerick Post)
The proposed project takes in two blocks of land to the north-east and south-west of Upper William Street.
The area has been identified by O’Callaghan Enterprises as a prime location for mixed development suitable for retail, commercial and residential uses. The company currently owns Alltan and Beauty, William Street Post Office, Tom’s Bar and Bistro, O’Callaghan Master Butchers and William Street Dry Cleaners.
Ladbrokes, the Centra Store and Subway are also owned by O’Callaghan Enterprises and are currently leased out.
Correct me if I’m wrong but if my bearings are right then they are probably talking about the two blocks highlighted in the image below? It would be interesting to know as to how much property in those two blocks can be developed into that proposal? The core of the lower block is quite large and seems to be made up by sheds etc. Even the old City Theatre has been lying idle for years.
In fact the other two blocks on the other side of Upper William Street are in more dire need of redevelopment. Maybe a masterplan from the city council could help to coordinate the redevelopment of the four blocks together? Bear in mind that William Street is part of the inner orbital route and Cathedral Place via rear side of John’s Pavilion to Sexton Street will be part of the new outer orbital route.
I presume they have pedestrian passages under glass roofs running through the core of these blocks in mind, as I honestly thought they were talking of roofing Upper William Street at first! It would be neat in my opinion if they could also extend Thomas Street by such a pedestrian roofed passage onto Gerald Griffin Street. Banishing street parking on Upper William Street would visually improve the area as well. There is great potential there, hope they get it right. As a lot of people don’t seem to be very happy as to how Mahon house turned out.
Upper William Street Area
Some rejuvenation has taken place just beyond Upper William Street over last few years. Along the main roads of Cathedral Place, Newtown Mahon and back behind the old lanes of Brennan’s Row, Summer Street and Tanyard Lane. It started off with low two-three storey developments on the corner of Brennan’s Row / Cathedral Place increasing in height and scale towards Upper William Street.
There has been in my opinion an improvement in building quality when one compares it to the rejuvenation that took place around the Milk Market. True Mahon House looks bulky in appearance but the overall quality of the various apartments, retail and office units of the surrounding area are good. One can expect more changes on the way when the Cathedral Place becomes part of the Orbital Route.
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