19 Mar URDF investment pivotal for Cleeves Riverside Quarter and ongoing Limerick resurgence

Friday 19 March 2021:  The announcement by Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage Darragh O’Brien today of €35m for the Cleeves Riverside Quarter under Urban Regeneration Development Fund (URDF) has been welcomed as a pivotal moment for a project of local, regional and national significance.

Responding to today’s announcement of funding for Limerick projects, David Conway, CEO of Limerick Twenty Thirty, which will develop the Cleeves site, said that the funding will underpin the innovative development on the northern banks of the River Shannon. The news, he said, is the latest in a growing list of positive announcements for Limerick that are injecting real and timely confidence in Limerick.

The 10-acre Cleeves Riverside Quarter is one of six sites in the Limerick Twenty Thirty programme that will amount to over €500m in investment and trigger huge social and economic change across Limerick.  The other sites are Opera Site, which is now underway; Troy Studios and Gardens International, which are completed and fully let; Thomas Street and O’Connell Street Georgian properties and Mungret Park, all three of which are at planning stage.

The total cost of the Cleeves project is estimated at between €250 – €300 million and delivery will take a number of years to be completed.

“This is fantastic news for the city, the region and, indeed, Limerick Twenty Thirty,” said David Conway.  “The master-planning process for the Cleeves Site is underway and reflects the wider ambition that we have in Limerick Twenty Thirty and, indeed, that there is across the city.  A very strong submission for URDF funding from Limerick City and County Council went to the Minister and he and his department clearly liked what they saw,” said the CEO.

“We welcome this investment, which essentially underpins the project. It is major validation for Limerick and the region and is the latest in a growing list of positive announcements that will bring investment and jobs here. It is also another very timely moment as it adds to the growing list of announcements here over recent months that, together, are painting a positive post-COVID picture for Limerick.

“We met with Minister O’Brien during his visit to Limerick last December and he was very struck by the resilience and positivity here. He was also very complimentary to the Limerick Twenty Thirty programme and the foresight of the local authority to establish it in the first instance. He has given us a great but well-placed vote of confidence with this and we look forward now to advancing the Cleeves site along with our other projects to help drive the recovery and a very exciting future for Limerick and the region.”

The current masterplan programme at Cleeves involves the preparation of a Stage 1 Master Plan for the development, to be completed by this summer. Following the completion of the Stage 1 Master Plan, the Project Team will move onto formal design stage and planning.

Said Limerick Twenty Thirty Chairman Conn Murray: “The key objective of the URDF programme is to bring residential and commercial development into urban areas. That’s a core objective for Limerick Twenty Thirty and will be at the heart of what we do at Cleeves.  We welcome this announcement by Minister O’Brien. It illustrates again the growing confidence there is in Limerick today.

“There is huge interest and anticipation, and understandably so, regarding the Opera Site as it gets underway but Cleeves is going to be another massive contributor to the economic and social resurgence taking shape in Limerick.”

Ends