Limerick 2030 Economic Plan

Kess73

pigtown wrote: »

I don't know a whole lot about those two buildings but I do know the Limerick proposal is different in that it will be co-located with the Economic Development and Planning Directorate of Limerick City and County Council, an outreach/commercialization link with UL/LIT, the new Single Business Portal (reformed Local Enterprise Boards), and the SVC (Seed & Venture Capital) office. It will deal both with start ups and businesses that have outgrown the Hartnett (LIT) and Nexus (UL) incubation centres. It is also hoped to locate the new LSAD fashion incubator on site. Its focus would be broad; ICT, Digital Media, Telecoms, Medi-Tech, Tourism and also Technical and Professional Services.







€50 million over 5 years seems like alot to me. That would fund a heck of a lot of new business. It is advised that this fund be actively promoted from the Innovation Hub itself.




The Liverpool One project certainly is a great success and I hope to one day get to visit it but I fear you are not comparing like with like. Liverpool city region has a population of 1.5 million. Being generous, the Limerick city region including Ennis (20,000), Limerick (100,000), Shannon (10,000) and Nenagh (10,000), has a population of 150,000, 10 times smaller.

Liverpool One has a total floor area of 170,000sqm. Proportionally, a Limerick One project would include 17,000sqm of retail space however the proposed redevelopment of Arthurs Quay and Penneys/Debenhams, is to include almost 43,000sqm.

So while you are correct in all of your comparisons between the two cities, the sheer difference in size, and also strategic location, mean a simple comparison is not suitable. Limerick 2030 is our city's version of Liverpool One.

I am not for a minute suggesting something on the same scale as Liverpool One rather something similar in terms of template. Nor I am suggesting any like for like copying. I was just offering an fairly simplified opinion on what I think would be a good project to use as inspiration for the Limerick project.

I also think you are underselling the catchment area around Limerick city something rotten with your figures.

Limerick city's potential catchment area will include all of the county of Limerick, large chunks of Tipperary (both North and South), North Kerry, some of North Cork, and practically all of Clare. Not to mention the possibility of attracting in consumers/investors from counties that are slightly further afield. That would give a potential population of far more than the 150,000 you estimated.

Limerick city, with the right attractions (be they commercial, retail, residential, social etc etc), is a relatively short distance away for a population that is closer to 500,000 than it is to 150,000.

When Liverpool One was in it's planning stage, the idea behind it was not to just have Merseyside as the catchment area but rather stretch that catchment area to places further away such as Blackpool and large chunks of North Wales. That strategy worked and the whole area benefits greatly from non Merseyside business from a catchment area even greater than what was hoped for. Limerick City in my eyes could do likewise, and benefit greatly from non Shannonside business if the net was spread wide enough from the get go.

Even basic ideas from Liverpool One, like weather proofing some of the shopping streets, could be incorporated into any plans for Limerick.

You say you would like to visit Liverpool One some day, and you really should. It is a fantastic example of what can be achieved when enough people dream big and then pull in the same direction to make it a reality.

I am of course biased towards Liverpool One because I am there weekly, and when not living here in Limerick, I live in One Park West in Liverpool. But the difference the project made to the city is staggering, and it went from being a directionless idea to being open to the public in under ten years. It went from being an English city centre that was drab, disliked, and ordinary to one that has a very European feeling centre whilst still keeping enough of it's roots outside of the new centre so that the identity of the city was kept. I just want to see Limerick city receive a similar and permanent makeover.

pigtown

Kess73 wrote: »

I am not for a minute suggesting something on the same scale as Liverpool One rather something similar in terms of template. Nor I am suggesting any like for like copying. I was just offering an fairly simplified opinion on what I think would be a good project to use as inspiration for the Limerick project.

I thought the two plans were broadly similar. Clearly you know more about the Liverpool plan than I do. Would you be able to give a short summary of what you think is missing from Limericks plan?

Kess73 wrote: »

I also think you are underselling the catchment area around Limerick city something rotten with your figures.

Limerick city's potential catchment area will include all of the county of Limerick, large chunks of Tipperary (both North and South), North Kerry, some of North Cork, and practically all of Clare. Not to mention the possibility of attracting in consumers/investors from counties that are slightly further afield. That would give a potential population of far more than the 150,000 you estimated.

Limerick city, with the right attractions (be they commercial, retail, residential, social etc etc), is a relatively short distance away for a population that is closer to 500,000 than it is to 150,000.

Fair enough I may have under-calculated the catchment area. Some more research has shown that the target catchment for Liverpool One is over 4 million. This is still 8 times greater than the Limerick catchment of half a million, suggesting that over 40,000sqm of retail space in Limerick is more than enough.

Kess73 wrote: »

When Liverpool One was in it's planning stage, the idea behind it was not to just have Merseyside as the catchment area but rather stretch that catchment area to places further away such as Blackpool and large chunks of North Wales. That strategy worked and the whole area benefits greatly from non Merseyside business from a catchment area even greater than what was hoped for. Limerick City in my eyes could do likewise, and benefit greatly from non Shannonside business if the net was spread wide enough from the get go.

Do you mean from Cork, Galway, Waterford cities?

Kess73 wrote: »

Even basic ideas from Liverpool One, like weather proofing some of the shopping streets, could be incorporated into any plans for Limerick.

Well that could be done without any economic plan. It could be especially welcome around Denmark Street area.

Kess73 wrote: »

You say you would like to visit Liverpool One some day, and you really should. It is a fantastic example of what can be achieved when enough people dream big and then pull in the same direction to make it a reality.

You're preaching to the converted about dreaming big. I get annoyed by people who, when presented by anyway radical ideas or plans, try to claim that all problems can be fixed by a few trees and filling the potholes.

Kess73 wrote: »

I am of course biased towards Liverpool One because I am there weekly, and when not living here in Limerick, I live in One Park West in Liverpool. But the difference the project made to the city is staggering, and it went from being a directionless idea to being open to the public in under ten years. It went from being an English city centre that was drab, disliked, and ordinary to one that has a very European feeling centre whilst still keeping enough of it's roots outside of the new centre so that the identity of the city was kept. I just want to see Limerick city receive a similar and permanent makeover.

Can't argue against that.

I still think Limerick 2030 a well thought out plan which needs to be implemented in full.

kilburn

There are some business people in this city with fantastic ideas that if they gave 5% of that pot of money they are talking about that would create far more than the 5000 jobs mentioned.

Give me a million and I will create 100 long term sustainable jobs next week, I went to these people would my idea and the national agencies who are supposed to support enterprise and each and every one of them said they are great ideas but we have no money.

The money that should go to entrepreneurs is being wasted on reports, photo ops and **** contractors in the city. 2-3 weeks ago pipes were laid on Athlunkard street and the road was resurfaced, a week later the road was like a track in Ballyhoura, now they are back and the hole road has had to be pulled up increasing the area to be resurfaced by at least 500%. Who is going to pay for that?

Kess73

pigtown wrote: »

I thought the two plans were broadly similar. Clearly you know more about the Liverpool plan than I do. Would you be able to give a short summary of what you think is missing from Limericks plan?



Fair enough I may have under-calculated the catchment area. Some more research has shown that the target catchment for Liverpool One is over 4 million. This is still 8 times greater than the Limerick catchment of half a million, suggesting that over 40,000sqm of retail space in Limerick is more than enough.



Do you mean from Cork, Galway, Waterford cities?



Well that could be done without any economic plan. It could be especially welcome around Denmark Street area.



You're preaching to the converted about dreaming big. I get annoyed by people who, when presented by anyway radical ideas or plans, try to claim that all problems can be fixed by a few trees and filling the potholes.



Can't argue against that.

I still think Limerick 2030 a well thought out plan which needs to be implemented in full.

You seem to think that I mean the retail space needs to be increased in the Limerick plan. Limerick does need quality retailers but the proposed retail space along with what is available elsewhere in Limerick should be enough as long as proper planning goes into unit size, unit layout etc. A great example of poor research into unit size and market need for it would be Cruise street. The main problem with Cruises street, in terms of it being attractive to major retailers, is the fact the units are, for the most part, very small and that straight away puts a limit on what stores can go there and also what grading of store can go there.

Limerick needs a mix of large, medium, and small units in the proposed new retail areas and not a joke of a plan like that what was on display for the retail units in the never ending Opera centre.

But as important as retail is for a city centre it is not the the only game in town and any good city centre needs life in it outside of retail.

I think proper eating areas are needed as part of the plan (again I can point to Liverpool One as having kick started the growth of streets that became restaurant rich (and I don't mean takeaways like McDonalds etc although there are sections with those as well), with a wide variety of styles and food types available in one lively section.

I also think that proper amenities need to be included in the plan, and not just sweeping statements that say amenities will be there. I would want a small number of purpose built amenities to be planned for from the get go. A city centre cinema, a city centre golf course ( again check Liverpool One to see how a small set up with 36 holes and a top class digital driving range can be dropped into a city centre, this facility also has a bar, a restaurant, and a viewing area to watch sporting events on big screens. It gets used by locals, by those in the catchment area and is very popular for stags, hens, and other events that bring people from much further than the recognised catchment area).

I think a proper full scale museum should be a confirmed part of the plans. I also think that a city centre theatre should be part of it, maybe this could be in the same building that the current plan speaks of as being a potential art gallery.

I would use the river for a viking boat style display/museum. Pretty much the same way as I suggested earlier in this thread (at least I hope it was in this thread )

I would want a dramatic overhaul of the traffic systems in the city centre and also of the public transport. I would want those plans to be well thought out, to be properly researched, and to be agreed upon before any work starts, rather than the somewhat vague manner that they seem to be put forward under the current plan.

I would want a number of the Georgian buildings to be restored, and used as residential living areas within the city centre. With the insides as modern as could be done within reason, and the outsides looking as if they were just built. Would not have them as cheap soon to be run down flats but rather mid to high end apartments and townhouses.

A proper skate park would be another thing I would look for. A big upgrade on the one by the Dock road. Maybe even have a building on site that could facilitate events from time to time but that could be kept locked and safe when not in use. Full scale international skate boarding events could be invited to Limerick.

Now I could waffle on about a dedicated number of gardai being on duty at all times on foot, about provisions being made for a street art area or areas, but that would only lengthen my post and I am already keeping it very simple to avoid it become yet another Kess Tome.

I do think that a lot of what is on the current plan looks very good, but I also think that a lot of it is quite vague and has a lots of ideas that seem to be dropped in but without thought to future expansion or what they should be nearest to if a city with a feeling of flow is to be created.

I am also very sceptical of some of the jobs figures being put into the public domain as they just don't seem to add up, and my gut feeling is that some of the figures have been plucked from the air. As a small business owner who has branches in Cork, Galway, and Liverpool, as well as storage facilities/offices in Limerick I have some idea (albeit on a small scale) of job creation and the numbers in the media just don't tally up ( not if they are talking sustainable numbers anyway)

Kess73

kilburn wrote: »

There are some business people in this city with fantastic ideas that if they gave 5% of that pot of money they are talking about that would create far more than the 5000 jobs mentioned.

Give me a million and I will create 100 long term sustainable jobs next week, I went to these people would my idea and the national agencies who are supposed to support enterprise and each and every one of them said they are great ideas but we have no money.

The money that should go to entrepreneurs is being wasted on reports, photo ops and **** contractors in the city. 2-3 weeks ago pipes were laid on Athlunkard street and the road was resurfaced, a week later the road was like a track in Ballyhoura, now they are back and the hole road has had to be pulled up increasing the area to be resurfaced by at least 500%. Who is going to pay for that?

Great post, and one I wholeheartedly agree with. I am actually genuinely concerned about the €50m seed money that is part of the 2030 project.

It is not as huge a figure as it first looks, if one has serious growth/creation in mind, especially when time scale is looked at, and I would worry about how it gets allocated.

I am lucky enough to be at a stage where my businesses are self sustaining, are growing, and are creating jobs in the cities I am based in. But despite that I have ended up avoiding setting up in Limerick (and I have and still am watching units etc in case something changes on that front) as compared to the other two cities in Ireland I set up in, Limerick was a complete nightmare in terms of dealing with local authorities etc. Poor communication, not getting called back, meeting with people only to discover they had no experience or knowledge in what we were meeting over and of course a cost factor that when looked at in detail worked out far more expensive than getting better locations in Cork and Galway.

Now if it is that difficult for a guy who can financially back himself within reason when he has an idea, it must be hell for much smarter individuals who have great well thought out ideas, but who lack funding.

I have no doubt that Limerick has a high number of individuals who have great ideas. Ideas that have well researched business plans behind them. Ideas that would create sustainable employment. Ideas that could still be growing ten years later if given a chance. But despite all the waffle in the past about funding for these ideas and the talk about a €50m seed fund for the future, we are not seeing, imo of course, any great improvement in the quality of those that decide who gets the money, we are not seeing any change in the drip feed mentality of those allocating funds.

zulutango

I haven't had a chance to read through the plan yet. I played a small role in the early days of it, and I hope that the final version reflects the ideas that myself and others communicated. The various articles relating to it and the press releases seem to be setting the right tone anyway.

One thing I will say is that the plan, and those tasked with implementing it over the coming years, must have central to its focus is that the city must be made an atrractive place to live and work, above all else. This is the single greatest thing you can do to alter the fortunes of the city. It's very important to create innovation hubs, provide retail space, tech centres, etc, but if you don't concentrate on the 'living' elements, the plan is doomed to underachieve at best, or fail at worst. Limerick needs working people living in it, and in the very centre of it. That is a game changer.

Providing parks, playgrounds, safe cycle ways, clean and uncluttered streets, improve the aesthetic of existing buildings and shopfronts, reduce motorised traffic, incentivise and promote leisure amenities and creative and artistic outlets, etc., will make Limerick City an attractive place to live and work. It's not that these things should be done before business incubation centres, technology hubs, or retail space, but they are every bit as important. If you concentrate on the latter, then the hope that this plan represents will be dashed.

europa11

Kess73 wrote: »

......

I would use the river for a viking boat style display/museum. Pretty much the same way as I suggested earlier in this thread (at least I hope it was in this thread )
.....

If I could just isolate that section of your post (v. positve stuff btw, well done!) and suggest that the current unused site at Limerick Boat Club as an ideal location for tha above.

It could act as another focal point on Sarsfield Bridge to complement The Shannon Rowing Clubhouse on the opposite side and bring more life to the riverside area.

sleepyman

I wonder how the revamped King John's Castle will go?It looks though as if the whole courtyard area has been dug up.Is that the case?

Kess73

What I also should have mentioned in my earlier post, and it is another reason why I am sceptical of some aspects of the new plan.

This reason is the Limerick City Development Plan 2010 to 2016. This was another fairly large scale plan which was announced in 2008 or 2009. It is also a plan that had a bit of fanfare about it with regards to what it was going to do for the city centre. It is now at it's halfway stage in terms of tineframe and certainly has not come close to achieving half of it's proposed developments (some of which were quite spectacular on paper).


Europa's post about the boat club actually jogged a memory about the 2010 -2016 city centre plan.

So whilst I welcome the current plan and hope that it goes ahead but gets the required amount of top quality planning it deserves, I will have doubts due to the good number of other major plans that were announced for the city centre that never lived up to their billing

Cookiemunster

Official figures are out for vacancy rates around the country. Limerick City (unsurprisingly) has the highest vacancy rate at 17.2% against a national average of 11.9%.
What is surprising is that dispite what some are saying about Galway buzzing compared to Limerick it has a vacancy rate of 15.8% (Cork has a 13% vacancy rate).
Maybe the fact that Limerick city center is much larger than Galways make it seem like there are vastly more empty units in Limerick.
Anyways whatever the reason the figures show that Limerick needs something to happen. Really hope that the economic plan is more than the usual pie in the sky.

zulutango

Kess73 wrote: »

What I also should have mentioned in my earlier post, and it is another reason why I am sceptical of some aspects of the new plan.

This reason is the Limerick City Development Plan 2010 to 2016. This was another fairly large scale plan which was announced in 2008 or 2009. It is also a plan that had a bit of fanfare about it with regards to what it was going to do for the city centre. It is now at it's halfway stage in terms of tineframe and certainly has not come close to achieving half of it's proposed developments (some of which were quite spectacular on paper).


Europa's post about the boat club actually jogged a memory about the 2010 -2016 city centre plan.

So whilst I welcome the current plan and hope that it goes ahead but gets the required amount of top quality planning it deserves, I will have doubts due to the good number of other major plans that were announced for the city centre that never lived up to their billing

The thing about the Development Plan is that it's a standard framework for the council to work towards. Every local authority will have a similar plan.

The difference with the Limerick 2030 plan is that it is unique for Limerick, much of the funding has been sourced, it's generally more radical and far-reaching than the Development Plan and it engages the expertise of genuine experts to a far greater degree.

I'm still working my way through it, but it does look pretty good.

Kess73

Cookiemunster wrote: »

Official figures are out for vacancy rates around the country. Limerick City (unsurprisingly) has the highest vacancy rate at 17.2% against a national average of 11.9%.
What is surprising is that dispite what some are saying about Galway buzzing compared to Limerick it has a vacancy rate of 15.8% (Cork has a 13% vacancy rate).
Maybe the fact that Limerick city center is much larger than Galways make it seem like there are vastly more empty units in Limerick.
Anyways whatever the reason the figures show that Limerick needs something to happen. Really hope that the economic plan is more than the usual pie in the sky.

Just to add to your comments a little. There were also figures released early this year/late last year that looked into where the bulk of empty units were in each city so that an idea of how many high street units were vacant in each city. Limerick was the runaway leader out of the Irish cities on that score with more main street vacancies ( in terms of %) than any of the other cities.

Galway,which was close to Limerick in terms of overall vacancies (again in terms of %), tended to have more of it's vacant units away from the main street(s) in it's city centre.

What is a sobering detail for me is the amount of vacant units (retail, office and others) along O' Connell Street. Just go someday from where O' Connell Street starts by the Crescent and count all the vacant units/offices from there to where the street ends by Patrick street.

Fingers crossed the coming years and decades sees some serious turnarounds in the fortune of O' Connell Street and surrounding areas.

zulutango

Can you really compare cities on the basis of vacant retail units? Though the populations are not massively different, the cities themselves are. It's not a reasonable indicator of the prosperity of a city because there are a myriad of factors behind those stats.

Cookiemunster

zulutango wrote: »

Can you really compare cities on the basis of vacant retail units? Though the populations are not massively different, the cities themselves are. It's not a reasonable indicator of the prosperity of a city because there are a myriad of factors behind those stats.

I was commenting on it because a number of posters have mentioned on various threads that Galway city center seemed less run down than Limerick. I found this unusual seeing as there seemed to be similar amounts of vacant units. I haven't been to Galway in quite a while so I was curious as to why they had this opinion. However Kess has pointed out where the locations of the empty units differ which answers my question.

keenan_enda

The proposed funding for it doesn't seem right. €250m is not going to stretch far enough to redevelop a city like Limerick. The Dublin Port Tunnel cost €800m to build alone and the Dublin-Belfast motorway cost over €1bn if you add the inflation of prices to modern standards.

All cities have this problem at some point. Dublin 1 and 2 had it in the 1980s were it was textbook dilapidation but now houses around Baggot St are going for upwards of €600,000. Even the areas and buildings between Abbey St and Heuston that you see from the Luas are deprived and are an eyesore.
It happened in Cork ten years ago were the area looked like a bombsite and money was used by some of the richer citizens and EU funding to redevelop. All cities will go through a sort of doughnut effect in modern planning where the richer citizens move out and cause suburbanisation and the city is left with poorer social class and immigrant workers. It happened to Galway in a lesser extent because they do not have much a city centre footprint in that it is mainly Eyre Sq and Shop St but most of that is looked over since NUIG is right in the middle of the city so you have the spillover of students. Limerick really suffers because UL is so far out of the city that most students there would not even see a reason to travel in for what they need.

Limerick needs a change but the whole problem came from the mad Celtic Tiger period when instead of using the money to build up the city centre, the majority of it left when people built hige mansions outside the city boundaries.

Also who is going to take the risk. The real question is who is going to take the risk, risk is pretty fundamental to all of this. It’s very well to come up with grandiose plans but people are only going to invest if there is a guarantee of a return. €250m wont last a long time when city councillors become involved ad additional funding has to come from somewhere

europa11

^^^^^


Agreed, can't see how they think €250million would create such a transformation as that being mooted either.

That €250m. may be the public committment and they're expecting the private sector to come up with whatever else monies are required. But the big question remains as you say, who's going to take the risk?

keenan_enda

Unless someone who has a personal interest in the area like JP McManus, who is helping with the MArket Field Developmwent, is going to invest I can't see who would. West Cork had a development plan that involves buses for older people to get them to and from the services they need, that got private EU funding, but once Irish government heard about it, the funding was stopped. Areas around Dublin then suspiciously got money for the exact same thing. If it is centrally controlled then the city will be worse off than when it started.

It good one one way that the project is staggered over the next 17 years so it means if Sarsfield House is demolished, which is in the first stage of the plan, then that won't be left as a ruined site when attention focuses elsewhere. One stage has to be finished before another starts.

Bit of a bad idea for a prosposed city square to be built at the site of Sarsfield House, because I don't know of many cities that have one right next to a major river where the wind coming off it will be a deterrent for people wishing to meet there 10 out of the 12 months.

Cookiemunster

keenan_enda wrote: »

The proposed funding for it doesn't seem right. €250m is not going to stretch far enough to redevelop a city like Limerick. The Dublin Port Tunnel cost €800m to build alone and the Dublin-Belfast motorway cost over €1bn if you add the inflation of prices to modern standards.

Limerick already has a tunnel bypass and a motorway to Dublin. I don't see how these projects relate in any way to the city center redevelopment.

keenan_enda wrote: »

Limerick really suffers because UL is so far out of the city that most students there would not even see a reason to travel in for what they need.

UL, LIT and Mary I have all committed to opening facilities in the City Centre (in the opera centre site I believe).

keenan_enda wrote: »

Limerick needs a change but the whole problem came from the mad Celtic Tiger period when instead of using the money to build up the city centre, the majority of it left when people built hige mansions outside the city boundaries.

Most of the people who bought new houses during the tiger bought overpriced privately built shoe boxes, not mansions. They bought these houses outside the city boundaries because there is no room for new housing estates inside the tiny city boundary. Also families generally prefer not to live in high rise apartments.

keenan_enda wrote: »

Also who is going to take the risk. The real question is who is going to take the risk, risk is pretty fundamental to all of this. It’s very well to come up with grandiose plans but people are only going to invest if there is a guarantee of a return. €250m wont last a long time when city councillors become involved ad additional funding has to come from somewhere

From the report "This major investment programme will require funding from a range of sources including the private sector, philanthropic bodies, government agencies and Departments, the European Commission and potentially the European Investment Bank.

keenan_enda wrote: »

Bit of a bad idea for a prosposed city square to be built at the site of Sarsfield House, because I don't know of many cities that have one right next to a major river where the wind coming off it will be a deterrent for people wishing to meet there 10 out of the 12 months.

That's not where the square is supposed to go. It supposed to be on Patrick St. between Cruises St and the current entrance to Arthurs Quay SC.

I think you need to go reread the report. While I doubt half of it will be done and agree that €250m probably won't be enough your argument would come across better if you used relevant comparisons and got you facts correct.

pigtown

The Limerick Marketing Company has been created with the aim of doubling the number of tourists that visit Limerick in 5 years. It has a budget of €350'000 and is to be based in the city centre. It will be in charge of limerick.ie and its first big challenge will be marketing the city of culture next year.

The rebranding and marketing of the city is a key part of Limerick 2030.
http://www.irishexaminer.com/business/dedicated-marketing-company-aims-to-double-limericks-visitor-numbers-237754.html

Itsdacraic

kilburn

So what is the Limerick Cordination / Communication office doing now if we have the Limerick Marketing company????

pigtown

kilburn wrote: »

So what is the Limerick Cordination / Communication office doing now if we have the Limerick Marketing company????

Not quite sure. This comes from the Business&Leadership site though:

It will take over the existing activities of the Limerick Communications Office, which up to now promoted the city through traditional and new media, as well as Limerick.ie, the online guide to events and activities in Limerick. Marketing the City of Culture programme will be the first major undertaking by the new office.

jbkenn

Itsdacraic wrote: »

Even worse,
Here is what happened, after years of inaction, a Government finally decided to put the "Rest Home for the Bewildered" that was Shannon Developement out of our misery and get rid of the 123 staff.
25 staff opted for the fat pension and Lahinch Golf Club, that left 98 lost souls who were "surplus", and as Public Servants have to be "redeployed" on their current salary grade and pension entitlements, but where.....?.
Tah Dah... dream up Limerick Marketing Company, stuff one pillock in there, 1 down 97 to go, expect to see many other oddball appointments in the coming months.

aindriu80

have they any plans/artist impressions/models of the Limerick economic plan ?

sleepyman

aindriu80 wrote: »

have they any plans/artist impressions/models of the Limerick economic plan ?

I think if you go to the Limerick city council website or even just google the plan you'll find images of what(hopefully)the area around the Old Dunnes Stores will look like

europa11

aindriu80 wrote: »

have they any plans/artist impressions/models of the Limerick economic plan ?

You'll find plans and some artists impressions on the reports' pdf here:

http://www.limerickcity.ie/Planning/EconomicDevelopment/Limerick2030AnEconomicandSpatialPlanforLimerick/An%20Economic%20and%20Spatial%20Plan%20for%20Limerick-Executive%20Summary.pdf


Don't know if there is any sandpit type of scale model to view in City Hall, I doubt it's little more than some lego style plastic boxes, etc. if, indeed, there is one.

kilburn

This story reeks of the usual union crap that has this country tied up in knots and will delay regeneration further which is a key part of the 2030 plan now.

If i am reading it correctly they are going on strike as the plasterers are not locals on the Vizes Court and Carew Park projects which began before they reached a deal on the new Cliona park project, which says that all plasteres employed on THAT project must be locals due to the high level of unemployment.

I have no problem with the idea of employing locals thats great but retrospective strikes on projects that dont appear to be part of the deal is not on.

http://www.limerickleader.ie/news/business/limerick-housing-project-staff-set-to-go-on-strike-1-5441322

jbkenn

From the Leader

In a letter to Clancy Construction signed by OPATSI’s Limerick president Seamus Quinn, vice-president Brian O’Grady, secretary Mike Quinn, and Brian Quinn, they wrote they “unfortunately could not ascertain who is carrying out the plastering works on your site. We were informed that they were eight in number, but most of the names were either unknown or being withheld.” The strike action is unlikely to halt the projects completely.

Who are these people?, is this a Trade Union, or a Quinn family enterprise?

Brennans Row

Group to drive €250m regeneration (Irish Examiner)

A high-powered think tank made up of leading business and financial figures is being put together to drive the €250m Limerick 2030 plan drawn up to revive the city.

The plan, launched on June 14, has the potential to deliver 5,000 jobs and its main objective is the delivery of an entirely new city centre as a hub for huge commercial investment.

The Irish Examiner has learned that management at City Hall is now putting together a key strategic group to drive and progress the plan.

Those invited to join the group include horseracing figure JP McManus; former Kerry Group chief Denis Brosnan; John Hurley, head of Google Ireland; John Moran, secretary general of the Department of Finance; Paul Rellis of Microsoft; Loretta Glucksman, a US philantropist who has donated huge sums to the University of Limerick, and a number of other major business figures.

A mission statement for the think tank will be drawn up in the coming months and it is planned that it will work in close co-operation with the new 40-member Limerick Council, which will replace Limerick City and County Council following next summer’s local elections.

The plan envisages a renaissance of Limerick’s entire waterfront; the transformation of city centre streets; the creation of a city square/plaza; creation of a city centre higher education campus; the restoration of the Georgian Quarter, and a new public transport system.

This type of co-operation is a very positive step forward.

From here on we need a project schedule with exact deadline dates.

For example the mission statement for the think tank will be drawn up in the coming months is not good enough.

It would be better if the mission statement for the think tank will be drawn up by the 01.12.2013.

kilburn

Brennans Row wrote: »

This type of co-operation is a very positive step forward.

From here on we need a project schedule with exact deadline dates.

For example the mission statement for the think tank will be drawn up in the coming months is not good enough.

It would be better if the mission statement for the think tank will be drawn up by the 01.12.2013.

Agree, in fairness any of us could write that statement in ten minutes, all talk and **** all action again