A WALKING tour of vacant and derelict properties in Limerick is being organised for Saturday, February 26 to highlight the need for more to be done to bring the properties back into use as public housing and community facilities.
The walking tour is being organised as part of a National Day of Action on Dereliction organised by the National Housing and Homelessness Coalition which involves political groups such as People Before Profit and the Social Democrats, as well as trade unions, students unions, community groups and housing charities.
Limerick City West Social Democrats Councillor Elisa O’Donovan, who is one of the event organisers said that derelict properties are a significant issue around Limerick city.
“By hosting this walking tour, we want to identify what the issues are in relation to vacant sites in our communities and work together to bring our city back to life as a place to live, work and play”
The event will start at 1pm in Arthurs Quay Park on Saturday, February 26 and will include stops at key vacant and derelict sites around the city. At each stop, a different speaker will give a short talk dealing with topics such as the history of the different sites, their possible uses, and policy solutions to tackle the problem of vacancy.
According to former Councillor Cian Prendiville, the event is “a chance for people to come together, find out more about our city while also demonstrating the demand for action to deal with a large number of vacant and derelict buildings.
“Each of these buildings is a potential home, some could house one family, others could become entire apartment blocks. But currently, they are sitting empty, an eyesore rather than a resource. This action is hopefully the first step in building a strong movement in Limerick to get serious about tackling vacancy.”
Community groups, trade unions and others concerned about the issue of vacancy and dereliction are invited to get involved in the campaign.
An online meeting to organise the walking tour is due to take place on zoom from 7pm on Wednesday, February 16 and those interested in taking place should contact Cian Prendiville on 086-8064801 for login details.
