LIMERICK mayoral candidate John Moran has said that, if elected, he will “throw the weight of his office” behind stalled plans for a ‘Museum of Gaming’ in Limerick City.
The plans would see the former Franciscan Church on Henry Street turned into a gaming museum, known as the ‘Game Cube’, focused on Limerick’s history as being the home to Atari – which employed around 600 people locally before dealing a devastating blow with its closing just before Christmas 1984.
Mr Moran first raised plans for the museum when he was on the board of the Hunt Museum in 2015, with the GameCube to be installed there, offering a history of games from the pre-historic to the modern day.
Mr Moran said that the museum would be a unique angle to traditional tourist attractions.
“This is precisely the kind of attraction we should be looking at, where we take a slightly oblique angle to traditional attractions and cultural offerings,” he said.
“The GameCube concept is an attraction that will bring visitors on a journey through the history of games, from pre-historic times all the way up to modern day and – importantly – beyond, where we offer glimpses into what the cutting-edge companies are already working on.
“It would be a unique tourism asset right here in Limerick, but for the country as a whole. As well as offering visitors the chance to learn about, engage with, and play games from each of the eras.”
The museum would also be an event space, with the option of teaming up with local universities and schools to host workshops, classes, summer camps, and courses, the Independent mayoral candidate opined, aiming to tap into the international gaming economy worth around €194billion.
The mayoral candidate said that the museum is “a perfect example of why Limerick is ‘stuck in neutral’ where completely doable projects just run out of momentum and energy and are parked up in the already crowded lay-by of ideas.”
“If I am done the honour of being elected as mayor, I will use my office and my experience of how government works to clear roadblocks to good and deliverable projects such as this.”
