Fresh application being prepared for €1m site in Limerick city centre

THE firm which owns a long-vacant site in Georgian Limerick, valued at €1m, has said a fresh planning application is being prepared for the land.

It comes after an appeal against vacant site levies on the property backfired, with Thanos Securities now facing a €140,000 bill – double the initial fee.

Thanos Securities Ltd owns 34–41 Catherine Street.

The former nightclub, pub and, at one stage, printing press for the Limerick Leader, has been out of use since the early 2000s.

In recent years, there have been planning applications to convert the site into offices and apartments.

However, these have come to nothing, leading Limerick City and County Council to impose vacant site levies on the landowner for 2023 and 2024.

Thanos Securities appealed the levies to An Coimisiún Pleanála.

Among its arguments was that a new planning application was being prepared, while the company also argued that the site was not vacant or idle.

It said significant work had been carried out between 2019 and 2023 to improve the site's condition, including the removal of fire-damaged buildings and ancillary structures, as well as cleaning and the removal of debris.

It added scaffolding and hoarding were erected in 2022 as part of enabling works, while the site was used from 2023 as a construction compound to facilitate nearby building works by the Peter McVerry Trust.

It also raised questions over the valuation placed on the site in 2022.

An Coimisiún Pleanála rejected Thanos Securities' arguments in relation to the site's vacant status.

Its inspector, Erika Casey, acknowledged the improvements carried out by the company, but found that the temporary use of the site did not alter its status.

The Commission also determined that the levies had been incorrectly calculated by Limerick City and County Council.

The Council had based its original €35,000-per-year charge on an earlier €500,000 valuation.

The Commission determined that the applicable valuation was €1m, resulting in a levy of €70,000 for each of 2023 and 2024.

This brings the total bill to €140,000.

There have been several planning applications for the land at Catherine Street, with scaffolding erected in 2022 advertising it as The Printworks, in recognition of its history as a newspaper printing press.

The most recent proposal, approved by Limerick City and County Council in May, would see 76 apartments built across the site.

The scheme includes 41 two-bedroom and 35 one-bedroom apartments, with the homes intended for either owner occupation or long-term rental.

Numbers 35 and 37 Catherine Street, which are protected structures, would be refurbished and converted into apartments, while No 36 would also be refurbished. No 34 would be demolished and replaced by two one-bedroom apartments, while the existing stone arch would be retained and repaired.

The former Cheers nightclub and Desmond Arms buildings at numbers 38 to 41 would be demolished to make way for a new six-storey residential building containing 68 apartments.

The development would also include a semi-basement with 11 car-parking spaces, bicycle storage and a roof terrace to be shared by residents.