The Mayor of Limerick, John Moran, has expressed his dismay following the announcement of the closure plan for popular Limerick pub Crew Brewing Company on Thomas Street this Christmas Eve.
This statement arrived following the removal of the venue’s covered parklet which the Mayor claims was not done with notice or consultation by the Limerick City and County Council. Mayor Moran comments that “this should never have happened, I’m very unhappy about it.”
The announcement of Crew Brewing Co.’s closure was made by pub owner Jono Crute who cites the removal of the parklet as driving an estimated 20-25% drop in revenue. While the closure was impacted by other factors including rising costs and increasing living wages, he deemed the parklet’s removal as the “final blow” when making the decision.
“As you can imagine (it’s) quite a devastating decision to have to make myself,” Mr Crute expressed, “and its really a sad and impactful moment for myself and for the community.”
Mr Crute also noted there had been “zero communication” from the Council since the decision to take away the parklets in April, despite the Council claiming there had been continuous engagement with the impacted businesses.
Mayor Moran similarly confirmed that the removal of the parklet was done without consultation with anyone, including himself.
Since early October, Mayor Moran has been engaged in robust discussions with the Council regarding the removal of this development. On October 17, he requested an urgent review of the matter to the Chair of the Economic Special Policy Group Cllr Peter Doyle, discussing the removal of the public amenity spaces in favour of on-street parking facilities.
Within the document shared to Cllr Peter Doyle, Mayor Moran stressed the council’s decision to allow the long-term deterioration of public realms on Thomas Street resulted in the binary decision to either remove the public spaces or risk public safety with its continued presence.
He comments that the decision to reverse the parklets into on-street parking undermines the Mayor’s programme, and the lack of proactive communication by the council “suggests a systemic operational weakness, damaging the credibility of the administration to manage and sustain high-quality urban assets.”
He has since petitioned an emergency meeting between Council officials across several directorates and the impacted businesses to find a solution.
“Removing the parklets is inconsistent with my vision for Limerick. I warned a fortnight ago that, if not done carefully and replaced by something better, there could be serious economic consequences. Today’s announcement by Crew Brew strengthens my view,” Moran notes.