Public park planned for Limerick site once earmarked for mosque

A SITE in the city centre where a mosque was once planned has been bought by the council.

Mayor John Moran has confirmed the local authority has snapped up the land at the corner of Lower Gerald Griffin Street, Parnell Street and Wickham Street.

And, for the time being, he wants to see a public park built on the site.

This would reflect the existing ‘pocket park’, which is across the road at the corner of Sexton Street and Parnell Street.

"It has become a site which is not being used anymore. In the future, it may become a place for housing or whatever else. But we don’t have that funding lined up,” he said.

It’s not clear how much the site was purchased for, but in recent years, it was on the market for €250,000.

"It wasn't in the scheme of things a very expensive purchase, but I’m hearing a lot from teenagers and young adults in the city who say they’d love to have space. There is a lovely corner there that we can try and introduce – at least on a temporary basis for three, eight or 10 years – a park. Maybe if people get to like it, it will become a cool meeting space everyone wants to hang out at,” said Mayor Moran.

He hopes that a mural designer could get involved with filling a gable wall which is on site.

"We want all the young people in Limerick to come out with their ideas. Everybody says they want more third spaces, and I am really anxious to do that,” said the mayor.

In sociological terms, a third space is an environment separate from one's home, and work, which are first-and-second spaces, where people gather for informal interaction, socialisation, and community building.

The site, which is within striking distance of Limerick Colbert Station has a storied recent history.

Planning approval was granted in 2021 to knock down three buildings at the junction of Wickham Street and Parnell Street and develop a four-storey purpose-built mosque and Islamic cultural centre.

At the time, developers said construction work could begin at the end of 2022. However, the project never saw the light of day. The developer stated in meetings with council planners that due to “constraints” including “limited size and construction costs”, they could not take up the option of using this area for a mosque in the end. Instead, permission for a mosque was secured a short distance away at a former mechanic’s shop in Sexton Street.

It was after this, the 210 square metre site at the corner of Parnell Street, Sexton Street and Lower Gerald Griffin Street was put on the market, with material provided to any potential buyer suggesting the site could accommodate 20 homes over seven floors.