THERE will be no beach parties in Limerick City this summer as Mayor of Limerick John Moran scraps plans to close The Crescent on O’Connell Street for the August Animations’ festival.
Last year, a number of streets, including The Crescent, were closed to traffic to facilitate a large number of activities, including an inner-city urban beach, as well as live music, community events, and a large dinner party.
It may be a case of the Curse of St Munchin, as the infamous urban beach has been one of the most talked about points of the Mayor’s term so far, with the effort being polarising in the praise and condemnation it has attracted.
The proposal to close The Crescent this week once again received harsh words from local councillors, with one city councillor describing it as “wasted public money” and “quite ridiculous”, alleging that the Mayor putting forward the location without the agreement of councillors as the city “becoming like Trump in America”.
Mayor Moran put forward the proposal last year for a month-long mini festival as a way of transforming urban spaces into hubs for culture and community activity in Limerick City.
It was confirmed this week however that The Crescent would not be part of those plans in 2025. Limerick City and County Council confirmed that it is “planning activities and animations for the city during the month of August” and that “some of these activities may necessitate closures at Honan’s Quay, Johns Square, and Baker Place”.
“It is not envisaged that any other streets or roads will be closed as part of these planned activations,” the Council added.
Mayor Moran issued a statement on the U-turn cancellation, saying it became clear to him that the programme he hoped to deliver, even with an increased budget, was “not feasible on a value-for-money basis compared to last year.
“I could not convince myself that paying for what was then planned for this year, especially with the costs of increased manning of road closures, was good value for money. In this context, I believed the more responsible choice, and one I was not afraid to make, was to step back and reassess how we might deliver differently and better in future years,” the Mayor’s statement read.
Mayor Moran went on to say that while he acknowledged that some felt “discommoded by removing traffic from one or two blocks in our city centre over the holiday period last year”, he believes “we saw countless examples and images of a new-found joy on our streets and that was inspiring to all involved” last year – images which, he said, “travelled across the country and beyond”.
The Mayor also remarks on how studies all over the world show that when cities open up public spaces, people respond positively, and that Limerick should be no exception.
“This is a mere tactical retreat from our ultimate ambition of making Limerick a better place. It is a pause to ensure we build something stronger,” the Mayor insisted.
The Crescent U-turn was met with mixed reaction from city councillors, with Independent councillor Maria Donoghue telling the Limerick Post that she was “disappointed”, claiming that “cities should be flexible to adapt and change, not held hostage to traffic flows”.
“I’m disappointed not only about this event, but what this means for the city centre in general. The negativity this whole activation proposal drew is nothing less than ridiculous and disproportionate.”
Cllr O’Donoghue said she hopes that the Council at large has “learned to put together a strategy of annual street closures and public activation throughout the city and across the calendar year, to be ambitious for Limerick and allow it to thrive”.
Fine Gael councillor Kieran O’Hanlon, on the other hand, told the Limerick Post he was glad to see the Mayor row back on his plans.
“The whole idea of blocking off one of the main streets in the city was quite ridiculous, particularly for the purposes of having a so-called beach there,” Cllr O’Hanlon claimed.
Cllr O’Hanlon hit out that the Mayor has “wasted public money” pursuing this project and that councillors need to be involved in making these decisions.
“It should not be up to one individual whether we close the street or open the street. We’re becoming like Trump in America, these decisions should be put before a council committee.”
When asked by the Limerick Post which areas, similar the Mayor’s plan to increase footfall in the city centre, may be better placed for road closures and animations, Cllr O’Hanlon suggested that “we are inclined to forget places like Caherdavin, Raheen, and Castletroy”.
“I think there’s always a demand for funding for various events like these, but planning, thought and a little democracy needs to come into it.”
