AS HUMAN beings we can have a built in mistrust of the future, a fear what change might bring, and often we choose stagnation as the safer option.
Change, of course, is inevitable. But as I found myself standing outside Brown Thomas recently, waiting for my interview date to arrive, it was not a vision of tomorrow I was presented with, but rose-tinted reminiscences of the past. Here I was, a teenager again, throwing shapes after school outside what was then Todds, in a city centre that bustled with life.
Thirty years later and my slick Morrissey quiff is no more, my Brylcreem-ed mane now gone the same way as Cruises Hotel. Yet I hold on to these memories, and when I sometimes complain how my beloved city is not now what it once was, it is with the semblance of irrational fancies that I approximate it too.
When Cllr Daniel Butler does arrive, bang on time, at our city centre rendezvous point — a meeting place that brims over with rich memories for many Limerick people — I am already heady with intoxication of flashbacks from back in the day, parking thoughts of the Carlton and Central Cinemas as I join the former Limerick Mayor on a walk of the city’s streets.
An intuitive and passionate man, very much residing in the present, Cllr Butler says he wants to make the city centre his focus during his term as Cathaoirleach of the Council’s Metropolitan District.
Limerick born and bred, the Raheen native says he is slogging away to make our city centre a place where people want to live, work, and spend time, a place that is vibrant, safe, welcoming, and full of life.
The City West Fine Gael representative, with strong memories of his own of a life growing up around the city centre, does not seem blinkered by the prod of nostalgia. If anything, it’s what is still to come that motivates him.
Cllr Butler tells me his first job was in legendary late-night coffee shop Javas Cafe on Thomas Street. He remembers his early 20s fondly. An avid music fan, he lights up as he recants tales of nights out over two decades ago in once popular nightspots such as McGregors, The High Stool, Quins, and Baker Place.
Changing times
“I’m talking to businesses at the minute and trying to get an honest measurement on the city centre. We’re here recollecting about how the city centre was, but it can’t always be what it was. City centres around the world are changing, and the purpose for which people are using cities is changing, so we need to get ahead of that curve,” he insists.
“But look, I can’t be imposing my middle-aged viewpoint of the city centre. I’ve got to figure out what do young people want from a city centre location. Covid had a huge impact on city centres across Europe. People now have a remote work option and maybe only work three days a week inside the city centre. Friday is always the day they work from home and that was primarily the biggest shopping day. That’s why we are seeing the opening of more coffee shops in the suburbs, because that’s where people are working.”
He tells me that such services and businesses “are now going out to meet you where you live, so that has caused huge changes”.
“I’m only learning this through getting out there talking to businesses in the city. I’ve also been travelling a little bit and I can see that they are going through the same changes in city centres across Europe and America. Right now, if I’m honest, we’re a long way off where we need to be.”
Cllr Butler’s vision for a modern, thriving city, he tells me, is a place that puts people at its heart, a city that’s walkable, green, well connected, culturally rich and inclusive, a place where small businesses and local enterprise can flourish, where public spaces are alive with activity, and where people can feel proud to call it home.
‘We need to get with the programme’
The future of Limerick City, he insists, is a shared priority for all, from businesses, youth groups, the artistic community, and all who call Limerick home.
With this in mind, his first business as Cathaoirleach, he says, was to make the city centre a standing agenda item at every Metropolitan meeting during his term. This, he maintains, will ensure that discussions are structured and efficient, but more importantly, that this vital issue gets the consistent focus and attention it deserves.
“If I’m honest, we’re miles off because we’re still in the conversation around ‘I remember Limerick used to be this’. We have to come to the realisation that the past is gone. We’re not going to create a vision that is taking us back. We have to take a vision where we are moving forward in the same direction other city centres are going. We need to step up and say, ‘this is where we want to go’,” he states.
“I’d love to be 20 years younger, but that’s not going to happen either. We need to get with the programme. I struggle with it myself as I still have a vision in my head of where the city centre is and what it used to be. The focus now needs to be on what we would like it to be into the future. We either ignore the evidence or we can just keep talking about how things used to be back in my day. But our chances of becoming a progressive city will never happen if we don’t start looking forward.”
By the end of his year as Cathaoirleach of the Metropolitan District, Cllr Butler wants to have a clear snapshot of where the city is at with a view to moving forward with a new vision.
“Like everybody else, I’m worried about the city centre. Like everybody else, I want the best for us. And like everybody else, I can remember the great times, but I want to find a new kind of great time for the future. I would also ask people to try and see the positive a bit more. We are very good at talking ourselves down and I think that comes from our history.”
As our leisurely stroll comes to an end, he tells me: “I love Limerick, I think it is amazing. I think the honesty and integrity of Limerick people is something special, but we just have to share that a bit more and be positive and show love for our city and share that with people from outside and each other. We have work to do, but we’ll crack on with it.”
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
Change, of course, is inevitable. But as I found myself standing outside Brown Thomas recently, waiting for my interview date to arrive, it was not a vision of tomorrow I was presented with, but rose-tinted reminiscences of the past. Here I was, a teenager again, throwing shapes after school outside what was then Todds, in a city centre that bustled with life.
Thirty years later and my slick Morrissey quiff is no more, my Brylcreem-ed mane now gone the same way as Cruises Hotel. Yet I hold on to these memories, and when I sometimes complain how my beloved city is not now what it once was, it is with the semblance of irrational fancies that I approximate it too.
When Cllr Daniel Butler does arrive, bang on time, at our city centre rendezvous point — a meeting place that brims over with rich memories for many Limerick people — I am already heady with intoxication of flashbacks from back in the day, parking thoughts of the Carlton and Central Cinemas as I join the former Limerick Mayor on a walk of the city’s streets.
An intuitive and passionate man, very much residing in the present, Cllr Butler says he wants to make the city centre his focus during his term as Cathaoirleach of the Council’s Metropolitan District.
Limerick born and bred, the Raheen native says he is slogging away to make our city centre a place where people want to live, work, and spend time, a place that is vibrant, safe, welcoming, and full of life.
The City West Fine Gael representative, with strong memories of his own of a life growing up around the city centre, does not seem blinkered by the prod of nostalgia. If anything, it’s what is still to come that motivates him.
Cllr Butler tells me his first job was in legendary late-night coffee shop Javas Cafe on Thomas Street. He remembers his early 20s fondly. An avid music fan, he lights up as he recants tales of nights out over two decades ago in once popular nightspots such as McGregors, The High Stool, Quins, and Baker Place.
Changing times
“I’m talking to businesses at the minute and trying to get an honest measurement on the city centre. We’re here recollecting about how the city centre was, but it can’t always be what it was. City centres around the world are changing, and the purpose for which people are using cities is changing, so we need to get ahead of that curve,” he insists.
“But look, I can’t be imposing my middle-aged viewpoint of the city centre. I’ve got to figure out what do young people want from a city centre location. Covid had a huge impact on city centres across Europe. People now have a remote work option and maybe only work three days a week inside the city centre. Friday is always the day they work from home and that was primarily the biggest shopping day. That’s why we are seeing the opening of more coffee shops in the suburbs, because that’s where people are working.”
He tells me that such services and businesses “are now going out to meet you where you live, so that has caused huge changes”.
“I’m only learning this through getting out there talking to businesses in the city. I’ve also been travelling a little bit and I can see that they are going through the same changes in city centres across Europe and America. Right now, if I’m honest, we’re a long way off where we need to be.”
Cllr Butler’s vision for a modern, thriving city, he tells me, is a place that puts people at its heart, a city that’s walkable, green, well connected, culturally rich and inclusive, a place where small businesses and local enterprise can flourish, where public spaces are alive with activity, and where people can feel proud to call it home.
‘We need to get with the programme’
The future of Limerick City, he insists, is a shared priority for all, from businesses, youth groups, the artistic community, and all who call Limerick home.
With this in mind, his first business as Cathaoirleach, he says, was to make the city centre a standing agenda item at every Metropolitan meeting during his term. This, he maintains, will ensure that discussions are structured and efficient, but more importantly, that this vital issue gets the consistent focus and attention it deserves.
“If I’m honest, we’re miles off because we’re still in the conversation around ‘I remember Limerick used to be this’. We have to come to the realisation that the past is gone. We’re not going to create a vision that is taking us back. We have to take a vision where we are moving forward in the same direction other city centres are going. We need to step up and say, ‘this is where we want to go’,” he states.
“I’d love to be 20 years younger, but that’s not going to happen either. We need to get with the programme. I struggle with it myself as I still have a vision in my head of where the city centre is and what it used to be. The focus now needs to be on what we would like it to be into the future. We either ignore the evidence or we can just keep talking about how things used to be back in my day. But our chances of becoming a progressive city will never happen if we don’t start looking forward.”
By the end of his year as Cathaoirleach of the Metropolitan District, Cllr Butler wants to have a clear snapshot of where the city is at with a view to moving forward with a new vision.
“Like everybody else, I’m worried about the city centre. Like everybody else, I want the best for us. And like everybody else, I can remember the great times, but I want to find a new kind of great time for the future. I would also ask people to try and see the positive a bit more. We are very good at talking ourselves down and I think that comes from our history.”
As our leisurely stroll comes to an end, he tells me: “I love Limerick, I think it is amazing. I think the honesty and integrity of Limerick people is something special, but we just have to share that a bit more and be positive and show love for our city and share that with people from outside and each other. We have work to do, but we’ll crack on with it.”
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.