IT will cost in the region of the already ring-fenced €20million to prepare the Opera Centre site, claims Mayor Jim Long.
He told the Limerick Post:
“We would have to go down 20 metres to build an underground car park, unless we link up to the Arthur’s Quay Car Park with an overhead bridge – that car park reverts to the ownership of Limerick City Council next year”.
Demolition, he said, will commence shortly, kick-starting development of the site.
“I’d like to see activity in May and June and that should be possible”.
Despite some concern that City Hall has so far not declared an interest in locating a new city library, the Jim Kemmy City Museum from Castle Lane and other municipal buildings to the Opera Centre, the mayor believes that siting a cultural cluster there would secure government funding.
Once the preparatory work, including legal issues, is out of the way, and an elevation site secured, he said:
“We will go to the public consultation process by the end of February and will engage with potential tenants – we’ve already been in touch with the universities and educational sector to interest them in establishing a presence in the Opera Centre and of course, we will be attracting the tier one retailers – my own preference here is for the Sainsbury, Marks and Spencer and the Asda chain, so successful in the North of Ireland.
“We want restaurants, a theatre and concert hall, overhead top class accommodation and other facilities so that the centre will not close at 6pm, but we are very mindful of the existing retailers in the city, and they will get “massive” exposure as well, so that footfall will link them directly to the Opera Centre.
He confirmed they had already received submissions from the public.
“One that comes from a nationally recognised fashion promoter is the establishment of a fashion design centre, and there are other interesting propositions”.
