Limerick City Footbridge

Poxyshamrock

Was there ever a market in the potato market? What was it used for in the early days after it was renovated?

Special Circumstances

Poxyshamrock wrote: »

Was there ever a market in the potato market? What was it used for in the early days after it was renovated?

Ye olde King Limerick parked his highline passat there, and verily did the chrome sparkle.

gotasmoke

Poxyshamrock wrote: »

Was there ever a market in the potato market? What was it used for in the early days after it was renovated?

I remember a market there in the 80s, but it's been a carpark for the last 20+ years.

zulutango

The meeting last night was excellent. There were some really good contributions from a lot of people. Pretty much everybody is against this. Many councillors spoke and expressed total dismay at how the senior management are running the city (lack of transparency, dictatorial, arrogant, etc), this being a very good example. One of the more insightful comments related to the very high possibility that even if the councillors agreed to the proposal it was likely to be rejected by An Bord Pleanala on a number of grounds. That's a real indictment of those pushing the project.

iguana

Poxyshamrock wrote: »

Was there ever a market in the potato market? What was it used for in the early days after it was renovated?

When it first opened there was a market on Sunday mornings. Officially it was a craft market with traders selling things they had made but tbh, I mainly remember bric-a-brac stalls and factory produced clothing. That's not to say there weren't genuine craft stalls, I just don't remember them as I was 8 and 9 when it was open. I do remember my parents thinking it was all crap but I know other people who remember it as really good.

johnnyryan89

Red King wrote: »

I walked down to where this proposed bridge is due to be located today. There was a ceremony marking the anniversary of 1916 taking place behind city hall and I wanted to walk from Arthurs Quay park over the existing footbridge to the potato market.

Except you can't.

Someone, more than likely our genius Council, have erected barriers behind Sarsfield House blocking access to the footbridge.

You basically have to walk around by the Hunt Museum now if you want to get to City Hall.

Only recently I walked this route and it was not blocked off.

Can someone explain why this is now the case?

The sooner they knock Sarsfield House the better, looking from Thomond Bridge towards the park the other evening and it just killed the view completely. They really need to forget about the new bridge and keep this walkway open and give it a bit of a make over and extend it along the river along the back of city hall and along the side of the castle at Thomond Bridge.

Red King

iguana wrote: »

I remember when the bridge opened. There was a big opening ceremony and it was so busy with people walking over and back across the bridge that it almost felt like it would collapse under our weight.

And here is a description of the original brief, check out the last paragraph.

Ah that is priceless

geotrig

johnnyryan89 wrote: »

The sooner they knock Sarsfield House the better, looking from Thomond Bridge towards the park the other evening and it just killed the view completely. They really need to forget about the new bridge and keep this walkway open and give it a bit of a make over and extend it along the river along the back of city hall and along the side of the castle at Thomond Bridge.

I dont know , that "dunnes building " either one :pac: makes sarsfield house look like an architectural masterpiece . I for one dont see the big problem with sarsfield house, its a very plain big building and to me just sits out of view mostly to not wreck the view ,granted i havent taken notice of it from thomond bridge recently,but compared to an awful lot of other building facing or backing onto the riverfront with there service entrances etc its not as view killing as a lot might suggest .from the other side arturs quay is **** looking as well.
i'm not totally against this bridge ,i think of it along the lines of extending the board walks and ways of bringing the river into the city more (nicer place to be )in a better way and improving our relationship with it.

zulutango

geotrig wrote: »

I dont know , that "dunnes building " either one :pac: makes sarsfield house look like an architectural masterpiece . I for one dont see the big problem with sarsfield house, its a very plain big building and to me just sits out of view mostly to not wreck the view ,granted i havent taken notice of it from thomond bridge recently,but compared to an awful lot of other building facing or backing onto the riverfront with there service entrances etc its not as view killing as a lot might suggest .from the other side arturs quay is **** looking as well.
i'm not totally against this bridge ,i think of it along the lines of extending the board walks and ways of bringing the river into the city more (nicer place to be )in a better way and improving our relationship with it.

Agree with you on Sarsfield House. I think it could be refurbished into something very interesting. At the same time I won't shed a tear if it goes. There's probably other buildings I'd readily knowch ahead of it though. The old Dunnes, Arthur's Quay Shopping Centre, Penneys/Burger King in that area alone would be higher up my list for the semtex treatment.

I think it will be a disgrace if the bridge is built. It's all form and no function. If Sarsfield House is knocked then some great things could be done with the space around there.

Cookiemunster

zulutango wrote: »

Agree with you on Sarsfield House. I think it could be refurbished into something very interesting. At the same time I won't shed a tear if it goes. There's probably other buildings I'd readily knowch ahead of it though. The old Dunnes, Arthur's Quay Shopping Centre, Penneys/Burger King in that area alone would be higher up my list for the semtex treatment.

I think it will be a disgrace if the bridge is built. It's all form and no function. If Sarsfield House is knocked then some great things could be done with the space around there.

The old Aer Lingus HQ at Dublin Airport is an example of how Sarsfield House could be improved.

Before and after pics attached.

zulutango

That's very impressive. The old county hall in Cork is another that springs to mind.

This business of knocking buildings that could be refurbished and building new ones is a peculiarly irish thing, probably stemming from our peasant past!

Vanquished

I think the problem with Sarsfield House is its sheer size. Its bulk and massing just makes it too much of a dominant feature in what is a fairly sensitive location. It overshadows the Custom House Park and inhibits its attractiveness as a public space. The building also occupies a site that offers some of the best panoramic views of the Shannon, the castle, Curragour falls etc yet access is restricted.

Sarsfield house was built in two phases between the late 1960s and mid 1970s on a site previously occupied by a number of stone warehouses.

sumtings

Vanquished wrote: »

I think the problem with Sarsfield House is its sheer size. Its bulk and massing just makes it too much of a dominant feature in what is a fairly sensitive location. It overshadows the Custom House Park and inhibits its attractiveness as a public space. The building also occupies a site that offers some of the best panoramic views of the Shannon, the castle, Curragour falls etc yet access is restricted.

Sarsfield house was built in two phases between the late 1960s and mid 1970s on a site previously occupied by a number of stone warehouses.

Prefer Sarsfield house to most every other building on the south riverfront, save the castle,custom house,Hunt musem and boat club. Would love to see the views from inside it.

Red King

Seriously? It is hideous, it looks like something from Soviet Russia.

I'd like to see it wiped off the map forever.

zulutango

Vanquished wrote: »

It actually looked a lot better before they added on the 7th floor. When did this happen?

gotasmoke

If the Opera Centre ever gets built, there is a plan to move the staff from Sarsfield house over to it and then knock Sarsfield house but I'd say this a way off.

http://www.limerickleader.ie/news/business-news/134231/Plans-to-knock-Limerick-s-Sarsfield.html

sleepyman

I wish we could see some of the Limerick 2030 plan commence.I know the Hanging Gardens plans have been altered but how long is it going to take before builders on site?I'd rather some of the money from this proposed bridge be used on improving William,Nicholas and O'Connell St.I'm not sure if the new plaza by the station forms part of Limerick 2030.If it does great but more is required.

teddyhead

Heres my crazy conspiracy theory.....
After the demolition of Sarsfield house , there will be a nice bit of real estate available in a prime location. Perhaps the idea of the new bridge is to keep the riff raff away from this potentially lucrative bit of land? Maybe the powers that be are planning to use this space for swanky apartments rather than as a public space ?

Poxyshamrock

teddyhead wrote: »

Heres my crazy conspiracy theory.....
After the demolition of Sarsfield house , there will be a nice bit of real estate available in a prime location. Perhaps the idea of the new bridge is to keep the riff raff away from this potentially lucrative bit of land? Maybe the powers that be are planning to use this space for swanky apartments rather than as a public space ?

But the bridge will go right into the area where Sarsfield House is now?

PS. It's Limerick, not London. You're never more than a 5 minute walk from "riff raff" in the city centre.

teddyhead

Poxyshamrock wrote: »

But the bridge will go right into the area where Sarsfield House is now?

I was under the impression that the bridge would go directly from near Arthurs quay to the courthouse , bypassing the existing (public?) walkway,the hunt museum and sarsfield house.
Anyhoo , i did say it was a 'crazy' conspiracy theory. :cool:

MrJones2013

Just spotted this:

http://www.limerickleader.ie/news/home/209926/proposals-for-limerick-footbridge-project-unveiled.html

moleyv

Those twin arches are nice. Like a stone skipping on the water. Would be nice to see a few more angles and options.

Although I'm sure if the majority on here had their way, the only resemblance to a stone it will have is sinking to the riverbed

sioda

Waste of time money resources that could be allocated anywhere else so I fully expect it to go ahead

zulutango

It really shows how dysfunctional our local government system is. Pretty much everybody is against it but the Council is pushing on. Only a matter of time before Kieran Reeves, Conn Murray, Liam Conneally and Pat Daly are called to account over this stupidity.

TonyCliftonEsq

Looks like a gate you'd put at the top of a stairs to stop a child from falling down.

Horrid.

OfTheMarsWongs

100% against the bridge.

Reminds me though of a time a few years ago when a certain soccer club in the city put in planning permission to erect a 6ft high fence around their field. Residents Committee objected and it was upheld. 3ft high fence I think went in instead. Found out during the Residents Committee meeting that the club had no u10s team that year as they didn't have the money for the insurance. Fence money came from a capital grant that could not be spent on anything else.

Point I'm getting to is very often funds are ring fenced with certain rules attached. May not be possible to divert the bridge money to something more useful.

It sucks but that's the government for you.

gotasmoke

I think it looks good. I don't know much about the financing but at least it's aesthetically pleasing.

leakyboots

I'm against the bridge... but the design isn't that bad leaving everything else aside

zulutango

It's just in the wrong place.

If it went from the Cleeves site on O'Callaghan Strand over to Howley's Quay (Clohessy's pub), then it would make far more sense. The current location is way too sensitive for something that serves a marginal purpose.

mart 23

zulutango wrote: »

It's just in the wrong place.

If it went from the Cleeves site on O'Callaghan Strand over to Howley's Quay (Clohessy's pub), then it would make far more sense. The current location is way too sensitive for something that serves a marginal purpose.

Why put a bridge there , when we have 2 bridges which more or less serve that purpose. I think the present proposal will be great for the city and tourism.