REVEALED: Plans for new shopping mall in Limerick city centre

LIMERICK Live can reveal plans for a new shopping mall in the heart of the city.

An application has been lodged with council planners for a two-storey commercial and retail building at a site in the city which was once home to Finucane’s Electrical at the junction of Thomas Street and Anne Street.

The premises was demolished in 2007 after the electrical firm moved to the suburbs, and has lain undeveloped since.

Under the plans, developers are seeking to build nine units over two floors.

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The applicant is Multi-Storey (Limerick) Ltd, a firm headquartered on the city’s riverside and listing its principal activity as car parking and property letting.

According to a blueprint submitted to the council, the units will measure between 44 square metres and 75 square metres.

Four will be located on the first floor, five on the ground floor, and these will be built next to an existing retail unit, which houses a hairdresser.

A mall will link the first floor units.

What kind of retail or commercial use the units will have is unclear, with one of Multi-Storey (Limerick) directors Eva Clarke not returning a request for comment.

It’s not the first time development has been sought on the site which is idle almost 20 years.

Upon the closure of Finucane’s, an application was lodged to turn the premises into a branch of pizza and pasta chain Cafe Bar Deli.

Due to the economic recession, this never happened.

In 2017, permission was given to construct a two-storey commercial unit including a restaurant.

But a bid to give the developer more time to complete this in 2021 was rejected, due to the fact no substantial works had taken place on the site.

This new retail development comes against the backdrop of businesses being shuttered.