Limerick City and County Council and University of Limerick are collaborating on a new project that aims to examine the future of the city.
Staff and students from UL are giving the people of Limerick a chance to have their say on the future of their city as part of a new project based at the UL City Centre Campus.
The UL School of Architecture and Product Design summer Intelligence Unit, ‘One City Revisited’, is taking place in July in CityLab, Sarsfield Street, Limerick, where it will host a series of public-facing events this August.
A team of UL researchers are working with Limerick City and County Council to examine the future of Limerick city, in the context of several objectives in the Limerick Development Plan, the City Climate Action Plan and the Limerick Mayoral Programme.
As part of the Intelligence Unit, the researchers are developing and expanding a physical 1:500 Limerick City Model, which is housed in the Citylab in the City Campus.
This development will help to facilitate understanding of the physical manifestation of the new city being developed and imagined now and into the future.
Mayor of Limerick, John Moran, said:
“As Limerick’s first directly elected mayor, I know the conversation about the future of Limerick must evolve all of the time and not just finish at each election. It is why I was delighted to support and fund One City Revisited. This is the perfect way for the people of Limerick to imagine, shape and take ownership of the future direction of travel of our city. The physical model will help us visualise what change looks like but we really want above all to create a space for dialogue, creativity and ambition. Limerick’s future can be great, should be great and indeed will be great if we open our minds to what is now possible and take this chance to allow all our voices to be heard.”
Senior Executive Officer, Metropolitan District of Limerick, Limerick City and County Council, Sonja Reidy, added:
“The model allows for the building blocks of the city to be updated over time to illustrate change but also to showcase what could be. This allows for a tangible and visualisation of how our city can grow, adapt and prepare for the future – a vital tool as we shape the policies and plans for Limerick in terms of future development. Already the model has started engagement on the “what if’s” around climate action, public realm, place-making as well as the city centre as a destination.”
UL’s Professor Merritt Bucholz, Professor, School of Architecture and Product Design explained:
“The project is being done as part of UL and Limerick City and County Council membership of the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL) and is a continuation of our partnership with LCCC and our joint presentation September last at the Science Summit at the United Nations in New York.”
“The transformation of the city needs real-life testing and experimentation by citizens, which the model aims to bridge the gap in understanding between present and future Limerick, and bring citizens more directly into dialogue with the future of the city,” added Professor Bucholz.
The Intelligence Unit will stage several public events this summer to generate discussion and increase awareness and engagement with citizens’ stake in the future of their city. The public events, titled ‘City Model – Future Limerick’, will take place in August, in the CityLab, Sarsfield Street, Limerick.
The first event will take place during National Heritage Week on Thursday, 21 August 2025, from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm, and a Twilight Thursday event on 28 August 2025, from 5 pm to 9 pm.
The City Model will form a key interactive element to the public-facing activities, with replaceable components, scenario testing, and quickly printable parts that will help broaden the access people have to the future of their city.
Some of the key questions being considered by the researchers revolve around how Limerick could create a multifunctional public realm, designed and adapted for universal use, and how the city should use the Local Authority Climate Action Plan to decarbonise the city centre.
Another key aspect of the Innovation Unit’s research is to examine multiple housing projects in development by Limerick City and County Council and Limerick Development Authority, as well as de-carbonisation and adaptation, and restoration of existing buildings.
