First students attend University of Limerick City Centre Campus

THE FIRST ever students to attend classes at the University of Limerick’s City Centre Campus were on site this Tuesday to begin “a new educational journey.”

Students from UL’s School of Architecture and the Product Design and Technology programme were at the Sarsfield Street site for classes, including some in the newly fitted out digital fabrication facility ‘Fab Lab.’

UL President Professor Kerstin Mey and Mayor of Limerick City and County Daniel Butler paid a visit to the University’s new facility to welcome the students to the City Centre Campus.

New teaching spaces and a presentation area, plus a Citizens’ Innovation Lab which is a joint initiative with Limerick City and County Council, have been developed in the existing building.

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A section of the building has been retrofitted for use in the short term, while a longer-term master plan for the site is developed, which will lead to thousands of students using the campus.

Initial works to prepare a portion of the internal space on the first floor of the building have been ongoing since July of last year.

This was done to create a new space for the UL Fab Lab and the +Cityxchange project and Citizens’ Innovation Lab.

As part of the internal works during this initial phase, a new access lift and ramp have been built at the Sarsfield Street entrance, new doors installed and an area of the first floor has been fully refurbished.

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Professor Mey said that this is a fantastic day for the University of Limerick and advances a long-held ambition to have a greater number of UL students in Limerick city centre.

“The longer term vision for the existing building and site will be developed to a world class standard, while being sensitive to sustainability – and we will do that with our partners in Limerick City and County Council, communities, businesses and industry.

She added that the idea is that this would be developed into a commercial and community public space.

Mayor Daniel Butler said: “I am delighted to welcome the first students into UL’s City Centre Campus today. It is a hugely significant day for the University but also for the city centre, as we look to develop the campus in the heart of the city.

“We want the UL City Centre Campus to be a beacon for people. Working with the University into the future, we want a campus that is striking in its architecture, a place that nurtures innovation and fosters creativity.