THE city manager, Tom Mackey will waste no time in setting development plans in motion for the 1.9 hectare Opera site, which has just been acquired by the city council.
This will be followed by the council seeking expressions of interest and the establishment of a public consultation process.
Mayor Jim Long has confirmed that a masterplan for the new city centre retail and mixed use development will be presented by April.
“By June funding will be sought for demolition and clearance of dangerous buildings, attention to protected structures and all preparatory work will be completed.”
Emphasising the pivotal role played by Finance Minister, Michael Noonan in copperfastening the funding required to purchase the site, city manager, Tom Mackey, who has been credited with “doing trojan work to secure the site for the city,” told councillors:
“We were delighted that Minister Noonan did so much to ensure that the site would come into our ownership.
“We are now in the process of winding up the legalities and this will be completed before the end of the year, after which we will set up a working group to consult with our third level colleges, with the objective of getting their presence into the city to increase footfall and retail spend.”
Also being considered is the relocation of the Jim Kemmy Museum and the construction of a new city library for the Opera Centre.
“High standard level accommodation and tier one retail outlets will feature – it’s vital to attract new investment but also to retain those outlets that are there,” Mayor Long told the Limerick Post.
“We will explore going up in the build, as well as underground parking.”
Cllr Joe Leddin said it was “very nice to get calls from traders saying that where the private sector had failed, the public sector had come to the rescue in securing the site.”
Stressing the importance of “imaginative” architecture to combine the old and new in the area, Cllr Tom Shortt said it will be essential to “get the balance right.
Declaring himself “over the moon,” leading Patrick Street retailer, Tony Connolly said the development will “certainly generate significantly more circulation of people throughout the city centre”
