A visit to Irishtown
The first day began with a group visit of the network and ULG members to the Irishtown area to see the Medieval walls of Limerick, St Michaels Cemetery and the Watergate Flats. This site visit was led by the LCCC archaeologist Sarah McCutcheon, who detailed the rich history of the area to the group. The Limerick IAP focuses on Irishtown, and it was helpful for the groups to see firsthand where the actions will be taking place and the changes the actions will make for the area. The group returned to City Hall to listen to a presentation on the masterplan created for the Irishtown area as part of the IAP, presented by the LCCC landscape Architect Manuel Smalis on the vision of a green “city wall” corridor in Irishtown.
Warm Welcomes
In the afternoon the Mayor of Limerick John Moran, officially welcomed the partner cities to Limerick, expressing his thanks for the support of the network lead expert, lead partner and national guidance. Mayor Moran also highlighted the strong bonds within the group that should not be lost after the project ends, and proposed a group online meet up in a years’ time.
Several LCCC staff members presented on key topics, Limerick as a Walled City, the Placemaking Department, the Green Blue Infrastructure Strategy and the Limerick Biodiversity Action Plan 2025 – 2030.
Best Practice Sites
The day ended with a visit to the Castletroy Greenway and Baggot Estate. The Castletroy Greenway is a Horizon 2020 funded project, this project transformed a linear walkway into a haven for biodiversity and natural play, connecting people with nature. The Greenway won an URBACT Best Practice Award in April 2025. The group also enjoyed a visit to Baggot Estate, Limericks urban forest to look at the outdoor exercise space, community garden and dog park.
Reviewing the learning process
The second day, partners spoke about their APN journeys, reiterating their ambitions from when they started the project, and what the main highlights of the overall journey have been for them. The groups also reviewed their IAP journey, the main challenges, solutions and the key dos and don’ts for the IAP process. The ULG experience was also discussed with advice given for successful collaborations.
Lobau then presented on their participation and engagement experience. A very beneficial presentation with advice on how to get people to come to events, how to collect ideas, and how to get people to come back and participate.
The group then moved outside for several site visits on foot. First up was the meanwhile use and mobile tree forest. The group then moved to the People’s Park to look at Limerick City’s first inclusive playground. Dr. Simon Jennings an Executive Scientist with LCCC met the group in the park and led the group on a sound walk.
The soundwalk collected two types of data – participants responses to their acoustic environment and binaural data collected from a head and torso unit at two locations in the People’s Park. The assessment of participants perceived responses indicates that pleasantness increases away from the boundaries of the park besides the busy roads (the R858 and Upper Mallow Street) and the children’s playground, with natural sounds becoming more dominant at the core of the park and towards the southern boundary, with the perception of those sounds having positive pleasantness and being considered both calm and vibrant.
Looking ahead
The final day of the network meeting focused on what’s happening next, each city presented their posters with their strategies on governance, funding strategies, risk management, stakeholder collaboration, monitoring and reporting and communication/dissemination.
In the afternoon the group enjoyed a guided walking tour of the city with Limerick Civic Trust, learning the history of the area in and around St Mary’ s Cathedral, The Hunt Museum. The day finished with a visit and a guided tour of Kind John’s Castle located at the heart of Limerick’s medieval quarter.
Article written by Sharon Lynch on 19/11/2025
