Limerick businesses were shocked to learn about Limerick City and County Council’s decision to demolish certain outdoor seating areas. Local establishments such as Canteen and Crew Brewing Co. have been left to deal with the aftermath.
Speaking with Limerick Voice, Crew Brewing Co. owner, Jono Cruite, says he was left blindsided by the decision.
“We hadn’t heard anything. In fact, quite the opposite. We were told informally that if they were in use and they were in good condition, then they would stay with the businesses.
“Fortunately [the demolition crew] arrived at 9am to do it but the guy told me he had been given strict instructions to come at 6am so that we wouldn’t be here.”
Cruite explained that these outdoor parklets were a huge source of revenue for the brewery and without them he fears for the future of his staff.
“I have 10 staff and if I can’t stay open past January 1st, I need to give them as much notice as humanly possible to help them get other jobs, and to make plans for closing my business. I need to make a decision quickly.”
The Crew Brewing Co. owner has expressed his frustration with the lack of communication from Limerick City and County Council. He claims he has reached out to the council to clarify and repair the situation and has not yet heard back.
“I sent the gentleman, Kieran Lehane, who’s responsible for the demolition of this, an email on Tuesday. Despite my pleas on behalf of my own sanity and my staff’s livelihoods, he’s completely ignored me.”
Upon reaching out to Director of Environment Kieran Lehane, his team stated they have nothing to comment.
Cruite explains that the engineer performing the demolition claimed he had a health and safety report requesting him to take apart the parklet, but when asked to produce it he said he would have to go back to the office to get it.
Cruite says, “If you’re tearing out my livelihood, you could walk ten minutes to the office.”
He also explains his fear for the future of other Limerick businesses.
“I’m very concerned for the Wickham Way. I talked to Dave [Ryan], who runs [the market]. About 30% of their business is our customers. He expects if we go, he’ll close the food trucks shortly after and then the market shortly after that.
“That would leave pretty much nothing on the top of this street. And it will go back to how it was when we first arrived, which was an unused, dangerous corner of the town centre. I don’t know why they would desire that.”
Paul Williams is the owner and chef of Canteen, a popular cafe in Limerick’s Georgian Quarter. He recalls building the parklets during the pandemic, like many other businesses, and says that since their construction there had been no previous communication from the council before the removal.
Williams said, “They came at 7am, I saw them coming, and the people who live here said it was really noisy. If you get planning permission to do work in a residential area, it would be between 8am and 4pm so that you wouldn’t wake residents. It’s a densely populated area, so you wouldn’t get planning permission to take them [parklets] away at seven o’ clock in the morning.
“They even took the bike stands away, which the customers use.
“It’s just very anti-city and anti-people, you have the mayor giving grants and trying to create a nighttime economy and there’s a big push for that. And then another part of the council is ripping out seats that businesses rely on.”
In a recent interview with the Limerick Post, Fine Gael councillor Dan McSweeney stated: “If they’re not being used in the proper manner and if they’re not being maintained, we shouldn’t be allocating public space for their financial benefit.”
When asked about reports of antisocial behaviour, Williams stated, “The antisocial behaviour isn’t going to stop if you take away the seating. That’s not the business’ problem, that’s a societal problem, that’s a policing problem. There were people drinking there at night, but they’re going to drink somewhere. They haven’t fixed that problem by taking away seating.
“If they had engaged with businesses and said, ‘here’s the problems with your parklet, do you want to fix them? If you fix these problems, we leave it.’ But there was no engagement with the businesses.
“I’ve emailed the council but I haven’t got a response back, that was about a week and a half ago. There was not one email or phone call.”
Upon reaching out for comment, a spokesperson for Limerick City and County council claimed there had been “continuous engagement with the owners of businesses adjacent to these structures, which are located in public spaces.
“The Council is conscious of the significant benefits that can accrue from these enhancements of the public realm. The Council is currently considering a strategic response to these and other issues.”
