SLIDESHOW: Limerick gardai look to the future as station closes its doors after 43 years

HISTORY was made this Tuesday as the first garda to take up duty at the current Newcastle West garda station closed its doors for the final time.

George Daly, who retired in 2001, moved from the previous garda station in the town to the current station mid-shift on November 7, 1977.

“On that day I was the station orderly and at 10 o’clock, I officially signed off the books and I came up here into a lovely modern new building and commenced my duty for the second part of my day. I done the first part of the day in the old garda station, officially signed my books and brought them up here,” he said.

Former Minister for Justice, Gerard Collins, who officially opened the Newcastle West district headquarters on November 25, 1977, also attended Tuesday’s ceremony to mark the formal closure of the garda station.

He told the Limerick Leader he never believed he would be returning after 43 years to mark its closure.

“At that time, being involved in the gardai as a profession was an extremely difficult and dangerous profession having regard to the fight against terrorism. The station, 40 years ago, was most suitable for the occasion and for the job of work but you know the force is expanding rapidly – and magnificently so – to meet the changes in life and to give the people the protections they need,” he said.

Sergeant Miriam Mulhall-Nolan, who is now based in Tralee, was the first ever female garda to be stationed in County Limerick when she was transferred to Newcastle West in May 1987.

“At that stage a lot of the females were inside in Limerick city and I was the first to move out to the county area. Newcastle West was a lovely place to work, it was a busy spot with nice people, friendly people and I enjoyed my time here,” said Sgt Mulhall-Nolan who left the Limerick division in August 1991.

Located at Churchtown on the outskirts of Newcastle West, the garda station has been deemed unfit from a health and safety perspective - not only to gardaí, but to the public.

It has been closed to facilitate construction of a new multi-million euro garda station which, once complete, will become the county headquarters for community engagement under the new garda operating model.

“Newcastle West is going to be the centre of policing for the county going forward. Even though we have closed our doors here today it’s very much business as usual, we will be operating out of a new temporary building but we will still be providing the same police service to the community,” said Superintendent Aileen Magner.

An administrative building near the entrance to the Demesne will be open to the public between 7.30am and 9pm while certain garda units and personnel will operate out of  Askeaton, Abbeyfeale and Rathkeale garda stations while the new station is being constructed.

Plans for the new garda station, which will accommodate up to 200 garda personnel, have been completed and it’s hoped the project will be progressed in the near future.

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