Limerick Mayor John Moran’s proposal to build up to 500 temporary modular homes at Boro Park in Janesboro has been overwhelmingly rejected.
At a council meeting held on Monday, April 20, Limerick councillors voted to block the development by invoking Section 139 of the Local Government Act.
The decision to reject the controversial proposal came amid strong opposition from many locals who did not want to see the loss of green space in the Janesboro area.
The now defeated proposal had formed a part of Mayor Moran’s response to issues within housing in Limerick. Ahead of the vote, Moran publicly declared that the city was facing a housing emergency.
In a blog post published by the mayor before the council meeting, he set out the context behind the proposal, calling out a lack of delivery in housing.
“Limerick is in a housing emergency. This is not a political slogan—it is a fact,” Mayor Moran said.
“We have been delivering only a fraction of the homes we need. The result is a growing gap of thousands of homes that is affecting families, workers and young people right across our city.”
The mayor also pointed to national data indicating that Limerick ranks near the bottom in terms of public housing delivery in Ireland.
According to his estimates, the city has produced only about one-third of the homes required in recent years.
To address the shortfall, he suggested that up to 4,000 homes would need to be delivered annually to make up for a decade of underbuilding.
Moran cautioned against prematurely abandoning potential housing projects, arguing that delays could worsen the crisis.
“This is not about one project or one site,” he said. “It is about whether we are prepared to act at the scale and speed required to meet the needs of our people.”
A Facebook group named Janesboro Park Community was created on April 6, 2026. It has now reached almost 700 members.
The group’s aim was to call on Mayor Moran to reconsider his decision to build on the land.
The Facebook page states that they are “deeply concerned about plans to build on this land and remove a vital space that supports the wellbeing, safety, and daily life of our community.”
“We are not against development,” the page said, “but we strongly believe this location should be protected.”
In a statement to Limerick Voice, Simon, the community admin said that the idea of achieving the vote seemed unrealistic.
“At a time when so many people are struggling with mental health challenges… spaces like this park are often a vital form of everyday therapy,” Simon said.
He noted that the park is the only green area available to a community of around 1,000 homes.
“We want to be clear”, he added, “we are not against building new homes. We all understand the housing crisis. However, building on existing parks is not the solution.”
The Janesboro community have said that they are grateful that democracy has allowed them to protect the space.