WATCH: Building works commence at One Opera Square

THE FIRST blocks have been laid in one of the country’s largest projects which will see Limerick become a “transformed city.”

The Limerick Twenty Thirty Opera Square project has reached its midway point after massive demolition works on the site were completed.

The site-wide basement work, now well underway, includes the completion of the One Opera Square basement.

This will now allow the beginning of the build phase of the six-storey development at the corner of Michael Street and Ellen Street.

The driving force behind the project is Treaty Stone Partnership DAC, a €80m joint venture between Limerick Twenty Thirty and the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), part of the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA).

When completed, the One Opera Square development will include five storeys of office space as well as the potential for restaurant and retail outlets.

The development will have the capacity to cater for around 1,000 employees.

Work on the site, which is the largest city centre build project ever undertaken in Ireland outside of Dublin – commenced three years ago and is set for completion in late 2026.

The programme has involved the largest demolition works ever undertaken in Limerick and has included delicate works, navigating around the retention of 16 Georgian buildings as well as archaeological features, including old walls, caverns and vaults.

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Following a visit to the site this week, Minister of State for Local Government and Planning, Kieran O’Donnell, expressed his confidence regarding the impact of the Opera Square project on Limerick and the wider region.

“When I look at the progress being made in Limerick now and over the next number of years, it will be a transformed city and Opera Square will be a heartbeat for our city. It will be a city with an incredible renaissance story, a success story founded on courage and innovation, with a real can-do attitude and vision,” said the Limerick City TD.

“I have no doubt that we will be looking back in years to come and pointing to Opera Square, and indeed the other Limerick Twenty Thirty projects, as among the key reasons why Limerick has become one of the most talked about cities not alone in Ireland but in Europe,” he added.