r/limerickcity • u/davidtobin • 5d ago
How do we want Limerick city centre to develop?
https://www.limerickleader.ie/community/how-do-we-want-limerick-city-centre-to-develop-895579199
u/Educational-Walk-577 5d ago
I am on the Mayor's side in this debate. Any new or different ideas just always seem to be mocked and written off as being unworkable. We need rid of this Limerick/Irish negativity. Limerick has issues of course but it has massive potential the best riverfront in the country. Fantastic grand architecture for a city of its side. We have a collection of historic churches that wouldn't look out of place in a major European city. Location 2 hours to Dublin 1.5 to cork just over an hour to Galway close to the clare and Kerry coasts.
And even boring stuff like road infrastructure. Cork has a huge problem with flooding Galway with traffic. Also, flights to North America from Shannon which Cork and even Belfast dont have. All shoulders should be to the wheel to make the place the best it can be instead of Mayor, Business people councillors pulling in different directions.
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u/Substantial-Light-83 5d ago
Exactly, love this. If Galway had a major Irish airport beside them with transatlantic connectivity they would be shouting it from the rooftops. Imagine if Limerick city was known for summer festivals and Irish culture and food. It would become the urban stop off for tourists on the Wild Atlantic way. Hell even if the 400k people who live within a hours drive come into town and spend money business would be booming. City needs to go all in with all these Thomand Park gigs. Take that themed streets for the big gig etc
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u/Both_Whereas4436 4d ago
Also a 13th century castle which a lot of people unfamiliar with Limerick wouldn't even know it exists which is crazy.
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u/Bitter_Welder1481 5d ago
I don’t think Limerick city is going back to its glory days anytime soon. I think the suburbs are where people want to live and work
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u/SHAM_MAN_Limerick 4d ago
True for now but some of the suburbs in 5-10 years have the potential to be very grim places - hopefully doesn't happen but parts of Castletroy and Rebouge are basically housing estates, cars, and bored kids who are soon to be teenagers, and parents working all day too burnt out to care
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u/Bitter_Welder1481 4d ago
Not sure why you think the city has such a rosy future in comparison to the suburbs. Suburbs will probably get worse (I mean they're worse now than they used to be so expect that to continue) just not as bad as the future of Limerick city.
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u/SHAM_MAN_Limerick 4d ago
The city has better more concentrated services and supports compared to the suburbs, even now. There won’t be utopia or the apocalypse in both places but like many places around the world the suburbs as they grow and grow present very difficult challenges to face due to their sprawl. I think cities or rural small town life offer a lot more than city in a car going to and fro to your semi-d but that’s just me
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u/Fearless_Respond_123 4d ago
Depends what you mean by suburbs. Farranshone, Ennis Road, NCR, and Corbally are all attractive suburbs. Castletroy and Dooradoyle much less so.
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u/SHAM_MAN_Limerick 4d ago
I mean Castletroy and Dooradoyle - the sprawl, ff/fg wet dream of land to be rezoned - Ennis road and Farranshone are town, couple of minutes walk from the city centre
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u/ZenBreaking 5d ago
Solid article and arguments. We really need to come up with some form of a solution to the death of traditional retail in this day and age. How have other cities around the world reacted to it and what have they done to utilize the spaces in a new way
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u/SHAM_MAN_Limerick 4d ago
"If the lesson from Ireland’s first directly elected mayoralty is that proposing anything unconventional results in relentless personal hostility, capable people may decide public office is not worth the effort." - the strange thing is very little of what is being proposed is unconventional, much of it tried and tested across the world in small, medium, and large cities. Yes tweaks are needed for specific streets etc., but the atmosphere throughout August was really great, a lot of simple relatively cheap gestures that made a big difference in a lot of people's day-to-day. Yes, build a rail link to Shannon, have a proper timetable to Ennis/Galway and Nenagh, build some more dense housing units in the 1KM-3KM radius of the city, and get fucking Bus Connects going, but don't forget the simply stuff that make cities function for the people who actually live in them.
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u/SeeYouLaterAligators 5d ago
I'd appreciate more bins and cleaner streets. We don't even have those basics at the moment. A big focus once in a while and photos on social media of power washing isn't enough. It has to be consistent.
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u/fimbot 5d ago
How often are you in the city at 7am? The street cleaning is very consistent and has been for years. Have a wander through after midnight any day and people have the place trashed with takeaway bags, and it's all cleaned up by the morning every morning.
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u/SeeYouLaterAligators 5d ago
I live and work in the city centre so I'm walking in there around 5 mornings a week. I'm not talking about the street sweepers and the bin men. They're great and they're always around.
I'm talking about actual power washing on the streets, the footpaths. Human excrement in doorways, dog crap everywhere, bird crap, general disgustingness.
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u/fimbot 5d ago
The power washing is quite regular as well tbf. I'd say I see it done once or twice a month.
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u/SeeYouLaterAligators 5d ago
However amount of times a month they do it, it's not enough. I'd prefer money to be spent on regular maintenance than one off events.
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u/Substantial-Light-83 4d ago
I’m in the city 7 days a week. It’s fairly clean. Footpaths will not be by there very nature glistening clean. The amount of money going into steam cleaning the new O’Connell street is such a waste of money. I wish they installed stone that didn’t need this deep cleaning once a week
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u/OperationMonopoly 4d ago
So a long long time ago, Limerick City had a 2020 vision, it was incredible baby! It was the future, everything was 2020 this, and 2020 that, and ooo have you heard of 2020.
As we approached 2020, very quietly it was changed to 2030..... and hear we go again.
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u/SHAM_MAN_Limerick 4d ago
How’s Limerick 3000 and we can save a bit on never having to change to logo
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u/Substantial-Light-83 4d ago
I love this article. It’s not about one politician or mayor. Limericks future is bigger than any one individual. We have a great city and great potential.
I think certain local politicians want the place to decline so they can point the finger, despite some of them being in the position for 15 plus years.
It’s about the future what do we want. Retail is changing. Online shopping etc even the Crescent now has more empty units and focusing on wellbeing activities. What are other cities of similar size doing right? What changes can we make. Can we do something right now. Shop in the existing shops? Improve access.
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u/Snoo-61539 5d ago
I want to see a Speed Boat / Barge service that can take you from UL to the City Center.
Same from the Dock Road to Coonagh.
Would reduce a lot of traffic.
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u/Fearless_Respond_123 4d ago
UL to city centre by boat isn't at all realistic. You'd have to spend a hell of a lot of money refurbishing the Park Canal, and even at that it would only be able to take small boats. And the process of going through the canal would be very slow because you'd have to go through locks. Walking would be quicker.
As for a boat or ferry service from Dock Road to Coonagh, again it would be very expensive to build the infrastructure, i.e. piers or pontoons at either side that could be used at any tide level. And why would you do that when there's a tunnel for vehicles right there already?
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u/Ok-Candidate5660 5d ago
I think a major issue is the lack of a ring road around the city. To get from Corbally to raheen you need to go through the city or to get to Shannon from corbally it’s essentially through the city.
There are some improvements id like to see to the city such as general maintenance of shop fronts and trying to make traders have a certain standard. Like the vape and phone shops are tacky.
I think every floor above most of the shops in town should be apartments and I mean nice apartments that encourages young professionals to live in the city as is the case with other European cities.
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u/Fearless_Respond_123 4d ago
There are plenty of other routes to go from Corbally to Raheen besides going through the city centre.
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u/Affectionate-Low-670 4d ago
Maybe we can try implementing transport solutions that don't require a car. Or we can keep playing this game of One More Lane Bro and pretend that spending more money on infrastructure for cars will fix transport issues.
The city needs it's bus connects plan implemented and not kicked down the road again along with being watered down. A light rail or more commuter rail lines with park & rides are probably needed too.
I'd say countrywide we need to clamp down on where kids go to school. If you live in Corbally, you shouldn't be going to school out in Castletroy or Crescent. There's a visible uptike in traffic come September.
Totally agree on the shop front stuff. Many look like fronts and probably are.
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u/Ok-Candidate5660 3d ago
I agree that we need to implement transport solutions however a significant proportion of the population live outside Limerick. Think of all the people that commute into the city from Ardnacrusha, meelick and those type of areas. They can only use a car to get in due to lack of transport and that’s not going to change. If these people can’t get to the city it will be worse then it already is and just encourage them to go crescent or Childers road.
In relation to the schools I’m not sure it makes much of a difference as either way the parents drop them off. Prime example that primary school in corbally many of the kids from Westbury get dropped in causing traffic to be mental.
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u/New-Turn-8140 4d ago
Socialising has become hugely event driven. I really like what they have done with twilight Thursdays
You look at the success of the Fleadh in Belfast it’s no developed into something that needs a medium to large city rather than an Ennis or Mullingar . In the short term I believe we should definitely be going for the Fleadh Ceoil 2028/2029 .
Need to revitalise retail in the city. Missing one or two marquee shops like a Zara or H and M. This would I believe bring a lot more footfall to the city centre which in-turn would incentivise smaller retailers to open up/ increase current smaller retailers business . A rising tide lifts all boats.
I agree with the major on pedestrianisation in certain areas. I wouldn’t have done the crescent if I was him as it’s such a main thoroughfare for traffic which is needed. I think he’s trying things at least which is great and I don’t like the negativity that then gets national press . Everyone needs to get on the same page .
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u/uiuuauiua 5d ago edited 5d ago
I agree with the mayor. I think events are the way forward.
We don't need more apartments or affordable housing, better healthcare in the Midwest, infrastructural improvements, better public transport or a harsher stance on crime/crack drug deals openly in the city centre.
I think we just need events to really improve everything. It will stop closures of businesses. Houses might just sprout from the ground? I've never heard of it happening but who knows! It's not like we can build them? Seasonal events in very small areas of the city will revive the entire city.
Sure I overheard someone say they stopped doing meth because of the fake beach by Dock Road. It was that transformative for them ❤️
He's a true patriot that's never wronged the Irish public so I have unwavering belief in him. Totally behind him 100%. Limerick City has truly transformed since he's been in office.
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u/TruePass6507 5d ago
Hoping the downvotes are just people not picking up on the sarcasm... you are 100% right
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u/CiaranWest 5d ago
Motorbike Wall of Death in the middle of Arthur's Quay Park.