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MANY IRISH TOWN and city centres suffer from the same issue – time and traffic have taken their toll, and the whole piece begins to look very tired and dated.
Limerick city was no different, but now the local council has taken an innovative approach to the state of the city’s retail centre, with a pilot scheme to rejuvenate the tired looking facades of the old shopping district being implemented.
And how long did it all take? A matter of weeks.
“We’d been looking at what needs to be done in the city long term as part of an economic spatial plan looking towards 2030,” Mary Hayes, economic development officer with Limerick city council told TheJournal.ie.
But then we started to think about what we could do more quickly. You’d be amazed what can be achieved in a short space of time.
What has been achieved is the installation of free public Wi-Fi, street furniture and colourful art installations that have served to give the old city streets a shot of life. And that’s just for starters.
With the success of the scheme the local authority says plans are afoot to introduce new ‘parklets’ around the city with permanent seating and a structured children’s play area.
All this, and an open-air art gallery in the ‘nook and cranny’ laneways off the city’s famous Cruises Street.
It’s a testament to what can be achieved in a short space of time with a little dedication.
“We call it an urban garden, and the support and buy-in from local businesses and the general community has been just fantastic,” says Hayes.
It’s a bit novel for Irish cities, but it goes to show that you can bring about change in the short term when there’s a will to do so.
Limerick Council / TwitterNEWS: Vibrant Urban Garden brings splash of colour to #Limerick city centre! http://t.co/rGcLe7isHY #LKUrbanGarden pic.twitter.com/dllpUm9sSN
— Limerick Council - Comhairle Luimnigh (@LimerickCouncil) June 15, 2015
The renovation of the retail centre kicked in at the start of summer and was completed in only two weeks.
“We want an area that’s fun, colourful, engaging. And we wanted to show that this can be achieved in the here and now,” says Hayes.
We are just following an example set by countless cities in Europe and North America.
Now hopefully other towns in Ireland can follow suit. It’s important to make a difference after all.
You can discuss the makeover of Limerick’s retail centre on Twitter with the hashtag #lkurbangarden
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Looks cool – well done Limerick.
Limerick gets a lot of bad press but it is one hell of a spot for a night out, mostly because the people there are so friendly.
See to enjoy Limerick you must be,
1 most importantly unpretentious
2 able to enjoy cities, Limerick is quiet urban in nature (unlike Galway for instance which is also an enjoyable city)
3 Able to see thru the bulls**t that Irish media have been presenting you with for over 40 years, not easy I might add.
If on top of that you love Sport, Culture and History you will love Limerick City…
I’d sure the lovely people of Limerick are devastated you wrong be returning.
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy Zombieland, but I suppose we can’t please everyone, even though we try our best. We were certain the Undead Theme Park would be a winner.
Not to worry. Next time you visit, why not try Werewolfland, Vampireland or Mummyland?
Failing that, you sample one of our many live music venues, you could visit the theatre, you could take part in the endless sporting activities or you could enjoy one of our fine restaurants.
If none of that raises you from the dead, you could always, as a last resort, consider the possibility of actually speaking to people, extreme as that might seem.
I thought the vagrant no hopers of Limerick were much more friendly than the ones in Dublin and Cork.
You forgot to mention music as well Johnny. Any time I’m out in Limerick I’m always blown away by the standard of live music. A great spot full of sound people.
Looking good Limerick, well done.
It’s a pity our Council don’t put as much effort into reducing rates and rent in the business district of Limerick then maybe there might be some shops to shop in.
There are no shops in Limerick? That’s crazy for a City of its size. Where is the nearest town to shop? Ennis?
True. I’m sick of driving to Dublin every day just to buy the feckin newspaper.
Loads of shops on the out of town centre’s. the Crescent SC , Parkway Retail. That’s the city’s biggest problem. Cutting city rates would help.
Not quite so far….Dooradoyle.
According to a contact in the local chamber of commerce – footfall in Crescent Shopping centre is “orders of magnitude” more than city centre. I am supposing that means 10 times more footfall at the very least.
weeks me hole…its taken them nearly 6-7 years to do anything constructive for the city. Limerick council are basically a shower of the most inept councillors and city managers in the country who couldn’t organise a piss up in a brewery.
You’re so right, Jay. We can’t depend on the council. We have to do things for ourselves.
Why hide your own achievements in helping to boost Limerick city centre though? This modesty is unbecoming and not only that, but also a waste of creative ideas. I’m quite certain that when people see all the things you’ve done for Limerick, they’ll be inspired to achieve the same.
So enough of the modesty now. Let’s see that list of things you’ve done for Limerick, you shy rascal! We won’t think you’re boasting.
Jay, did you just come out of a coma? Did you actually miss ALL of last year with City of Culture? Festivals, shows, gigs, giant grannies wandering about?anything? Bueller? Bueller?
The plants and tree barriers are certainly nice for preventing people jaywalking all over the place across O’Connell Street!
And the multicoloured rainbow brigade march on, let’s put rainbows on everything, such as the other tool on about painting the zebra crossing.
Its actually really sad that you think that a bit of colour on the street is some part of the gay agenda. You sound like a really miserable and pathetic person. Do you spend all your time watching black and white movies because the colour scares and terrifies you?
Those multicoloured rainbows are a curse. Give us back the black and white rainbows that Dev laid down his life for.
I think it looks cheap and tacky. They should take a look at Spanish resorts and promenades. Water fountains, wooden overhead beams, very picturesque, a few colourful ribbons and floor paintings will waste away pretty quickly.
If only there was some on street parking. Had to pick up a rented tux for a do, was 10 mins, got €40 fine. No wonder the crescent is so popular. I do love limerick and its people though
Limerick city centre has some great shops, cafes and bars to explore, whilst not got the likes of M&S it has something much more unique!! Btw whilst the colour could deteriorate quickly this is part of a bigger plan so it’ll look even better in years to come!!!
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