Councillors block plans to sell former Limerick garda station

LIMERICK councillors have taken the unusual step of blocking the sale of a former garda station to a third party.

At this month's full local authority meeting, members exercised their power to veto the proposed sale of public land to the private sector.

Council bosses had recommended Mary Street garda station - closed since 2013 - be sold for €100,000 to the Newenham Street Group Ltd, which has promised "a new signature building in Mary Street".

This came after the building was acquired from the Office of Public Works in 2018.

In a briefing note to councillors from head of property Jayne Leahy, it is stated the firm is seeking to build "high-quality consulting rooms and office space" and planned to invest €800,000 in its refurbishment.

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But Fine Gael councillor Olivia O'Sullivan put forward a proposal to refuse the sale, and this was seconded by her colleague on the northside, Labour's Conor Sheehan.

No counter-proposal was forthcoming, so the sale was blocked.

"I cannot in good faith approve this," said Cllr O'Sullivan, "It was specifically laid out to deliver for Regeneration criteria, to meet objectives for Mary Street. I've raised concerns before that we are not acting in the best interests of the Regeneration plan or the council's tourism strategy by approving this disposal."

She pointed out that the original Expressions of Interest document for proposals was seeking an operator which could provide a tourism offering, with food and craft potential, along with the organisation of street events and links with neighbouring businesses.

Better, she said to withdraw the plan, rather than deferring it to "kick the can down the road."

Green councillor Sasa Novak urged council to go back to the drawing board, while Sinn Fein's Sharon Benson does not believe the council has looked at all avenues relating to the old Garda station.

"There was a strategic ask in this Expression of Interest, and we cannot continue with the case of, if you don't get in something you don't like, sell to the person with most money in their bank account. The use should be more important," she told the meeting.

The only member in City North who pushed for the sale was veteran Fianna Fail councillor Kieran O'Hanlon who said: "It's still in a derelict condition in one of the most important tourism areas in the city. People who walk by it, and the residents of the area need to put up with it. It's in a deplorable condition. If there's an alternative, I'm happy to listen. But no-one has told me we have the funding available to refurbish it, or we can access funding nationally, if we can do that. But if we can't, I cannot see any point in deferring it."

Council boss Dr Pat Daly pointed out under the Limerick 2030 plan, the Mary Street area was cited as being for a medical village.

"The idea of this is to have services and support activities around the hospital [Barrington's] which would generate their own level of activity. I don't think we have any major interest from hospitality or tourism when we went to tender. What you decide is what you decide, and we will respect that," he said.

Regeneration director Joe Delaney said: "The reason this bid was chosen over the other bids was the belief that this bid could get this difficult project done."

Elsewhere at the meeting, councillors approved the transfer of 22 other portions of land from the public sector to private buyers.