Major overhaul being planned for festive light-up in Limerick

A CHRISTMAS extravaganza is being planned for Limerick, featuring a unique parade which will see the festive lights being turned on street-by-street.

It may still be 94 days until December 25, but council is already planning for a huge event in the city to mark the start of yuletide.

Some 18,000 people are projected to line the city streets on Saturday, November 22.

And while Mayor John Moran has admitted there is unlikely to be a physical ‘flicking of the switch’ to light up O’Connell Street, as is traditional, the parade will contain similar elements.

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“When you do a static lighting-up ceremony, the security risk is much higher. Remember last year, we had a parade around the Georgian area. The idea is they are hoping to combine that, so as it moves through the city, we will light the city as we walk through the streets. It’s a new kind of idea,” Mayor Moran told Limerick Live.

He believes larger crowds will attend a procession, as more people will want to line the route.

He acknowledged that last Christmas people were “less than happy” with what was on offer in Limerick.

“So this year, we have had a sub-committee of the councillors in the city who have been working with the team to come up with good ideas like this parade. They have been involved from the beginning in terms of planning what is going to happen.

That’s really helpful as they will know what is happening,” said the mayor.

This, he added, is “really positive for me”.

A council spokesperson said of the event: “In short, it's a magical illuminated seasonal procession to celebrate the arrival of Christmas in Limerick incorporating the switching on of the Christmas lights. This approach is a more inclusive switch-on event - a greater opportunity for everyone to enjoy it. There will be a designated area for persons with sensory needs at the start of the procession.”

Separately, the directly elected mayor is hoping to re-open The Limerick Athenaeum, also known as the Theatre Royal at Cecil Street, for the first time since 1998.

He hopes a pop-up, pet-friendly cinema can go in there.

“Imagine how cool it would be to take your favourite dog to see a Christmas film at an old cinema where The Cranberries used to play,” he enthused.

Limerick City and County Council has advertised the fact the procession will take place in mid-November.

It’s anticipated the Light Up Limerick Procession will take place between 7.30pm and 8.30pm. A full schedule of road closures will issue prior to it.

People interested in exploring the plans in further detail, and have their say, can do so by visiting the council’s planning department at County Hall in Dooradoyle.