City 'must grow or it will become derelict by 2020'

LIMERICK needs to be made into a lady again or the city is in danger of completely dying by 2020, leading planners, developers and business members have been warned.
New plans include trebling the population of the city from 50,000 to 150,000 within 13 years and a complete overhaul of the entire city centre in sweeping proposals announced at a conference yesterday.
Leading architects from Elliott Maguire Landers (EML) presented a vast number of ideas which they claim will transform Limerick city life and prevent the city from becoming redundant and abandoned.
It is hoped the proposals, if put in place, would make Limerick a far more culturally and economically vibrant city and put it in pole position among other urban centres in the Shannon corridor.
The suggestions include a floating concert arena, a brand new pedestrian bridge, the demolition and redevelopment of the city's prime shopping district, Cruises St, the construction of a cluster of sky scrapers in a business district along with a new international conference centre and the demolition of many old buildings.
Director with EML, Michael Landers said Limerick as a city was dead after 6pm.
"Everybody pours out of the city centre after work. It is a dead city come 6pm. We are not a modern European city and lag well behind," said Mr Landers.
Compete
"We are now in danger of not being in the top four cities in Ireland. We cannot compete with Dublin, Cork is well ahead of us, Galway is much more organised and Waterford is now on our heels.
"If we do not grapple with the declining population issue, the city will die and other Irish cities will race ahead of us," he said.
EML Managing Director Hugh Elliot pointed out that Limerick is the only city in Ireland, if not Europe, where suburban commercial rents are higher than those in the city.
"I don't want to live in a city which is dying. We want to transform Limerick into a new city where 150,000 people will choose to live, a city that will attract investment and tourism by 2020," said Mr Elliot.

Barry Duggan
© Irish Independent