PLANS for a long-awaited Garda Station in a busy Limerick City suburb have taken a big step forward this week, it has been announced.
The Office of Public Works (OPW) and An Garda Síochána are now working closely together to identify a suitable site for the proposed new Garda station in Castletroy.
Hopes for the Castletroy Garda Station have long been held, with a number of local councillors and TDs in recent years calling for its establishment.
The latest step forward forms part of an initial business case prepared by An Garda Síochána for the acquisition of a site or property suitable for use as the new station in the highly-populated Limerick suburb, which is home to the University of Limerick and its estimated excess of 18,000 students.
The announcements comes as the planned Garda station was included in the latest round of the Garda Capital Investment Programme 2023-2030.
The news has been welcomed by Castletroy-based Fine Gael OPW Minister Kieran O’Donnell, who said that the need for a station in the area is “evident”.
“Having secured the inclusion of a Garda station for Castletroy in the latest Garda Capital Investment Programme 2023-2030, a process is now underway with the Office of Public Works working in collaboration with An Garda Síochána to identify a suitable site for a new Garda station in Castletroy,” the Fine Gael TD said.
“The need for this Garda station for Castletroy is clearly evident, with Castletroy-Annacotty area currently having a resident population of over 16,000, swelled by a UL student population of over 18,000, which gives rise to a population of about 34,000,” Minister O’Donnell said.
