university of limerick

UL Signs €15.8M Deal On Ireland’s Longest Pedestrian Bridge

The University of Limerick (UL) has signed a contract worth €15.8million with Eiffel Construction, France’s largest bridge builder, on the construction of a unique River Shannon crossing “The Living Bridge – An Droichead Beo” on its campus.

At 350 metres this will be the longest pedestrian bridge in Ireland and will serve to connect the North and South elements of the UL academic community and campus. The bridge will form a vital link between the Library, Concert Hall and Millstream developments on the Limerick shore, to the Health Sciences and Irish World Performing Arts Village on the North campus, which is situated in County Clare.

In an unique design by Wilkinson Eyre Architects, London, the bridge will include four “platforms”, which will accommodate social gatherings, informal teaching sessions, music and dance performances as well as a wide array of educational, social and cultural activities.

Professor Roger Downer, Outgoing President of the University of Limerick said: “We are delighted that this concept is coming to fruition. The Living Bridge will be situated at the heart of the expanded UL campus and will become a well-known landmark and a place for contemplation in the most inspiring of surroundings. Acting as a thoroughfare this remarkable structure will unify the campus and their communities whilst also linking the two shores of the Shannon.”

“We are also delighted to be joined by today Mr. John R. Healy, Chief Executive Officer of the Atlantic Philanthropies, which have provided invaluable support to the University of Limerick over many years. Without the financial support of the Atlantic Philanthropies the construction of many key elements of the UL campus would not have possible,” said Professor Downer.

http://www.ulf.ie/fundraising_projects.htm

http://www.ul.ie/main/news/index.shtml

Image # 1 Model of Bridge

Image # 2 UL Campus / River Crossing

Image # 3Millstream Building / Entrance to Bridge at the far corner?

Image # 4The crossing site on the river Shannon

Fifth campus village for UL (Irish Examiner)

By Jimmy Woulfe, Mid-West Correspondent (22 August 2006)
http://www.irishexaminer.com/irishexaminer/pages/story.aspx-qqqg=ireland-qqqm=ireland-qqqa=ireland-qqqid=11331-qqqx=1.asp

THE University of Limerick (UL) will open its fifth student village, Cappavilla Village next month, offering 324 new rooms.

Apartments can be booked on line at http://www.ul.ie/campuslife

Project Architects Dublin: http://www.projarch.com
Pedestrian Bridge: https://archiseek.com/content/showpost.php?p=50939&postcount=637

@justnotbothered wrote:

Interesting about all the activity on Kings Island, there is no reason the area can’t be improved street by street, especially with the Gaelcolaiste, enlarged hospital and hotel going in there.

Where exactly is the new Gaelcolaiste Luimnigh?

Students set for first week of Irish College
http://www.u.tv/newsroom/indepth.asp?pt=n&id=76464

A week of activities has been planned for the first ever students at Gaelcolaiste Luimnigh.
Limerick`s only Co-Educational, All Irish College, opened its doors to pupils last Friday morning.

31 students began their first year of second level education at the purpose – built facility at St. Harry`s Mall in the city

@justnotbothered wrote:

Anyone any shots of the new pedestrian bridge in UL?

I came across these two images when searching for new material from the university recently, most probably taken by students / visitors. The picture with the young architect Bob shows that work-in-progress is well under way with the new pedestrian bridge. Some chap enjoying a bit of fly fishing for Salmon under the new vehicular bridge. I hope to take a few of my own pictures when I get home soon and not having to pinch 😮 other peoples snapshots.

University of Limerick – Village Hall

(06/1733) Clare County Council 28/07/2006

Architects: Project Architects Dublin

For a 1,009 sq.m. two storey Village Hall as an ancillary facility to Student Village permitted under Planning Permission (reference P03/623) and will accommodate a rehearsal studio, conductor and soloists rooms, management offices, meeting room, storage rooms and a shop/cafe including storage and ancillary site works and landscaping all on a site of circa 0.24 hectares. The Village Hall will be used principally as a music rehearsal space arising from the location of the Irish Chamber Orchestra at the University of Limerick

Garraun, Clonlara, Co. Clare

Images

Graduate Entry Medical School at UL (Any new developments?)

The University of Limerick welcomes Minister Hanafin’s statement of August 8th reaffirming the Government’s commitment to introduce graduate-entry medical education in 2007 and is advancing preparations for a Graduate Entry Medical School at UL that will be highly innovative and help to meet the enormous demand for places in medical schools. UL’s programme will encompass all the major international advances in medical education over the past 30 years and provide a different type of medical education to students from diverse educational and personal backgrounds who will be well prepared to deliver the type of health care that Irish society now requires.”

Ireland, University of Limerick, Health Sciences Building. View from temporary bridge. (U.L. Pedestrian Bridge Clare side)

Photographs courtesy of gusset. http://www.flickr.com/photos/gusset/287612247/
These photographs are public see http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/deed.en_GB

U.L. Pedestrian Bridge (Clare side)
https://archiseek.com/content/showpost.php?p=58293&postcount=887
https://archiseek.com/content/showpost.php?p=50939&postcount=637

@Tuborg wrote:

Also the new Kemmy business school building is currently under construction beside the Schuman building!

Kemmy Business School (University of Limerick)

White Young Green was appointed by the University of Limerick to provide Civil & Structural Engineering services for Kemmy Business School. The building, with a gross internal area of 5360m&#178]Schumann building[/B].
The building is designed to create a new business school for senior undergraduate studies, post graduate studies, executive education centre and teaching staff along with a new 300 person lecture theatre.

Architect: RKD http://www.rkd.ie (Macromedia Flash)

Work >> Education >> Other Educational >> 3. Kemmy School University of Limerick

University of Limerick Campus 2006-2011 Strategic Plan (€200 Million Investments)

Limerick Leader Special (November 18th 2006)

Just had a read through the Leader’s Special from last month and the article on the University caught my attention. I must have missed the original launch of the UL’s 2006-2011 Strategic Plan as the Leader listed various capital projects and plans from it. I managed to locate a few images on the UL website. http://www.ul.ie/buildings/index.htm It’s a pity there is no model of the present campus along with it’s future plans to be seen. For example the recent announcement by Galway’s NUIG proposed developments was well publicised and was backed up by a model of the campus which was on display to the public at the Orbsen Building. Is there a similar model for the UL to be seen? The new Languages Building will complete the development of the Millstream Courtyard, any images available?

Ongoing Building Projects:

(A) Rowing Centre and Boathouse
(B) 350 Metre Span Pedestrian Bridge
(C) Kemmy Business School
(D) Languages Building

Special Priority Project:

(E) Graduate Entry Medical School (Decision December)

Planning Stage Project:

(F) Irish World Music and Dance Centre

Boathouse:

Aerial Pedestrian Bridge:

Campus Map Link: http://www.graduatestudies.ul.ie/prospectus/main/Postgraduate/pages/gen_campus_map_large.html

Campus Map with ongoing projects (A) – (D):

There are also plans to provide additional facilities at the University Arena, these include a new 25 metre pool which dedicated diving facilities in addition to the existing 50 metre Olympic pool and an extension to the gym. A planning application to Limerick County Council is expected in January.

About a year or so back there was talk of new pitches being provided on the North campus, although this is probably more of a long-term plan.

All these developments are no doubt part of the bid to attract athletes and teams to use the University as a training base in the run up to the 2012 Olympics in London.

@Tuborg wrote:

The next major project on the new north campus will be the Irish world music village, the school will move from the basement of the concert hall to a new site across the river, this is scheduled to begin construction in 2007.

New Building Designs

http://www.ul.ie/~iwmc/academy/building.html

Irish World Performing Arts Village
Irish World Music and Dance Centre
UL performing arts village

So many names for this project or is this building just part of the project (village / centre) :confused:

Clare County Council

Planning Application: 061733
Architect: Project Architects, The Priory, John’s Street West, Dublin 8.
Description: For a 1,009 sq.m. two storey Village Hall as an ancillary facility to Student Village permitted under Planning Permission (reference P03/623) and will accommodate a rehearsal studio, conductor and soloists rooms, management offices, meeting room, storage rooms and a shop/cafe including storage and ancillary site works and landscaping all on a site of circa 0.24 hectares. The Village Hall will be used principally as a music rehearsal space arising from the location of the Irish Chamber Orchestra at the University of Limerick
Address: Garraun, Clonlara, Co. Clare
Decision Date: 14/12/2006 Conditional

The Irish World Academy of Music and Dance (UL Foundation)

http://www.ulf.ie/IWMC.pdf

Phase One of the Performing Arts Village is envisaged to comprise 4,100sqm at an estimated cost of 14.4 million Euro. A site has been agreed next to the Health Sciences building on the north bank of the campus.

@CologneMike wrote:

New Building Designs

Irish World Performing Arts Village
Irish World Music and Dance Centre
UL performing arts village

So many names for this project or is this building just part of the project (village / centre) :confused:

Clare County Council

Planning Application: 061733
Architect: Project Architects, The Priory, John’s Street West, Dublin 8.
Description: For a 1,009 sq.m. two storey Village Hall as an ancillary facility to Student Village permitted under Planning Permission (reference P03/623) and will accommodate a rehearsal studio, conductor and soloists rooms, management offices, meeting room, storage rooms and a shop/cafe including storage and ancillary site works and landscaping all on a site of circa 0.24 hectares. The Village Hall will be used principally as a music rehearsal space arising from the location of the Irish Chamber Orchestra at the University of Limerick
Address: Garraun, Clonlara, Co. Clare
Decision Date: 14/12/2006 Conditional

Last year the University announced that it was to construct a €4/5 Million performance/rehearsal facility on the north side of the campus for the National Chamber Orchestra, who are currently based in the Concert Hall. Going by the planning application, it looks as if its going to be built within the new cappavilla student village which opened last September!

It seems strange that it isnt being built as part of The Irish World Music and Dance Centre (or whatever its called!) , which is obviously a bit behind schedule, as initially it was due to be completed in 2007. The design competition was won by DLB Cordier Architects back in 2004, no planning application has yet been submitted so it’ll struggle to make construction this year!

A belated announcement indeed!, despite the University remaining confident, a lot of people were begining to think it was never going to happen!

GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES NEW MEDICAL SCHOOL AT UNIVERSITY OF LIMERICK

First students to be enrolled in September this year.

The President of the University of Limerick, Mr John O’Connor has welcomed the Government announcement made earlier today that the University of Limerick has been successful in its tender bid to establish a Graduate Medical School.

Mr O’Connor said he wanted to congratulate the Government on their recognition of the innovation of the University of Limerick proposal and he said UL had committed itself to lifting the standard of Irish Medical Education to the highest international standing and said he looked forward now to delivering on this commitment.

He said the decision to establish a Graduate Entry Medical School at Limerick will be welcomed by prospective medical students everywhere and will for the first time facilitate access to world class Medical Education through a process other than the points system.

Mr O’Connor congratulated the Government on the speed with which they had managed the tender process to ensure that the highest standards of Medical Education were made available in a manner which provides equitable access to all students alongside excellent value for money to the Government.

Mr O’Connor said that in formulating its proposal for a graduate entry programme UL had studied closely the best practices in Medical Schools throughout the world in order to assemble international best practice in providing a world leading programme at Limerick. He said the Limerick Partnership with St Georges University of London alongside the capacity, vision and record of UL, will deliver excellence and innovation to the Irish Healthcare System.

He said the immediate implications for medical provision in the Shannon Region will see the employment of additional Consultants in a new range of specialisms and the establishment of a network of teaching hospitals led by the Mid West Regional Hospitals at Limerick and Tullamore and St Luke’s Hospital Kilkenny.

The University of Limerick Medical School will place particular emphasis on the role of medical graduates in the provision of excellent primary care and this is being facilitated through the establishment of primary care teaching networks in the Mid West, the Midlands and the South East.

The President Designate of the University of Limerick, Professor Don Barry confirmed that the University will admit the first 30 students to the new programme in September this year. He said the school has been developed in a spirit of essential collaboration with key partners including the Health Services Executive, the Medical Boards of the teaching hospitals and the General Practitioners in each of the primary care teaching networks. He said the University is committed to moving immediately in partnership with all the agencies to ensure that the Graduate Entry Medical Programme will be available to students in September 2007. He said the opportunity to deliver this programme fits perfectly with the pioneering spirit of the University and his own vision to contribute significantly to the economic, social and cultural development of Ireland and Professor Barry looks forward to the graduation of the schools first students in only four years from now

http://www.ul.ie

07858 University of Limerick – Limerick County Council

Received Date 27/03/2007
Decision Due Date 21/05/2007

Construction of a new library building adjacent to the Glucksman Library & Informationservices Building, together with associated site works. The University falls within an Architectural Conservation Area which contains protected structures including PLassey House, Plassey Fountain and Plassey Mill

I thought they would extend the Glucksman Library by adding on a new wing to it. Instead it looks like a separate, standalone building that will be built.

Images of Glucksman Library

06822 University of Limerick – Limerick County Council

Grant Date: 11/01/2007

construction of a 215m long, 6m wide vehicular access road and 378 no. car park including lighting, services, landscaping and associated development works

The western car park, located just west of the Robert Schuman Building, will provide a much needed 370 additional spaces.

There are already 13 car parks serving the University. Must be a lucrative business! :rolleyes:

http://www.ul.ie/buildings/images/maps/car-parks.pdf

061978 University of Limerick – Limerick County Council

construction of a language building. The accommodation contains computer station laboratories, classrooms, offices, rooftop plant enclosure, roof amounted satellite dishes and ancillary facilities. Site development works include the relocation and extension of the Millstream Courtyard Building delivery road and the provision of a turning head, modification to the external area along the western side of Millstream Courtyard and landscaping to facilitate the development. This application relates to an ACA and is within the curtilage of protected structures

With the construction of the language building and the Living Pedestrian Bridge, it will finish off the Murray O’Laoire Millstream Courtyard project quite nicely. 😎

Does anyone know what the purple building(?) to the right of the new carpark, in the picture in post 1128, is?

Not a clue tbh, I had no idea the university even owned that land, although perhaps it was bought up as part of the deal for the adjacent boathouse. It does look like there is definite plans for that site though, I must say I find this rather surprising, I cant imagine what they have in the pipeline here, the new Kemmy Business school building is under construction adjacent to the schuman and that should meet the needs of the university’s increasingly popular business courses! Looking at the layout of those buildings (if they are that!), it could well be yet another student village, it does look quite similar to the layout of dromroe and cappavilla especially!

On the subject of the new car park, it will of course be another pay car park, just like the main car park across from the student centre, yet another killing for what is probably the hungriest college in Ireland!:(

@Goofy wrote:

Does anyone know what the purple building(?) to the right of the new carpark, in the picture in post 1128, is?

(March 30th 2007)

On the map legend, purple denotes future building (indicative only).

https://archiseek.com/content/showpost.php?p=64862&postcount=1100

Council to remove false crossing

Kathryn Hayes Fri, Apr 13, 2007

Limerick County Council has taken steps to remove an unofficial pedestrian crossing that was painted on to one of the country’s busiest roads by a group of college students.

A senior local authority figure yesterday described the action taken by the University of Limerick (UL) students at the Groody roundabout in Limerick as “very immature and potentially quite dangerous”. A team of 15 students were involved in painting the “zebra” crossing at the roundabout which is located on the outskirts of the city on the main Limerick to Dublin road, late last Wednesday night.

The roundabout in question has no pedestrian crossing despite several requests to the council, according to UL Student Union president St John Ó Donnabháin.

Thousands of students living beyond the Groody roundabout make the daily journey to and from the college across this road, he added.

“Students’ union representatives have been lobbying politicians and Limerick council without success to obtain this crossing for a number of years, and felt that it was time to take action after a student was hospitalised recently after she was knocked off her bicycle,” explained Mr Ó Donnabháin.

However, Robert Gallagher of Limerick council said he was extremely disappointed with the action taken by the students, describing it as “immature and potentially quite dangerous”.

Mr Gallagher said planning permission has been sought for the crossing and also a bus lane, the closing date for which was a week ago. “We are currently advertising the construction contract and we expect work to commence this summer,” he added.

© 2007 The Irish Times

Strange that the new Student villages near the proposed Parkway Valley Shopping Centre are having problems with the road infrastructure, that is hardly a couple of years old!

Though I must agree with Mr Robert Gallagher from the Limerick council about students even attempting to cross the road at the Groody roundabout. :rolleyes: Unless of course they are studying physical education and meet the following criteria.

• Can run a hundred metres in ten seconds flat.
• Can sway and jink through the traffic as good as our Brian O’Driscoll would for Ireland.
• Can pole vault from one side to the other.
• Can paddle a canoe along the Groody river and on under the Dublin road to the other side.

Anything else would be “immature and potentially quite dangerous”.

New UL leader will live on campus

By Anne Sheridan Limerick Leader

THE University of Limerick’s third president, Prof Don Barry, will be their first leader to live on the university’s grounds and plans for his new residence on the Clare side of the campus are currently being designed, where he will be expected to move by the spring of 2009.

President Barry told the Limerick Leader this week that “the availability of a president’s house on campus is also seen as a feature that would serve to attract international candidates in future presidential recruitment exercises,” just as Trinity College Dublin and UCD have done.

As well as being his personal residence for his 10-year term of office, the building will also be used for official functions. “It will be great to walk across the Living Bridge and into my office. I’m sure it’ll be a beautiful building but I haven’t seen the designs yet as it’s at an early stage of planning,” said the 49 year-old Cork professor, who currently lives in Ballina.

In his first revealing interview since he took up his new role as President on May 1, Prof Barry told the Limerick Leader this week of his plans for the university over the next decade. Speaking about the day he was announced as the university’s next President, he said “without a shadow of a doubt it was the proudest moment of my career.”

By next September the university will be offering two new programmes in civil engineering and journalism and new media, and within the next five years the student population is will increase by one third to 15,000.

The former Vice-President, Academic & Registrar said he wants to see the campus “turn into a town, rather than an institution” by the end of his term and aims to increase the number of students from disadvantaged backgrounds in Limerick city who attend university through their access programme.

As a member of the Shannon Consortium of higher education, an office is expected to open in Limerick city in the coming months, where prospective students can find out more about courses at UL, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick Institute of Technology and the Tralee Institute of Technology.

19 May 2007

No planning application made yet to the Clare County Council. Will we be seeing a second white house for the president’s residence? But please spare us from his vision of turning the campus into a town. The city is fragmented enough without having a Mayor of Plassey and a fourth local authority joining the party.;)

is the portait museum still on the first floor of Plassey House?

http://ireland.archiseek.com/buildings_ireland/limerick/castletroy/plassey.html

@Paul Clerkin wrote:

is the portait museum still on the first floor of Plassey House?

National Self-Portrait Collection of Ireland

The National Self-Portrait Collection was housed between two locations – Plassey House and the Art Gallery on the second floor of the Foundation Building. I must check it out next month when strolling up the riverbank to Plassey.

Irish World Academy of Music and Dance Building

The result of an international competition, the new Irish World Academy of Music and Dance building will take its place in County Clare along the banks of the River Shannon. Lying at the foot of the new Pedestrian Living Bridge which will link both sides of the campus, this 4100sqm building will become the new heart of this young and vibrant University. Its architectural design is an inspired response to the ecological surroundings at the University of Limerick; this includes the many monastic influences along the River Shannon exemplified by Clonmacnoise, as well as those located in Limerick and Clare, such as Glenstal Abbey and Quin Abbey.

“This new building will provide a riverside space where musicians, dancers, composers, singers, conductors and choreographers will explore together. Musicologists and choreologists will research alongside live performance.
The history and anthropology of music and dance will provide the research surround for the rediscovery of older sounds and gestures, as well as for the discovery of new voices, and the reinvention of received traditions”.

Key Features Link

■ Tower Theatre
Situated at the very heart of the new building, the Tower Theatre resembles the monastic towers of Clonmacnoise. Scaling from the bottom floor to the top and finishing with a circular window to the sky, this atrium style facility can hold 80 people and will be a space out of which a powerful sound will resonate. The Tower will contain an awe-inspiring Pipe Organ making it an ideal venue for chant and voice performance. The music and song which will emanate from the Tower will recreate the ancient sounds which filled the air along the River Shannon’s banks 1000 years ago.

■ Sionna Theatre
Holding 200 people, this Theatre has been described as a musical laboratory. The highly versatile seating arrangements allow for maximum flexibility and versatility for teaching, learning and performance. The theatre floors will contain sprung timber parquet dance floors to optimise dance performance. This facility scales from the ground floor to the top floor and will be topped with the Rooftop ‘Cloister’ Theatre.

■ Rooftop ‘Cloister’ Theatre
The Rooftop Theatre will be used for outdoor performances. It holds approximately 200 people and has a retractable cover that can be used to protect the rooftop area should the Irish weather prove unfavourable. This area will be spectacular for performance as it will fill the riverside with music and song and draw student, faculty and visitor to the heart of the campus.

■ Shannonside Plaza and Café
The design of the new Irish World Academy building includes a “performance entrance forecourt” on the open area immediately adjacent to the Academy’s front entrance. This Plaza will embrace the Living Bridge’s arrival into County Clare and will be punctuated by a 100 seat Café. The space may also serve as an informal performance location, an exhibition or display space as well as a gathering space for people attending Academy performances.

■ Other facilities will include:
Specially designed large dance studios
Studios for the teaching of music and dance
Music and Dance Research Area
Green Room
Zen Garden
Tutorial rooms
Academic offices

I think we will be giving Miltown Malbay and Doolin a miss with all this craic on the Clare side of UL. Refreshments facility provided by the ‘Lame Duck’ 😉

Ah the lame duck, a great spot!, the fun part is trying to find your way back over to the other side in the early hours!;)

Irish World Academy of Music and Dance

Interesting video material (3D computer animation of proposed building). Take a tour see link. 😎

Another video , this time the Living Bridge

Nice bridge, although given its length, I would have thought they would have provided enough space for a cycle lane while they were at it.

i think cyclists are pretty well taken care of in that regards all around the campus. A cycle lane along this bridge would ruin it imo

Indeed, the vehicular bridge as its called has cycle lanes while the new bridge is solely for pedestrian use!

“Architecturally, the bridge cross section was developed from the concept of a ‘salmon fish tail’ protruding from the surface of the flowing river. The design of this 150m-crossing is achieved in five spans. The bridge has separate vehicular and pedestrian and cycle decks and was constructed at a cost of €13 million.”

UL Vehicular Bridge

Pedestrian Living Bridge

Nice promotional clip, gives one a good insight into it’s overall length. Talking to one of the chaps working on the bridge, they intend to be finished by September.

In the meantime I found a really cool clip of the recent assembly of the bridge see link 😎

The first image below is at the Health Science Building (Clare side) and the second is from the Millstream Courtyard (Limerick side).

Architectural Concept – Pedestrian Living Bridge

The load-bearing structure of the bridge is located below the level of the bridge deck. The structure does not disrupt the treeline or try to civilise the natural domain. The bridge is carefully integrated into the landscape and does not form a trajectory that is thrust through it. The experience for the bridge user is therefore not about reaching a destination on the other side of the river but is an enjoyable social interaction with nature.

Because of the dense and mature planting on the riverbanks and islands, it is difficult to gain a vantage point whereby the whole of the crossing can be viewed at once. Each of the six spans can be appreciated as a discrete crossing in its own right, forming a composition in the landscape that has human scale and that is more visually balanced than a larger span that can only be viewed in increments. The six spans are visually articulated as a series of individual leaps from pier to pier. This arrangement is expressive of the manner in which the bridge spans from island to island, and is evocative of a stone skimming across the water.

The curved route and multiple spans serve to fragment the crossing psychologically as well as visually. The bridge is experienced by the pedestrian not as a man-made intervention that has been thrust across the water, but is carefully and sensitively integrated into this unique site.

As described earlier, the bridge is formed from a string of cable-trusses, with high-tensile steel cables supporting the bridge deck from beneath via a series of steel compression members. These compression elements extend above the bridge deck to provide support to the handrail.

The geometric combination of the under-slung cables and constant inclination of compression members connecting cables and deck provides for a width of deck and distance between parapets that constantly changes along the length of each span. In this way, the edges of the structure appear to gently undulate. This causes the handrail, truss cables and bridge deck to meander gracefully as they traverse the water, imparting a sense of effortless fluidity to the bridge.

Between individual spans, the bridge is supported from sculpted steel piers. The bridge deck is widened at these locations so that natural “node” points are created. Seating and shelter is provided at the node points to provide shelter, and to encourage their use as stopping points and to enhance an appreciation of the natural environment of the crossing.

In summary, the proposed cable truss design is considered to be appropriate to the site for the following reasons:

• The bridge is at low level, and “tip-toes” across the river to maintain the distinctive environment.
• The bridge is integrated into the natural environment and is not thrust across it.
• The use of multiple spans and curving route, break-down the scale of the crossing and enhance its’ visual and physical integration into the site.
• The cable-truss is utilized as a structural device to minimize visual impact of the bridge itself.
• The refuges located at the node points will encourage social interaction.

See link Shannon Images UL Bridge

Boathouse

It seems the boathouse is now completed, any up to date images of the finished product about?

See also previous post

The Living Bridge is nearing completion. They were testing the lighting the other night so i took a few pics with my camera phone, sorry for the quality.

1. Looking out on to the bridge from the Milstream Courtyard end of the bridge

2. A side on view from the green behind the Millstream Courtyard complex

The view from the front of the white house, looking out across the river was class. But my camera isnt good enough to take pics from that far.

A better image here..http://www.flickr.com/photos/liveforphotos/2057876046/

And bock the robber’s blog has some very nice shots of the bridge here

Very nice bridge for a stroll across the Shannon! Was out there last evening. Very impressive..sways a bit or feels like it does!

Mary Immaculate College gets another €24m for two new buildings

Limerick Leader

The physical transformation of Mary Immaculate College is set to continue into 2008, as funding worth €24m has been awarded to the college for the construction of two new buildings.
Dr Peadar Cremin, President of Mary Immaculate College, said he was delighted and relieved to hear that Minister for Education Mary Hanafin had finally given the project the go-ahead.

He said in recent years, the college has come through a period of extraordinary growth and development, with an increase in student numbers from 297 in 1991 to 2744 today.

“This growth has left the college with significant development challenges such as lack of physical space and sufficient resources as well as posing serious health and safety problems for the college,” said Dr Cremin.

This new project will involve the construction of two new buildings to accommodate lecture theatres, teaching areas, seminar rooms and various laboratories together with offices and accommodation for Mary Immaculate College Students’ Union and Student Services.

This development will also comprise of a 500-seat auditorium which will be used as the college’s largest lecture theatre and an auditorium for drama and music.

The first phase of the three-phase masterplan for campus development came to fruition this February when a multi-purpose sports hall, Tailteann, was opened.

Dr Cremin said they are also anxious that funding is made available for Phase 2 and Phase 3 of this project. Work on the two new buildings will begin next month and is expected to be completed at the beginning of 2009.

In the thread about stadiums in ireland justnotbothered mentioned UL are lookin to build a stadium!

https://archiseek.com/content/showpost.php?p=74944&postcount=15

Has anybody else heard anything about this. There could be potential for a sub 10000 capacity at the university with UL Bohs (rugby) and the soccer team justnotbothered mentions playing there. Also the many under age tounaments that are played in UL that could use it. not to mention the various University teams.

Maybe limerick 37 could use it also

Views of Living Bridge

Also Gerry Horan has taken a few nice shots of the new “Living Bridge”. see image#1 image#2

Kemmy Business School (Completed December 2007)

Anybody seen the finished building yet? How does it fit in with the Schumann building next door?

2008 UL Project News

The Languages Building
The development will have a floor area of 1400sqm, be 3 storeys high and will provide teaching and languages laboratory facilities and offices for languages staff, including a dedicated centre for “Ionad na Gaeilge”. This buildings will complete the development of the Millstream Courtyard as it will shelter the courtyard from the prevailing westerlies. It is due to be completed in May 2008.

The Western Car Park
The westerm car park, located just west of the Robert Schuman Building, will provide a much needed 375 additional spaces. Similar to the southern car park, there will be daily charges for users, payment being made at the exit. This project is due for completion in March 2008.

The extension to the Glucksman Library and Information Services Building
A major extension to the Library Building is planned under a Public Private Partnership scheme. The project is being co-ordinated by the Department of Education and Science in collaboration with the Department of Finance. Commencement is targeted for September 2008 with completion by the end of 2010.

Irish Chamber Orchestra Hall
Located in Cappavilla Village this will be the dedicated home of the Irish Chamber Orchestra. The practice hall will serve as a function venue for the Cappavilla residents and the building will also incorporate a new shop/coffee bar for residents. This project is due for completion in April 2008.

Expansion to University Arena
This expansion will incorporate a new 25m x 10m pool with a 3m high diving platform and moveable floor, a small sports hall and a cardiovascular gymnasium and weight training area. Commencement of the expansion is targeted for April 2008, to be completed by July 2009.

Irish World Academy of Music & Dance
This development is at the detailed design stage. Commencement is targeted for June 2008, to be completed by November 2009.

@CologneMike wrote:

Kemmy Business School (Completed December 2007)

Anybody seen the finished building yet? How does it fit in with the Schumann building next door?

This is actually one of the rare occasions where the finished product turns out almost exactly as its shown in the plans, its basically finished now with just the internal fit out left to do. Theres nothing spectacular about it to be honest, they seem to have used the left over materials from the likes of the millstream courtyard and the health sciences building, ie. red brick and wood panelling!

The full height glass atrium is its most striking feature, theres also a glazed link between the Kemmy business school and the existing Schuman building, which now looks a bit tired next to the new build. Both the brickwork and the windows could do with a good scrubbing, the roof is also starting to look a bit tatty, could do with a bit of attention aswell. Also I wish they’d finally lay a proper surface on the non staff section of the rear carpark, its an absolute shambles at this stage! I also see there is to be a charge for the new “western” car park, probably to pay for the new bridge!:(

Robert Schuman Building

I’m not a big fan of the roof overhang on the Kemmy building..there’s also a balcony on the back that I don’t see being used. Other than that it seems to fit in well with the existing building.

Briain, how is this new “UL Architectural Course” performing?

More UL Project News

Irish Chamber Orchestra Hall

The image has a “Church” feel about it?

New Medical School

Concept planning of the Medical School has commenced.This development is on the North Bank between Cappavilla and the Health Sciences Building. Adjacent to the Medical School will be a new student residence with 50 en-suite study bedrooms. Commencement is targeted for September 2008, to be completed by December 2009.

Lero Building

Funding for a new research building for LERO was approved by the HEA under Cycle 4 of the PRTLI. A design team is to appointed shortly. The target is to complete construction by September 2009.

Presidents House

A new presidential house will be situated on the North Bank of the campus. Commencement is targeted for September 2008, to be completed by August 2009.

UL President Prof Don Barry might like this bungalow instead! It’s also situated on the North Bank of the campus.;)

The new ICO hall building looks decidedly unexciting – a box with a monopitch roof and a wee service bit tacked on. Can nobody design public buildings with any presence anymore? Who designed this non-event? It’s not even shown in any context. (What’s that? Can you do it in CAD?) I presume this is a 1st year student’s practical design submission.

@johnglas wrote:

The new ICO hall building looks decidedly unexciting – a box with a monopitch roof and a wee service bit tacked on. Can nobody design public buildings with any presence anymore? Who designed this non-event? It’s not even shown in any context. (What’s that? Can you do it in CAD?) I presume this is a 1st year student’s practical design submission.

I presume this is a 1st year student’s practical design submission. You are overstating the obvious! The poor image speaks for itself? What’s your point? It’s difficult enough for posters to get access to material relevant to threads on the Irish forum. Is your glass now empty?

CologneMike: I think you’re slightly losing the place. I was under the vague impression this was a site for comment – not continually taking the huff. The building’s rubbish – end of story.

@johnglas wrote:

CologneMike: I think you’re slightly losing the place. I was under the vague impression this was a site for comment – not continually taking the huff. The building’s rubbish – end of story.

Johnglas, incorrect – the image is rubbish! End of story? Well no Johnglas, I usually keep looking for better material or even wait till the building is built before I make up my mind.

Nothing personally like, but for someone who is supposedly new to the Irish forum, you certainly wasted no time with your pushy style on telling busy posters on what they post is relevant to a particular thread or not. That’s rude buddy. If you don’t know nothing about the people’s park or the UL campus then why rant about them in a negative fashion? It just pollutes the thread. End of ……….eh huff!

Oh dear – and now you know why architects and planners are held in such low regard. Since the building is not yet built, we can only go on the image.
I’m so sorry for being so pushy – have you found the rattle they threw out of your pram yet? (Or perhaps you’re still looking for it to post?)
I don’t think we should communicate at all.
The end.

@johnglas wrote:

Oh dear – and now you know why architects and planners are held in such low regard. Since the building is not yet built, we can only go on the image.
I’m so sorry for being so pushy – have you found the rattle they threw out of your pram yet? (Or perhaps you’re still looking for it to post?)
I don’t think we should communicate at all.
The end.

Read that before! It went like: Now, now now son, don’t go throwing your rattle out of your pram again, OK? Hmmmm……Paris Jack???? Am I right or what?

The ICO hall is half-built from what I saw the other day (unless that was something else – it’s just in front of Cappavilla, just up from the Health building spaceship).

There’s also a languages building taking form beside the Millstream Courtyard.

@CologneMike wrote:

New Medical School

Concept planning of the Medical School has commenced.This development is on the North Bank between Cappavilla and the Health Sciences Building. Adjacent to the Medical School will be a new student residence with 50 en-suite study bedrooms. Commencement is targeted for September 2008, to be completed by December 2009.

Lero Building

Funding for a new research building for LERO was approved by the HEA under Cycle 4 of the PRTLI. A design team is to appointed shortly. The target is to complete construction by September 2009.

Presidents House

A new presidential house will be situated on the North Bank of the campus. Commencement is targeted for September 2008, to be completed by August 2009.

Does anyone have any more information on these projects. Cant seem to find anything on the Limerick or Clare Co. Council websites.
The University says it plans to complete the Lero building and the Presidents house within 20 months. Thats a bit ambitious seeing that there is no sign of planning permission for either

@Goofy wrote:

Does anyone have any more information on these projects. Cant seem to find anything on the Limerick or Clare Co. Council websites.
The University says it plans to complete the Lero building and the Presidents house within 20 months. Thats a bit ambitious seeing that there is no sign of planning permission for either

Would they not be on the Clare side of the campus?

edit..only half read your post. sorry!

Professor Merritt Bucholz delivers inaugural lecture.

Professor Merritt Bucholz, Head of the School of Architecture at UL who delivered his Inaugural Lecture at UL recently. The Chicago-born architect, took up the position of Head of the newly established School of Architecture at UL in 2005.

Professor Bucholz has been involved in producing such award-winning buildings as Fingal County Hall, in Swords, and Limerick County Hall, in Dooradoyle and is one half of the partnership that makes up the award winning Bucholz McEvoy Architects, who have also designed the glazed “welcome pavilions” for Government Buildings in Merrion Street and, more recently, Leinster House.

Merritt’s continuation with his Dublin based business means that he can continue to offer our students the advantage of his real life experience in the industry. He can present to them real and relevant challenges thus helping to shape the minds of those who will shape our future environment.

The living bridge by night – changing colours

Images by lette applejuice / Limerickblogger 😎

Image by mark hunt

Image by Harry Lime

Liveforphotos see images 1 2 3

charles augustus see image 1

Irish World Academy of Music and Dance Building

Pictured are Architect Daniel Cordier, Bernard McNamara, Professor Don Barry, UL President and John O’Connor, President Emeritus, University of Limerick.

Building contracts have this morning been signed for the construction of the €20million Irish World Academy of Music and Dance building at the University of Limerick. The unique building has been designed specifically to combine the elements of teaching and performance, by leading French Architect Daniel Cordier, who was appointed following an international design competition in 2004. Michael McNamara & Company Ltd. today signed contracts to handle the building of the structure, which will commence immediately.

The Irish World Academy building will accommodate two performance workshop theatres, the Tower Theatre and the Sionna Theatre. The Tower Theatre, which is designed in an atrium style, scales from the bottom floor to the top of the building and finishes with a circular window to the sky. The tower, which can hold 80 people, will contain an awe-inspiring Pipe Organ making it an ideal venue for chant and voice performance. Holding up to 200 people, the Sionna Theatre has been designed as a musical laboratory, with sprung timber parquet dance floors to facilitate dance performance.

The Irish World Academy building will also feature, a green room for performers, performance control rooms, recording spaces, a researchers area for 40 students, music performance practice rooms and dance performance studios. The building will also accommodate a computer suite, along with multi purpose music/ speech classroom studios and tutorial rooms as well as academic and administration offices and a cafe.
The design of the new building includes ‘a performance entrance forecourt’ to the open area immediately adjacent to the Academy’s front entrance.

The recently opened Living Bridge will merge with this Plaza, on the Clare side of the UL Campus. The Irish World Academy of Music and Dance Building will operate as a naturally ventilated building with minimal mechanical ventilation to reduce its long-term carbon footprint. The design utilised weather data from Shannon airport to understand the microclimate and to design the independent below ground plenum air supplies to the two Theatres incorporated into the design.

Dr Mícheál O Súilleabháin, Professor of Music at the University of Limerick and founder/director of the Irish World Academy said that he was ‘particularly delighted that this elegant and beautiful building was being constructed by Michael McNamara & Co, whose origins are in County Clare. Given that the building is being built on the county Clare side of the University of Limerick campus, and given the recognition of Clare as the premier county for traditional music and dance in Ireland, I expect jigs and reels to come out of the walls’

The Irish World Academy of Music and Dance was founded in 1994 as a research and postgraduate study centre in cross-cultural music and dance. Currently offering twelve degree programmes, it hosts in excess of 260 full-time students from 25 countries.

Kemmy Business School

Here a few images of the finished building. JP McManus and the late Jim Kemmy would have been very pleased with it.

Previous posts 7 38

UL media clip

Irish Chamber Orchestra Hall

Located in Cappavilla Village this will be the dedicated home of the Irish Chamber Orchestra. The practice hall will serve as a function venue for the Cappavilla residents and the building will also incorporate a new shop/coffee bar for residents. (Source UL)

Two views of the finished product.

The application for the Presedents Resedence has been submitted to Clare County Council. It can be seen here.

The plans show the University’s intentions for the North campus. When you step off the Pedestrian Bridge you are greeted by a plaza flanked by the Health Science building and Irish World Academy of Music and Dance building on either side (post 55). Through the gap between these buildings is another larger pedestrian plaza. to the east of this plaza is the road to the Presedents Residence. To the north are the Irish Chamber Orchestra Building and Cappavilla Village and to the west is the main spine road and carparking.

@Goofy wrote:

The application for the Presedents Resedence has been submitted to Clare County Council. It can be seen here.

From the documents it seems to be quite a large site, pity that the image quality is somewhat poor to appreciate the building’s design.

Curiously the nearby bungalow will have to be demolished shortly before the President’s Residence is finished.

04671

For demolition of a single storey dwelling house 87 sq. metres on site circa O.148 hectares Garraun, Clonlara, Co. Clare

Expiry date 16/06/2009

Glucksman Library

07858

Construction of a new library building adjacent to the Glucksman Library & Information Services Building, together with associated site works.

Application finalised 21/06/2007

Below is a rough outline sketch of the proposed extension. Anybody information to its building schedule?

Previous post

This is going to be built under a Public Private Partnership so its one of those design, build, finance and operate agreements. The project was given the go-ahead by the government late last year and the tendering process was said to have begun straight away.

There was some preliminary works talking place on the site towards the end of last term (May) so I presume the start of construction cant be too far away, possibly September.

Giant Flag Poles

They are situated at the main entrance and were funded by the University’s own Foundation. They look like the masts of a sailing ship and I believe they were erected by an English company called Spencer Rigging who seem to specialise in sailing?

They also got a coat of varnish this summer as the University has quite a few structures now with wooden facades which blend in well with its landscaped surroundings.

I was under the impression that the were the masts off of an old sailing ship. They were salvaged and erected here. I could be wrong though.

Irish Chamber Orchestra to move to €3m campus studio

By Jimmy Woulfe, Irish Examiner

THE Irish Chamber Orchestra (ICO) based at the University of Limerick is preparing to move into a new €3.4 million studio building, on campus, later this month.

Since the orchestra’s relocation to Limerick in 1995, it has been orchestra-in-residence at the university.

A spokesperson said: “Over this time it became clear that a dedicated building with rehearsal /recording studio and office space for the orchestra’s administration would offer the ICO freedom and flexibility to develop not only its artistic policy but its education and
outreach activities”

A partnership with UL has now allowed the orchestra realise its dream.

With financial support from the Department of Arts, UL, Limerick City and County Councils and other private donations the ICO work commenced last year on its new home.

The spokesperson said: “The new studio provides rehearsal and recording facilities for the orchestra and allows it to expand its education remit, enabling schoolchildren and other members of the outreach community to come and work with the orchestra on an ongoing basis.

“It is a unique resource for orchestra, campus and the wider community.”

At the hub is a double-height 300-square-metre rehearsal studio with soloist and conductor rehearsal rooms, instrument store room, musicians’ common room and, upstairs, spacious office accommodation for the ICO’s administrative team.

@Goofy wrote:

I was under the impression that the were the masts off of an old sailing ship. They were salvaged and erected here. I could be wrong though.

they were designed by de Blacam and Meagher after an International competition

Buildings and Estates

UL have just upgraded their site above, here new link.

Campus map updated, here link.

Alas links to images from previous posts have also changed. 😡

Boathouse Pedestrian Bridge IWMC Schumann Buildings Kemmy Business School ICO Hall

Medical School Update

The University of Limerick has received planning permission from Clare County Council to build a €12M medical school on the north side of the campus. It is hoped that construction will begin on site next summer with work completed by September 2010.

The four storey building has a total floor area of 4,295 square metres and will include a landscaped garden and a piazza. The building will consist of clinical skills practice labs, seminar rooms, lecture areas, a cafeteria and offices.

Plans for the building were drawn up by the Dublin-based firm, Grafton Architects, while Limerick quantity surveyors Nolan Ryan and consultants White Young Green were awarded the key contract to supply services for the proposed building.

“This medical school building will be an excellent addition to the university. It is a vital teaching facility which will enable medical students to gain relevant experience in a realistic setting”, said Brian Hand, director of the buildings and estates department at the university.

UL’s graduate entry medical school is one of only two in the country and the only school to use the innovative approach of problem-based learning with a focus on law, ethics, psychology and management as well as the basic sciences.

Some 500 students applied for the graduate entry medical course last year, of whom 32 were accepted. Founding director of the university’s graduate medical school, Prof Paul Finucane, said these students “will become pioneers of a new age in medical education in Ireland”.

© Irish Construction

Attached are some images from the planning application, the building certainly marks a new departure in architectural style at UL.

Orchestral manoeuvres on the campus

The funding and building of the Irish Chamber Orchestra’s new home in Limerick is a rare example of a plan carried out in collective harmony, reports Arminta Wallace

WE DON’T HEAR many good-news stories in these days of doom and gloom; but today’s official opening of the Irish Chamber Orchestra’s new building, on the campus of the University of Limerick (UL), is putting smiles on lots of faces.

Designed by Project Architects in collaboration with specialist acousticians AWN Consulting, the gleaming new block on the college’s north campus incorporates a state-of-the-art rehearsal room, an instrument storeroom and a musicians’ common room as well as office accommodation for the orchestra’s administrative team.

“It became obvious to me about five years ago that we needed to develop our own home,” says the ICO’s chief executive, John Kelly, one of the driving forces behind the project. “When the orchestra relocated to UL in 1995, I was actually the guy who relocated. There wasn’t anybody else.” Once established within the university, however, the ICO quickly began to grow. “We brought Fionnuala Hunt on board, we contracted 13 players, and I hired two other people to work . . . in the office.”

As the university itself developed, rehearsal space became harder to find. “At first we rehearsed in the Bourn Vincent Gallery. But it was being developed as an art gallery, and as more exhibitions were hung it became less and less possible for us to rehearse there. We also shared space with the Irish world academy of music and dance, but as their programmes grew it became more difficult to access that space, too. The primary function of the university is, after all, education. When we found ourselves having to rehearse off-campus in Killaloe, I realised that we were going to have to build our own space.”

To hear Kelly tell the story of the new building, you’d think that getting a €3.5 million project out of cloud cuckoo land and into the real world is something of a breeze. It began with an approach to UL’s vice-president for physical development, John O’Connor. As a result of this conversation the university gifted a site to the orchestra – which, Kelly says, was even more generous than it sounds.

“The site is in the context of a major development of student residencies on campus – a 500-bed complex – so it meant that things like sewerage, pipes, all of that, was already in place. We were, in effect, given a fully serviced site.” With the support of the ICO board, especially its deputy chair, Ed Walsh – a former president of UL and a man who has a reputation for putting ideas into action – Kelly sought government approval for a public-private partnership. “The Department of Arts, Sports and Tourism responded very quickly,” he says. “They saw the opportunity to build a 900sq m home for the ICO for a relatively small amount of money.

So they committed 50 per cent. Limerick city and county put in €50,000 each. We capitalised some rent from the university, which gave us another slice of funding, and we raised €800,000 from private donors.
“Everything just flowed. Everything fell into place,” Kelly says. “But then, this was a good deal for the government. It was a good deal for the ICO. It was a good deal for the University of Limerick. It was a good deal for Limerick.”

It was also a matter of good timing, though, surely? Who would try to get a project such as this off the ground in the current climate?

“Well, you know, when I first mooted this idea I was told that it wouldn’t happen,” says Kelly. “As a matter of fact I was told I’d never get the funding for the orchestra itself, never mind the building. But you don’t let circumstances dictate where you’re going in life. You have a vision, and you get on with it.”

The state-of-the-art rehearsal room, which seats up to 200.

THE AIM OF the ICO has always been, he says, to develop an ensemble that could compete with the best chamber orchestras in the world. “What we’ve really done here from the beginning is facilitate talent – and now we can go on doing that. We have much more freedom to rehearse, to develop education and outreach programmes. We have our own recording facility. We have a music library.”

Having all the admin staff in one place will also, he hopes, make the orchestra’s life easier. “Now we’re all together we can function as a team. And when the orchestra is rehearsing downstairs, we’re immediately accessible to them.” Already, he says, the new environment is prompting members of the orchestra to suggest new musical initiatives. “Although it’s not primarily designed as a performance space, the rehearsal room can hold – with the orchestra – about 180 to 200 people. Various chamber music series will definitely . . . develop – and it’s also a place where we could do some experimental, cutting-edge contemporary work.”

So, when Minister for Arts, Sports and Tourism Martin Cullen cuts the ribbon on the new building today, it will be the dawn of a new era for the ICO. The new building gives the orchestra – according to Kelly – a huge advantage over other chamber orchestras of a similar size. “I don’t know of any chamber orchestra that owns its own studio and office complex,” he says. “We’re unique in that context. It’s like we’re not waiting on the bus any more. We have our own transport here now.”

© 2008 The Irish Times

@Briain wrote:

The School of Architecture is moving into Kings Island for 4th and 5th year design studio, the first class will be moving in at the start of September. Actually, the whole school might be out there for a week or two, not sure yet. They’re going into St.Munchin’s church.

Although your proposal sounds quite interesting also. There were a few different options and locations for the school, none of which was to construct a new building however (afaik)

Looks like as if the School of Architecture has now taken up residency in the old St. Munchin’s Church.

School Of Architecture UL ~ Society Of Architecture Talk

Tuesday November 25th @ 18h00 Venue: St. Munchin’s Church, Kings Island

“Where are You? Talks on practice and place”

SofA are holding a talk in St. Munchin’s Church next Tuesday November 25th entitled “Where Are You? Talks on practice and place”.

The speakers are young Limerick architects Declan Feeney, Jim Corbett, Maria Donaghue and Morgan Flynn

Musical accompaniment will be provided by UL students.

Light refreshments will be served.

All Welcome!

@Tuborg wrote:

This is going to be built under a Public Private Partnership so its one of those design, build, finance and operate agreements. The project was given the go-ahead by the government late last year and the tendering process was said to have begun straight away.

There was some preliminary works talking place on the site towards the end of last term (May) so I presume the start of construction cant be too far away, possibly September.

Any progress on this, im assuming that all the recent digging and laying of pipes around the library is unrelated?

I must take a look at UL one of the day’s. The picture’s are really impressive. It’s like a town there now. As it was once had a village feel when I nosed around and that was years ago.

How many people are housed/working/studying here in total, including and lectures.
UL is one of the most popular colllege’s now in the country, judging from most of my peers:D

Here are some stats on the University….hope this helps.
UL has 11,000 students and 1,300 staff. There are 5 residential villages on campus offering 2,400 rooms. The University Campus extends to over 132 hectares (327 acres) with a total built space of 190,379 square metres (2.05 million square feet) across 27 buildings. As of January 2009, there are 2107 parking spaces provided on the South Bank and 200 on the North Bank.

@mitchell wrote:

Any progress on this, im assuming that all the recent digging and laying of pipes around the library is unrelated?

I presume the pipe laying was rerouting the pipework that runs under the site so they dig out the foundations of the new library without any danger of breaking any pipes.
It was mentioned in the student paper, an Focal, that construction was due to be begin soon, either end of this semester of begining of the next, im not too sure. They have an online version of the paper but it doesnt seem to have been updated at all recently. There is still no indication of any designs though.

A planning application has been lodged with Clare county council “to construct 28 no. student apartments to comprise 22 no. 4 bedroom units, and 6 no. 2 bedroom units, to be provided in three seperate apartment buildings, ranging from five to six floors with a total combined floor area of 3,600m2 with associated hard and soft landscaping and ancillary works on the University’s Clare Campus.” the decision is due today.

The university also has planning permission to extend the the Arena and the track building. Construction was supposed to begin some time back if i remember correctly, but as of yet the only thing done is they have moved the jacuzzi in the arena.

more student accomodation, Was that an extension to capavilla student village or a new one all together?

The planning permission i mentioned above has been granted.

Mitchell – They will be right beside cappavilla, where the private house is at the moment, but it doesnt really look like an extension.

They have started the ground works for the Presidents Residence and the Irish World Academy for Music and Dance is up to roof level and is coming along nicely. Not sure if its been mentioned here already, but the last piece of the Milstream Courtyard develpment, the Languages Building, opened at the start of this semester. Im sure someone with a nice camera wouldnt mind going for a stroll around the campus and throwing up a few picture for ye:D .

Also, i have heard of plans for a ‘Synthetic City’ on the north bank. 4 floodlit, synthetic pitches, 1 rugby, 1 soccer, 1 GAA, and 1 hockey. along with changing facilities.

I’m in the languages building a few times a week, If I remember to take a few pics ill put them up.

Lero (Irish Software Engineering Research Centre) / IEC (Industrial Enterprise Centre Development)

Planning Permission 09353

A 5 storey building for Lero/IEC, with a total floor area of 3,786sqm to accommodate offices, lecture and research laboratory facilities, associated site works. New access road located NW of the proposed site, serving existing buildings and existing car parking facilities. An additional 60 car parking spaces to be provided through extension of existing car parking facilities to the south of the new building and extension of the western car park, including associated paths and landscape (the site is located circa 300m from Plassey House (a protected structure) and 350m from Plassey Mill and Headrace (a protected structure). The University of Limerick falls within an Architectural Conservation Area)

Work to begin on University of Limerick Medical School (Limerick Leader)

CONSTRUCTION work on UL’s Medical School will begin this year, Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe confirmed this morning.
Making the announcement, Minister O’Keeffe said: ‘Building work is expected to get under way shortly on the new multi-million euro 4,000sq/m project.”

It is expected that the project will generate about 150 construction jobs.

“The new medical school, which will accommodate up to 288 graduate students, will have dedicated laboratories, facilities and equipment located in the university’s “health education village” where physical resources can be shared.

“UL is now tendering for a contractor to build the project and construction is expected to be finished by the end of next year.

“UL’s medical school has been operating since 2007 and this new building will, for the first time, provide dedicated facilities for graduates to train in medicine on the campus.

“The medical school, which last year attracted 50 full-time graduate students for the four-year programme, will target innovative learning and provide space and courses for general practitioner training.

“The school is expected to offer new post-graduate research programmes when it’s fully operational,” said Minister O’Keeffe.

Previous Post

Without being negative, I can’t help wondering what if the same resources had been applied to developing a more urban style university in the old European fashion, integrated with the city centre. UL is a decent if not outstanding example of a US style campus in a beautiful location but maybe the city could have been put in a position to benefit more from UL’s success and investment. It’s fanciful I know but let’s say that amount of development centered around the train station could have provided the tipping point for the entire city centre.

Jimg, had Limerick been successful in the 1850’s in its application for siting one of the new Queen’s Colleges in the city then I would agree the area around the train station would have been ideal. It would have completed / complemented the Pery Square / Peoples park area very well.

When NIHE was set up in 1972 the option of setting up around the train station was long gone. In fact the city centre had no large enough tracts of land available to it then. The large brown field sites of Charlottes Quay, the Irishtown and the Englishtown only became available in the late 1980’s.

I remember reading that the Department of Education had favoured another site, the former Mungret College for the new NIHE, but Ed Walsh had seen Plassey on the banks of the Shannon and built his American vision of a university there. The emphasis is how to integrate both of them.

It’s an interesting topic and one that we touched on briefly before, over in the King’s Island thread.

Theres no doubt that UL exists somewhat in its own world and unfortunately has little or no interaction with the city centre! When I was a student there, I knew of a number of people who incredibly, had never ventured into the city simply because they didnt feel the need. They felt they had all the facilities/amenities they wanted right on their doorstep in Castletroy!:(

Originally, I believe there were up to 6 sites being considered for the new NIHE. These included the Plassey estate, Knockalisheen camp, a site near Raheen Industrial estate and Mungret College.

I don’t think any sites in relative proximity to the city centre were ever actually considered. Sadly, as CologneMike has already mentioned, its unlikely that a large enough site would have been available at that time anyway!

UL recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of the granting of its university status (June 1st, 1989). The Limerick Leader has published a couple of articles to commemorate the event.

University challenge

It took many years of lobbying before Limerick got a third level institution. As UL celebrates 20 years of university status, key figures recall the joy and the struggle. Anne Sheridan reports

ON THURSDAY, June 1, 1989, the University of Limerick bill was brought through the Seanad – bringing to an end a campaign for a university in Limerick, which began in the 1840s.

As far back as February, the tension in UL was palpable when the Minister for Education Mary O’Rourke was about to introduce legislation granting university status.
In the days leading up to the news a major celebration was being planned days in advance but kept top secret until the official announcement was made.

No one was invited until that very day, but 5,000 people gathered at the campus to be part of a “momentous occasion” that evening. Those in the higher echelons had known four days previously, and Minister O’Rourke, was present on campus to make the announcement.

Chuck Feeney, the billionaire American philanthropist, who donated millions to UL’s capital projects, had flown in crates of champagne from the United States that morning.
He was there too, as was Dr Tony Ryan, the founder of Ryanair, and deputies Michael Noonan and Willie O’Dea. Everyone had wanted to share in this moment.

“It was the most memorable and probably the most astonishing day of our lives, bar getting married and having children,” recalled Dr Edward Walsh, the university’s founding president, who remained in office for 28 years. “For most of us it was probably the most astonishing day in our careers.”

Noel Mulcahy, former vice-president of UL, sang ‘There is an Isle’, but 20 years on memories are hazy of those dizzyingly exciting moments.
It was, Dr Walsh said, “an emotion packed day” and not merely an academic event – even when the Taoiseach and Minister O’Rourke formally opened the university on September 14, 1989.

“It was the end of a long, long struggle. It was almost an emotional achievement knowing the many generations who were involved in attempting to achieve this.”
President Emeritus John O’Connor, who collected Minister O’Rourke from the airport that morning, added: “People didn’t need very much encouragement to enjoy themselves.
“I’d say everybody was singing that night. All the stops were pulled out.”

Mr O’Connor, who began work in the then National Institute of Higher Education in the early ’70s, remembered the fireworks display and the efforts it took to resolves security issues. But the event was doubly significant. Not only was UL the first university created in the history of the State, but they also had the power to confer their own degrees – unlike other universities which preceded it.

The long and ardous fight for university status had seemingly afforded them more privileges than most. “We decided who should receive a degree, whereas the others, like Cork and Galway, were dependent on the National University of Ireland office in Dublin,” said Dr Walsh.

Furthermore, it provided them with the go-ahead to push for funding internationally “without having any ambiguity” and Feeney’s role in UL gathered momentum, backing development projects such as the University Concert Hall and the Castletroy Park Hotel.

“I remember one of the first things I did when Chuck Feeney came to Limerick was walk around with him and show him a pile of briars across the road. We talked about how the university would really benefit from a world class hotel, but didn’t have the money to build one. A week later he brought me up to Ashford Castle and laid the plans out for the hotel,” said Dr Walsh. The deal was done; another coup in a long line for UL.

Up until the granting of status, Walsh said they focused on “extracting as much as we could” though the State. “But this permitted a new wave of great development. We were way ahead (of other colleges] in terms of our investment profile.”

Mr O’Connor said the fact that Limerick didn’t have a university didn’t deter Feeney, though in wider circles the concept of an NIHE “does take explanation to a third party”.
“The university charter set the base for a massive expansion; it was a fantastic boost. But we treated it as a university from the very beginning. We always operated at a university level, even when we didn’t have a charter. We didn’t want to have to wait a university to make things happen,” said Mr O’Connor, adding that statutes can take years to bring in, but UL achieved it in five months.

However, it was a long and sometimes frustrating wait for many behind the university campaign.

THE BEGINNING

“A ROSE by any other name,” commented James Tully, the Meath TD, in a Dail debate on April 17, 1969, following repeated queries if a new educational institution in Limerick would be established, and if indeed it would be called a university.

It may not have started out as a rose, but with careful, steady pruning, the campus that is the University of Limerick has blossomed, growing in size and stature over the past 39 years.

It began its life as the National Institute of Higher Education in 1970, taking in the first group of 113 students in September 1972, when it had just five degree programmes, five diploma programmes, and 12 faculty members.

Now, the university counts over 11,500 students and 1,500 faculty and staff.
Fast forward 37 years and Professor Don Barry, the university’s third president, said despite the challenges posed by a deficit in Government funding for third-level education they are still committed to “creating the most outstanding student experience in Ireland”, and the development of world-class research.

The granting of status in 1989 was, he said, a “momentous occasion…followed by 20 years of remarkable success,” attributable to “the collective vision, effort and commitment” of the campus community.

However, many of those who began their careers with the NIHE and led the campaign for a university in Limerick in the late 50s, will not be there this Thursday, May 28, to celebrate the occasion.

Yet, Ann Sadlier, Dr Edward Walsh’s secretary from the very beginning, who passed away a fortnight ago, and many others who played a largely unrecognised part in the university, can lay claim to that history. Many of those present, particularly the university’s current students, may not be aware of the struggle it took for Limerick to be granted its status.

Dr Walsh has recalled the “sackcloth and ashes plight” of the institution back in the ’70s – as his successor Dr Roger Downer would later term it.

The founding president said when they commenced work on Monday, January 19, 1970 they had no office, no typewriter, not even note paper. This newspaper reported at that time that the new director of the Institute of Higher Education was seen working with his new staff member from a parked car in O’Connell Street.

“Our budget for 1970 was £5,000 so the prospects looked bleak indeed,” said Dr Walsh. “But the Limerick County Council made available the office they had abandoned at 71 O’Connell Street. Anne and I moved from the car and commenced a working partnership that was to last for a further 25 years and see the creation of the University of Limerick.”

Moves to establish the University of Limerick date back to 1845 when the mayor led a delegation to London to make the case for one of the proposed Queen’s colleges.
Cork, Galway and Belfast were chosen as the locations for the colleges, with Limerick narrowly missing out in favour of Galway.

After accepting its first cohort of students in 1972, the NIHE finally morphed into the University of Limerick in 1989, having passed through the hands offive education Ministers.
It then became the first ‘new’ university created in the Republic after the creation of the Free State.

As a consequence, sources point out that it was viewed as “the baby” by the Higher Education Authority, the Department, Dr Walsh and possibly Feeney also.
In the early years, Walsh said, “it was generally held that Limerick had been fobbed off and nothing of a consequence would result.”

Mr O’Connor agreed – somewhat. He said everyone at the opening of the NIHE by the Taoiseach Jack Lynch felt “a great sense of a mission” because there was always “a sense of the outsider”.

Yet, “the underdog” of Irish education would soon prove the naysayers wrong.

UL dreamers refused to be put off

Former mayor Tony Brommel tells the story of the start of Limerick’s campaign for a university

FORMER Mayor of Limerick Tony Bromell believes that were it not for the efforts of the Limerick University Project Committee, which was established on October 19, 1959, the university as we know it might not be there today.

“To start looking for a university at that time seemed to be the most daft thing you could think of,” said Mr Bromell, one of two surviving members of the original committee. The other members were: John Moloney, Dermot Hurley, Margaret Liddy, Tom Duffy, Pat McCarthy, Jim Lyons, Gerard O’Connor, Sean Prendergast, Michael Finnan, John Hurley and Jack O’Dwyer.

He continued: “It was a time of utter depression with massive unemployment, massive emigration and widescale poverty. People wanted jobs. A lot of people were suggesting at that time that we shouldn’t have become independent at all…that 1916 was a waste.”

“To talk to the general population in Limerick in that time about creating a university, the reaction was ‘we’d prefer a job’.” Despite all that, he believed they “sold the message very well” and got the backing from people in Clare, Kerry and Tipperary, and the rest of the hinterland. “We went anywhere we were invited…or invited ourselves.”

Furthermore, the need for a university in the Mid-West was clear. In 1958/59 there were only 75 students from Limerick registered in UCD, UCC and UCG, which had a total student population of 5,980, according to research carried out by the committee.

Bromell approached Paddy Hillery, the late President and then Minister for Education, at an Ard Fheis, and said he was “very favourably disposed to the idea”. “I told him of the financial benefit for Limerick, and he said ‘Forget about that side, and concentrate completely on education’.”

Hillery set up a Commission on Higher Education to look at establishing a college in Limerick, but Bromell said they “weren’t overly pleased,”preferring if they had made a decision then and there. The Commission would later recommend in an interim report that a college should be established in Limerick with a number of degrees at pass level. “And of course we said ‘No way,'” he said.

He noted that Dr Walsh, too, had little time for this approach when he was appointed. “Half the courses were meant to be at sub-degree level, but Ed never bothered with that – he wanted them all at degree level.” “It was his way of doing things,” laughed Bromell, “that if Ed got £100,000 (from the Department] today, he’d look for another £100,000 the day afterwards.”

Students accompanied by the Sexton Street pipe band went on to march outside the office of the commission and the Minister’s office in Dublin, with banners proclaiming “Limerick demands a university.” The project committee began taking full page advertisements in the Sunday Independent at a “huge cost,” but it was a community effort and donations flooded in from the public. One church gate collection in the city yielded £200, “a huge sum in the ’50s.”

“It shows that if people know exactly what they want and fight for it…but of course there’ll be disappointments along the way. The officials in the department knew we weren’t going away; we were waiting until we got what we wanted.”

Bromell said they knew there was “no way” the Higher Education Authority would call any educational institution in Limerick a university, so they pushed for the word ‘national’ as a prefix to the Institute of Higher Education.

It was agreed, and the wheels were finally set in motion. The site in Castletroy was purchased in six weeks – the clear forerunner over other locations in King’s Island, the Raheen Industrial Estate and Mungret College. Plassey surpassed all the other options, in Walsh’s view, even if the infrastructure was non-existent, and Plassey House and the surrounding 70 acres was bought for £72,000.

Bromell recalled that at that time “pigeons were flying in and out of the roof of Plassey House” and while the Department of Education insisted that the historic building be knocked down, Walsh fought to keep it “as it was something of quality from the past”.

As a further matter of principle, Walsh insisted that the opening of the NIHE be an ecumenical, rather than a Catholic affair, and sought to have the Chief Rabbi at the ceremony, as well as the Catholic and Protestant bishops. “The Catholic bishop said he was happy to go along with it. The Protestant bishop was fine about it, but said he didn’t want too much holy water going around and the Chief Rabbi said he wasn’t coming if there was any holy water!”

In the middle of all the preparations, they received a letter from the Department of Education stating that ‘no state funds were to be used’ and were forced to begin their own fundraising for the event. No plaque has ever been erected on campus at the university to recognise the efforts made by the project committee in bringing the university to fruition, but President Barry said this is now something which they should acknowledge.

“It’s important for the university to acknowledge its history and origins at all times,” he said.

However, three of the members of the original committee, and Cecil Murray and Paraic O’Suilleabhain who later joined the group,were presented with the president’s medal by Dr Roger Downer, Walsh’s successor, in 2004.

Dr Walsh too noted that the efforts of the committee live on. “The intensity of the campaign lives on in the folk memory of the community: it involved marching, protesting, fundraising, lobbying, and quite exhausted every democratic device,” he once wrote.

From tiny acorns…

Conditions at the start were so primitive, says Dr Ed Walsh, that the first meeting of the academic council, people had to sit on the floor as there were no chairs

DR EDWARD Walsh didn’t just want the National Institute of Higher Education to become a university, he wanted it to become ‘Ireland’s MIT’ or be ‘better than a university’. However, a very different history could have been written on these pages had Dr Walsh chosen to stick with a position at University College Dublin and not reapplied for the job in Limerick as director of the new National Institute of Higher Education.

There was a time when he was very close to not accepting the position, viewing the job as “very precarious”. In the end, he followed his wife’s encouragement and his own guiding principle, “If in doubt, do it.” The weakness of the Limerick opportunity was, he said, “that very little was thought out about what should be done, but the advantage was there were no pre-conceived ideas.”

He was appointed in November 1969 and was to take up duty on January 1 1970. He flew out of New York on December 31 and took up the job the next day, having flown from Shannon to Dublin to meet the Minister of Education.

“The Minister said ‘Money is a bit of a problem; we only have about £5,000 provided this year,’ and my salary was £4,000. It looked so dismal – there was no campus site, no office…”

However, he believed his mission was clear: he was to find the best people, irrespective of nationality or creed – which he did while putting a few noses out of joint in the process. “The first serious media controversy was about why I was employing these foreigners (to build the institute]. Did they not expect me to appoint the best?” he asked mockingly. The early years, he said, were peppered with many controversies, arising from perceived ‘alien’ academic projects, and selective funding by the World Bank and European Investment Bank.

Other institutions looked on with envy again as UL, as it was later named, succeeded in getting millions of dollars from the American philanthropist, Chuck Feeney. At Walsh’s behest, Feeney and fellow philantrophist Lewis Glucksman raised £25 million for the library alone. To get the best, the contracts to design the university, as well as recruiting personnel, were advertised internationally, and as a matter of principle, he said, they advertised in the Belfast Telegraph.

This was around the time when the restrictions facing Catholic students who wished to go to Trinity College Dublin were lifted, and his personal views on religion’s place in influencing Irish education were later to become apparent. He searched around Europe looking at ‘model’ institutions, sometimes taking in two countries a day, and on returning began a marketing campaign to recruit the best students.

“I had a projector in the back of the car and was going around telling people what we were trying to do. I told them we were looking for students with courage, but I’m sure their parents were telling them to go to Cork or Galway. The first hundred or so were remarkable too, because they had a lot of confidence, a lot of determination and vibrancy.

“The conditions were quite primitive in a way: we were setting up laboratories out in the stables, trying to get the co-operative education up and running. It was a remarkable exercise in a very short period of time.

“In the first academic council meeting we all had to sit on the floor because there were no chairs,” he says with a laugh.

He even remembers the time when the first book was put in the library, and photographed, and proudly testifies that soon after, the library had some 4,000 books on its shelves.

It was a unique experience – “nothing like this had happened in the history of the State” – and surely one that was hard to resign from, given the massive investment in energy, passion and implementing his vision.

“On several occasions I had spoken to myself – after 10 years, and then after 20 years, and then it was 28 years – about doing so (resigning]. I attempted to do it in the early ’90s, even though I could have continued on until 2005, which was crazy. “You needed new blood. It was hard because things were moving very rapidly. It was like being on a conveyor belt and you need to make a special effort to get off. But in hindsight it was absolutely the right thing to do.

“Very few people get the chance to get a university going; it gives you an interesting insight into what makes human nature tick. It was a very special privilege.”

@CologneMike wrote:

Surreal image here, huh? The yellow dormer bungalow which sits in open fields all over the country, but here with high density looming behind and AArchitecture on the right.

@Devin wrote:

Surreal image here, huh? The yellow dormer bungalow which sits in open fields all over the country, but here with high density looming behind and AArchitecture on the right.

The little bungalow is no more, yet another student apartment complex is being built on the site. Perhaps they should have left it alone and used it as the UL President’s new on campus residence!:p

@Tuborg wrote:

The little bungalow is no more, yet another student apartment complex is being built on the site. Perhaps they should have left it alone and used it as the UL President’s new on campus residence!:p

The Bungalow is gone? 😮
🙁

How did it get there anyway?
The only road there seems to be the Bridge by Thomond and that’s only there since 2004.

EDIT:

Google Maps showed me the answer 😎

It’s still there, the new extension is being built beside it.

Haven’t been out there in a while, but I’m led to believe that it is to be demolished, if it has not been already. The new Medical School and the Medical School residence are to be built on it.

The President’s Residence is nearby and well under construction.

President’s House (Grafton Architects)

This development, on the Univeristy of Limerick campus, consists of a 3 storey building with a total floor area of 460m² and attic storage space. The accommodation contains a main arrival hall, living room, dining room, family kitchen / dining and breakfast room, utility and storage rooms, sunroom, family room , 5 bedrooms (4 en suite) and a library together with additional bathroom and toilet facilities. Site development works include the construction of site ancillary structures, new foul and surface drainage runs, electrical services and other utilities ducting, terraced areas, footpaths and landscaping facilities. The house will be completed to a high level of finishes and to a strict air tightness specification.

Source Brian McCarthy Contractors

Any up to date images about?

Wow that looks really nice. Any update on their medical school either?

@CologneMike wrote:

President’s House (Grafton Architects)

Any up to date images about?

I was out that way a couple of weeks back and was wondering what that structure was. It’s located beyond the Health Science Building, along the river bank.

It was dark and the building was shrouded in scaffolding so it was difficult enough to see but it looked like the structure had reached it’s full height. Looking forward to seeing the finished article!

@reddy wrote:

Any update on their medical school either?

A contractor has been appointed and they turned the sod on the site a few weeks back so work should be starting very soon!

RIAI’s 2009 Conference in Limerick ~ Shaping Ireland’s Future

1st – 3rd November 2009 (link)

On one of the days, there will be a workshop dealing with the Regional Developments in Limerick at the SAUL (former St. Munchin’s Church Building).

Urban Forum

A workshop which will address issues of Regional Development in Limerick. Four presentations will form the basis for debate on the future of the Limerick / Shannon Region and its relationship to the other city regions in the “Atlantic Gateway” and other Gateways. This will follow up on the issues raised by the Urban Forum commissioned study “Twice the Size”.

The presentations:

1. An overview of the Limerick / Shannon Region.
2. A comprehensive analysis of the current situation in the region set out in the “Saul” project, prepared by the Architecture School in the University of Limerick.
3. An overview of the strategy and masterplans prepared by the Limerick Regeneration Agency.
4. An MA thesis “Sustainable Limerick” showing a possible future scenario for Limerick.

The workshop will build on discussions held the previous day at the RIAI Conference.

Architects compose themselves before Limerick

There was a young architect from Dub
Who went down to Limerick’s hub
to discuss the much-maligned area of design
and get to the subject’s nub.

Those heading to the RIAI (Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland) conference in Limerick, from November 1st to 3rd, are being asked to come up with limericks that will be read out at the event and possibly rewarded.

This is the first RIAI conference on Irish soil for many a year – recent architectural forays have been to New York and Venice – and staying on home turf ties in nicely with the conference themes of designing sustainably and surviving during a recession.

Architect Kevin Jackson of Murray O’Laoire will discuss sustainable energy in acute hospitals; Merritt Bucholz of Bucholz McEvoy, who teaches architecture in the University of Limerick, will look at the city’s future; architect Gerry Cahill will give a presentation on retrofitting social housing; while Greg Tisdall of StudioD and Duff Tisdall will address the question: Can architects make a living in a recession?

While five-star hotels weren’t unknown in previous conferences, now some delegates are eyeing up the Travelodge for €25 a night and the RIAI is holding a raffle for free conference tickets for cash-strapped architects.

© 2009 The Irish Times

The Travelodge offers also at firsthand some fine views of a certain mothballed NAMA project. 😉

Medical School Accommodation 3 Buildings ~ Grafton Architects

081741

Planning permission granted to construct 28 no. student apartments to comprise 22 no. 4 bedroom units, and 6 no. 2 bedroom units, to be provided in three separate apartment buildings, ranging from five to six floors with a total combined floor area of 3,600m2 with associated hard and soft landscaping and ancillary works on the University’s Clare Campus.

Garraun, Clonlara, Co. Clare

Due for completion: Autumn 2010

@Goofy wrote:

I have heard of plans for a ‘Synthetic City’ on the north bank. 4 floodlit, synthetic pitches, 1 rugby, 1 soccer, 1 GAA, and 1 hockey. along with changing facilities.

Sport Facilities ~ 4 Pitches & Pavillion ~ Project Architects

09825

Planning permission granted for the construction of a Field Sports Facility on a 9.8 hectare site within the University’s Clare Campus. The development comprises four raised floodlit sports pitches, with perimeter earthen berm, ancillary lighting, boundary fences and walkways, and an 1,810 sq.m pavillion building on two levels, providing 10 no changing rooms, referee rooms, administration rooms, cafe restaurant and 2 no. coaching rooms, 392 car parking spaces, 4 coach parking spaces and associated landscaping and site works.

Garraun, Clonlara, Co. Clare

Although the 4 pitches are planned for Soccer (2), GAA (1) and Rugby (1), it good to see UL Beefing up its sports facilities with an eye on London 2012.

@CologneMike wrote:

Sport Facilities ~ 4 Pitches & Pavillion ~ Project Architects

Planning permission granted for the construction of a Field Sports Facility on a 9.8 hectare site within the University’s Clare Campus. The development comprises four raised floodlit sports pitches, with perimeter earthen berm, ancillary lighting, boundary fences and walkways, and an 1,810 sq.m pavillion building on two levels, providing 10 no changing rooms, referee rooms, administration rooms, cafe restaurant and 2 no. coaching rooms, 392 car parking spaces, 4 coach parking spaces and associated landscaping and site works.

No harm to finally see some progress on this, UL have been promising to develop new pitches for a good number of years.

It’ll be interesting to see what the long term plans are for the existing facilities. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to eventually see more student accomodation being built on whats currently “Maguires field”.

@Tuborg wrote:

No harm to finally see some progress on this, UL have been promising to develop new pitches for a good number of years.

It’ll be interesting to see what the long term plans are for the existing facilities. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to eventually see more student accomodation being built on whats currently “Maguires field”.

I’d be pretty sure that the new pitches and sports facilities are there to compliment the current facilities not replace them.

I don’t know Maguire’s field is in preety poor condition, I can’t see any new field complementing it.

Though it has been UL’s agends of late to concentrate on the north campus but who know’s.

@foinse wrote:

I’d be pretty sure that the new pitches and sports facilities are there to compliment the current facilities not replace them.

The main pitches will be left as they are but Maguire’s is basically just a farmers field that’s only really used as a back pitch, for training and the odd game here and there.

It would take a lot of work and money to bring it up to scratch and I don’t see them doing that now there are definite plans for a new facility on the north campus.

Im not saying it’s going to happen soon or anything but down the line, additional student accomodation is probably its most likely use!

In the Mid West, authorities have warned about rising waters on the River Shannon between Killaloe and Limerick. (Sunday 22nd) RTE

In Limerick, the pedestrian (Black Bridge) Plassey Bridge over the River Shannon near the University of Limerick has been closed after the local authority expressed concern over the safety of the structure.

I know that the damage caused by these floods has been enormous and hope these water volumes of the Shannon now passing through Limerick will leave the city unscathed.

Still it would be interesting to see how the flood plain around the Thomond Student Village will fare out. To my knowledge this is one of a very few building projects around Limerick where flood zones are an integral part of it.

See Murray O’Laoire Architects

isnt it FASCINATING that Clare County Council have just given planning permission to UL for development on 27 acres of floodplain immediatedly to the north of WestburyCorbally. Once built it will have horrendous effects on this area when the next flood arives. Unbelievable

@iomanaiocht wrote:

isnt it FASCINATING that Clare County Council have just given planning permission to UL for development on 27 acres of floodplain immediatedly to the north of WestburyCorbally. Once built it will have horrendous effects on this area when the next flood arives. Unbelievable

Whoah there imanaiocht!
You’re totally underestimating Clare County Council’s capacity for hindsight, which will kick into action directly after your predicted flood.

ul looking pretty rough at the moment – the shannon has reached the bottom of those suspension type things on the living bridge…. health sciences building has lots of sndbags up and water is fairly close to them…

just proves your point of building on the floodplain!

Any pics of student village and how it is faring in the flood? As far as I know it was designed with a certain frequency of flood event in mind but this seems to be a one in several hundred years flood.

saw this on another site;

http://picasaweb.google.com/davidjcryan/101_FUJI#

Look at the Black Bridge! 😮

The mind boggles because so much more water is already diverted away upstream into the ESB Head Race via Ardnacrusha!

Found this on the Limerick Leader Site. All seems to be ok from this view:

Does anybody find it odd that the lock gates at Shannon Rowing Club are closed and not open given the circumstances?

I took a spherical panorama at the college this morning that gives a pretty good idea of the impact of the flooding.

Click on the photo below in order to view a 360 degree panorama of the site:

@AerialPhoto.ie wrote:

I took a spherical panorama at the college this morning that gives a pretty good idea of the impact of the flooding.

Click on the photo below in order to view a 360 degree panorama of the site:
[url=”http://www.aerialphoto.ie/UL/ul.html%5D[/url]

linky broken mate, 404 error coming up

I’ve added another one showing the flooding around the Park Point / Aldi / Groody River area. No shortage of water!

the student village you’re talking about (thomand) is seemingly designed to be able to take floods (there’s lots of small bridges and things in it). However the water supply was cut off for a while. other than that nothing major. water still not back properly in the showers though!! Tis gettin awful smelly down here!

Limerick still on high flood alert though….

@AerialPhoto.ie wrote:

I took a spherical panorama at the college this morning that gives a pretty good idea of the impact of the flooding.

AerialPhoto, it would be an understatement to say the least that your superb 360° panoramas will be of keen interest to the University Campus Planners! 😎

Your images of the Clare campus side reveal the extent of the flood plain around the Thomond Student Village. Or should I say either side of the Canal / River Blackwater as it meets the Shannon.

The topography of the site provided unique opportunities for the project to interact with the waterways and take advantage of the stunning views surrounding the site.

As the site is prone to occasional flooding it has been raised approximately 2m above the existing ground level. Only the land required for the Student Village was raised to create promontories and thus preserve the seasonal nature of the landscape.

Murray O’Laoire

Murray O’Laoire’s Student Village concept seems to have worked here though I heard that there were problems in general with sewage on the Clare campus side?

Previous post 100

@iomanaiocht wrote:

isnt it FASCINATING that Clare County Council have just given planning permission to UL for development on 27 acres of floodplain immediatedly to the north of WestburyCorbally. Once built it will have horrendous effects on this area when the next flood arives. Unbelievable

Sport Facilities ~ 4 Pitches & Pavillion ~ Project Architects

09825

Planning permission granted for the construction of a Field Sports Facility on a 9.8 hectare site within the University’s Clare Campus. The development comprises four raised floodlit sports pitches, with perimeter earthen berm, ancillary lighting, boundary fences and walkways, and an 1,810 sq.m pavillion building on two levels, providing 10 no changing rooms, referee rooms, administration rooms, cafe restaurant and 2 no. coaching rooms, 392 car parking spaces, 4 coach parking spaces and associated landscaping and site works.

Garraun, Clonlara, Co. Clare

Previous post 95

I must admit that I’m taken aback by the extent of these floods from O’Briensbridge down as far as Corbally. One would think the Ardnacrusha head race had never existed as I was always of the impression that the 1920’s Shannon Scheme diverted huge volumes of water away thus reducing the water levels of the original river all year round.

Will the UL still go ahead now with the four raised sports pitches and perimeter earthen berm?

Or alternatively instead of raising the pitches why not develop them as part of the flood plain?

There must be another 20.000 acres of flood plains up stream that will have to be revisted.

Great images Aeriaphoto!.. I find it really interesting that the village is working (almost) as planned. In the way that it is designed it must be unique in Ireland. Does anyone know of a similar handling of flood events in building design? Construction and completion images here:

http://www.roskavanagh.com/library/project/ul_thomond_student_village

Ros

Thanks for the compliments guys, it’s a little tricky getting nice images at this time of year with the low sun angles.
I actually took completion photographs of Thomond Village for Murray O Laoire back in 2006 I think it was, I wondered at the time how it would handle flooding and I’m glad to see that it fared out ok.

Hi, I follow this site quite a lot but I never post. Finally I have something to post – some pictures of the new Irish World Academy of Music and Dance building in UL. This is on the Clare side of the Shannon and it is the building that will greet people as they cross the living bridge. It is located besides the Health Sciences building and is due to open in March.

Interesting shots, cheers for uploading them tradcentric.

It’s good to finally see a building providing a backdrop for the bridge, the site was a car park for the last couple of years!

The north campus is definitely starting to take shape at this stage, I believe construction has also started on the medical school. Must take a spin out there some day to have a look!

Yes further construction has started on the site of that lonesome bungaloe.

Also for anyone in the area today, the living bridge is being officially opened by The President thismorning (the bridge is closed to pedestrians between 0930 and 1230). You’ll still be able to go along and watch the ceremonies though! While you’re there check out the boathouse which opened officially only a couple of months ago.

UL builds €1.1m residence for president (RTE)

Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe is to ask for a report into the construction of a €1.1 million residence for the University of Limerick President.

The university, which is €3m in debt, has said that no taxpayers’ money was spent on the new home for Professor Don Barry, which was built with philanthropic donations.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, the minister said that although he had only recently learned of the three-storey, five-bedroom house, it appeared ‘lavish’ in a time when universities should be exercising restraint.

See also UL News “New Facility Nearing Completion on the UL Campus”

I think the Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe would not mind having UL’s problems (i.e. €3m in debt), on the face of it the new €1.1 President’s residence (on campus) would seem to me to be pretty good value for money!

To put lavish (waste) into perspective, UL could have built 60-70 such buildings from money the Department of Environment blew, i.e. € 83 million on a € 10 million sewerage pipe.

O’Keeffe seeks report on €1.1m UL residence

SEÁN FLYNN and CHARLIE TAYLOR

MINISTER FOR Education Batt O’Keeffe has asked for a report into the construction of a €1.1 million luxury residence for the University of Limerick president.

The Minister said yesterday that the building of the five-bedroom house seemed “lavish”, given the current economic circumstances.

He emphasised, however, that “no taxpayer’s money” was used to build a €1.1 million residence.

Mr O’Keeffe said the home for Prof Don Barry had been funded entirely by a benefactor who had advised the money should be used for this purpose.

The contribution was made several years ago before Prof Barry became president.

The philanthropist in question is the Irish American billionaire Chuck Feeney, who had donated close to €1 billion to higher education in Ireland.

Fine Gael’s education spokes- man Brian Hayes has criticised the decision to invest funds on the building during a recession.

The university, which has debts of about €3 million, has stressed that the building will be used as a venue for public events and accommodation for visitors to the campus.

“This project is being entirely funded with philanthropic donations we’ve received.

“The donors specifically gave it [the funds] for this purpose,” said Eamon Cregan, director of corporate affairs, University of Limerick.

“This is private money applied for a public purpose.”

© 2010 The Irish Times

What bizaare logic goes on in Brian Hayes head which in effect he criticises a philanthropist (donated close to €1 billion to higher education in Ireland) for privately funding the president’s residence? Does he, as Fine Gael’s education spokesman seriously want to dictate as to when Chuck Feeney should finance University projects in this country i.e. wait till the recession is over?

“If you think education is expensive, try ignorance” (Former Harvard President). :rolleyes:

Jesus, i thought Fianna Fáil were bad, but that article shows that Fine Gael are pretty dire too, if that is the argument that they come up with. Well done to UL for developing a fantastic campus with very little backing or support from the government down through the years.

University of Limerick president’s house ‘a waste of money’ claims MEP (Limerick Leader)

By Mike Dwane and Anne Sheridan

BUILDING a €1.1m residence for a college president in the current climate is like giving a €900,000 bonus to former FAS director Rody Molloy, Fine Gael MEP Sean Kelly has said.

Mr Kelly joined his party leader, Enda Kenny, in criticising the new president’s residence at UL, stating that it is “sending out the wrong message.”

Mr Kelly, the former president of the GAA, told the Limerick Leader that the money spent on the house on the north side of the UL campus “is a waste of money that could be put to the benefit of the students.”

However, the university has stressed that this funding was sourced privately for this specific purpose, which will have public functions. The UL students’ union have also agreed that the funds were solely dedicated to the residence, which is part of the university’s long-term strategic plans.

But Mr Kelly said: “The message has to go out today from here that we are there for the people. The day of privilege and class is over. We spent many years trying to get rid of the privilege and class of the earls and the barons and the lords of Britain and we don’t want to be repeating that here.

“The message, like in giving a €1 million house to a president of a college and a €900,000 bonus to a man who squandered public money in FAS, is the wrong message and it has to stop,” said Mr Kelly.

“UL has been a fantastic institution. They are doing great work. They have an awful lot to offer particularly now in research and innovation. But again, that is a waste of money that could be put to the benefit of the students. Enda Kenny has said that, and I agree with him,” he concluded.

Someone who is worth their salt deserves respect!

Fine Gael’s MEP Sean Kelly comparison of the private funding for the new president’s residence with the FAS scandal surrounding Mr Molloy’s severance arrangements is an insult to the University of Limerick.

The former UL president Ed. Walsh developed this university from scratch in the 1970’s and this work was followed on by Roger Downer and presently by Don Barry. There are some 13.000 students studying there today in buildings financed by the University Foundation.

This new representative residence for the president should assist the university when networking with visitors, hopefully inspiring them to get involved with the University Foundation.

As a university, UL is still only a “baby” and has a long way to go before it will be a fully developed university.

This new building is just a little part of it.

Fine Gael should salute achievement and respect people who are worth their salt!

I have no truck with Seán Kelly. Actually, I met him during his canvass last summer and gave him my number 1 vote in the European elections. However, his comments there are well out of order. Then again, I suspect that Mike Dwane and Anne Sheridan went fishing for these comments, and having seen plenty of what they have written in the past, I have no doubt that they have sensationalised what Kelly said.

This is a sensational attack on a highly successful university.

It coincides with another ridiculous political move; the abolition of the NUI.

It appears that the politicians of this country see the 3rd level education system as a soft target for scoring political points.

I hope the public can see through this and that it all backfires spectacularly.

UL Medical School and Student Housing (Grafton Architects)
Construction has begun on two new projects for the University of Limerick. The new Medical School and Student Housing are due for completion in Spring 2011.

Here another perspective to the previous posts 67, 92, 94.

@CologneMike wrote:

Irish World Academy of Music and Dance

Interesting video material (3D computer animation of proposed building). Take a tour see link. 😎

Yeah, that’s really cool video dude. thanks for sharing with us,,,,

outdoor wall lights

Hardly worth giving this nonsense any more publicity but for the comedy value alone, I said I’d post it!

I wonder is this at all motivated by the proposed Limerick City boundary extension into Clare? :rolleyes:

Aren’t we lucky that we live in such a mature society! 😮

Rename University of Limerick to include Clare in title, says councillor

By Anne Sheridan

A CLARE councillor has urged that the University of Limerick should be renamed to include Clare in the title, as the university continues to expand into the neighbouring county.
Cllr Cathal Crowe, a graduate of UL, tabled a motion at Clare Council Council this Monday night to have the campus renamed as the University of Limerick and Clare.

The motion received the full backing of the council, Cllr Crowe said, and a letter is now being written for the university’s governing authority, its highest decision making body, urging that due consideration be given to renaming the university.

“I am not doing this to antagonise the University of Limerick or Limerick City Council. It’s a serious proposal and I hope it will be treated as such,” the Fianna Fail councillor told http://www.limerickleader.ie

He said he isn’t confident that it will be passed this year, but believes the name will be changed within a decade “to reflect its dual county status”.

But the Mayor of Limerick, Cllr Kevin Kiely, said he would be opposed to any renaming of the college. “It was named the University of Limerick and it should remain as such,” said Mayor Kiely, a member of Governing Authority.

The university was made aware of the motion this Tuesday morning, but was not in a position to comment at the time of going to print.
Cllr Crowe noted that in 1998 Galway RTC Regional Technical College changed it’s name to the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT), and UL recently signed a strategic alliance with NUI Galway.

“We are very much friends of Limerick out here in Clare. We have ongoing meetings, co-operation and a very healthy relationship,” he said.

Hundreds of acres of land in the university’s north campus in Co Clare were purchased during the term of former president, Dr Roger Downer. Since then, new developments have been springing up on the Clare side of the campus, including the new home of the Irish Chamber Orchestra, and the new presidential residence.

The Graduate Medical School and the Health Science Department are also located on the Clare side of the campus, which is linked with the main campus in Limerick via the €17m Living Bridge.

If one were being proper about it, the city boundary would not only be extended into Clare at Shannon Banks etc. but indeed another jump across the river at UL to specifically include the east bank campus within the city limits (assuming they would also be extended out past Annacotty).

The more functional and cohesive city would eventually help the county far more than at present and the county authority would have to put a lot more effort into the county towns.

Renaming UL . . . . . . . . . . . . 😉

Though if ever a building in UL were to be renamed then the “Irish World Academy of Music and Dance” would be one.

My own personal nomination would the “Ciarán MacMathúna Academy of Music and Dance”, which would be a fitting tribute to someone who contributed a life’s work to Irish Traditional Music.

See Wikipedia

@KeepAnEyeOnBob wrote:

If one were being proper about it, the city boundary would not only be extended into Clare at Shannon Banks etc. but indeed another jump across the river at UL to specifically include the east bank campus within the city limits (assuming they would also be extended out past Annacotty).

The application for a boundary extension includes UL’s north campus. In fairness it’s only logical that an institute like that should operate under a single local authority! Currently it has to deal with 2 separate planning departments in Limerick County Council and Clare County Council!

See the boundary map below.

For a short period it was referred to as the Sionna Academy, but that name was then dropped. I don’t know why it was adopted or dropped.

bjg

UL Building and Estates Newsletter May 2010

Some Current Projects

LERO/IEC Building
Size: 3550m2
Completion: May 2011
Architect: RKD Architects

Medical School
Size: 4295m2
Completion: March 2011
Architect: Grafton Architects

Medical School Accommodation
Size: 3563m2
Completion: December 2010
Architect: Grafton Architects

Health Science Building
Re-roofing
Completion: October 2010
Design & Build
Contractor: PJ Hegarty

North Bank Sports Pavilion and Pitches
Size: 1810m2
Completion: Sept 2011
Architect: Project Architects

New Product Design Centre
Size: 1043m2
Completion: September 2010
Architect: KOBW

Physical Education & Sports Science Building Refurbishment
Size: 1200m2
Completion: Planning Stage
Architect: KOBW

Clinical Education and Research Centre (at Mid Western Regional Hospital)
Size: 2580m2
Completion: Planning Stage

Library Phase II
Size: 6602m2
Completion: Design & Build Tender Stage

I was amazed that the relatively new Health Science Building (2005) is to be reroofed! 😮

Where is the product design building being built?

more to the point who is KOBW

http://www.kobw.ie/

€11 million building contract signed for Industrial Enterprise Centre at UL (UL News)

Contracts were signed today for the construction of a new €11 million building on the University of Limerick campus. The new building will house the University’s new Industrial Enterprise Centre (IEC), which will provide an incubation space and support services for potential start up companies as well as Lero, the Irish software engineering research centre led by UL.

The total footprint of the four storey development is 3,550 sq metres or about 37,000 sq feet and building work is expected to be completed in December 2010. The main construction contract has been awarded to Galway based contractor, JJ Rhatigan and Co Ltd. Design team for the project include RKD Architects, Thomas Garland and Partners Consulting Engineers, Homan O’Brien and Associates building services engineers, O’Reilly Hyland Tierney Associates quantity surveyors and Kerin Contract Management project managers.

This project has been supported through funding from Enterprise Ireland and the Higher Education Authority. The Industrial Enterprise Centre has also been kindly supported by Dan Tierney and the Tierney Family.

Previous post 77

.

Clare road to UL to be permanently closed
Written by Colum Coomey
Thursday, 05 August 2010 14:29

ACCESS to the UL campus from South East Clare is being closed off to cars, leading to expressions of anger from those who use the facility.

Now, Cllr Cathal Crowe is to make representations to Clare County Council on behalf of constituents.

He pointed out that many students and staff in the University either living in the area or coming from Clonlara, are obliged to travel through Corbally.

The Garraun Road, which directly connects Clonlara to the back of the Clare side of the campus, was temporarily closed for a number of years.

“The University erected a gate, closely monitored by security. Many motorists took the route to gain access to the campus”.

Cllr Crowe is very disappointed that the Garraun Road is to be sealed off on a permanent basis.

“Although there is still access for pedestrian and cyclists, that road has been there from time immemorial”.

According to him, it is imperative that there is access to UL from the Clare side of the river Shannon.

“There is major traffic coming from Clare as it has one of highest volume of students in UL, and more than half of the campus will be on the Clare side of the River Shannon inside 10 years”.

A recent survey carried out by Clare County Council showed a high volume of traffic travelling to UL from South East Clare through Corbally and Rhebogue.

“It is argued that the Garraun Road isn’t good enough but surely it would make more sense to finance and upgrade the road than permanently closing it,” added the Clare councillor.

New access to UL will be created on the Clare side of UL campus when the Coonagh – Knockalisheen distributor road is completed.

“Phase 1 of this road will be funded through Regeneration and it’s important that this project is fast-tracked now that UL has strengthened their links with NUIG,” he concluded.

Cllr Crowe is very disappointed that the Garraun Road is to be sealed off on a permanent basis.

“Although there is still access for pedestrian and cyclists, that road has been there from time immemorial”.

According to him, it is imperative that there is access to UL from the Clare side of the river Shannon

I can see a rich farmer or NAMA offering parking facilities and a rent a bike scheme…..

@bonzer1again wrote:

Clare road to UL to be permanently closed
Written by Colum Coomey
Thursday, 05 August 2010 14:29

ACCESS to the UL campus from South East Clare is being closed off to cars, leading to expressions of anger from those who use the facility.

Now, Cllr Cathal Crowe is to make representations to Clare County Council on behalf of constituents.

He pointed out that many students and staff in the University either living in the area or coming from Clonlara, are obliged to travel through Corbally.

The Garraun Road, which directly connects Clonlara to the back of the Clare side of the campus, was temporarily closed for a number of years.

“The University erected a gate, closely monitored by security. Many motorists took the route to gain access to the campus”.

Cllr Crowe is very disappointed that the Garraun Road is to be sealed off on a permanent basis.

“Although there is still access for pedestrian and cyclists, that road has been there from time immemorial”.

According to him, it is imperative that there is access to UL from the Clare side of the river Shannon.

“There is major traffic coming from Clare as it has one of highest volume of students in UL, and more than half of the campus will be on the Clare side of the River Shannon inside 10 years”.

A recent survey carried out by Clare County Council showed a high volume of traffic travelling to UL from South East Clare through Corbally and Rhebogue.

“It is argued that the Garraun Road isn’t good enough but surely it would make more sense to finance and upgrade the road than permanently closing it,” added the Clare councillor.

New access to UL will be created on the Clare side of UL campus when the Coonagh – Knockalisheen distributor road is completed.

“Phase 1 of this road will be funded through Regeneration and it’s important that this project is fast-tracked now that UL has strengthened their links with NUIG,” he concluded..

What is hilarious about this protest from cllr Crowe is that the closure of this road to through traffic into the UL campus was a condition of the planning developments on the North campus laid down by Clare County Council of which cllr Crowe is a member. What was his opinion at the time the planning permission was being considered? Could it have been that the local residents did not want this road to become a rat run from Clare to Castletroy and so the conditional approval was given on the basis that people would not be able to use that road to access UL? Cllr Crowe is a great one for running with not alone the hare and the hounds, but those who object to hunting and those would love it.

University of Limerick doctorate is ‘greatest honour’ says founding president Ed Walsh (Limerick Leader)

By Staff Reporter

IT HAS been 12 years since Dr Edward Walsh left the university he founded, but yesterday he was finally presented with an honorary doctorate from UL.

After serving as university president for 28 years, Dr Walsh said yesterday: “This is the greatest honour of my life.”

“My life has been so much associated with the university. I had the marvellous job for 28 years working here, and just seeing a fantastic team of university staff, faculty and students making a name for this place; the first university created since the foundation of the State.”

Dr Walsh said it was a “fantastic honour” to receive the doctorate from president Don Barry, another UL president from his native county of Cork.

“I can’t think of anything better,” he said of the honour, before joking: “For 28 years I only received abuse.”

“We had lots of fun, even during the difficult times. I’m hugely proud of it (the university] and delighted to be back here at the heart of the campus.”

Let’s hope all Ed Walsh’s successors will take his “baby” and develop it to its full potential.

Limerick students share architecture award

FRANK McDONALD Environment Editor

FINAL-YEAR architecture students at the University of Limerick have been awarded joint first prize at an international design workshop in Hamburg where they competed against entrants from Barcelona, Istanbul, Oxford, Sheffield Stockholm, Okinawa and Hamburg.

The award was announced on Saturday following a week-long “Art and City” workshop to generate ideas to connect Hamburg’s docklands area – known as Hafen City – to the city centre. One of the adjudicators was Hamburg’s chief architect and city planner.

Merritt Bucholz, director of the Limerick school of architecture, said they were all thrilled to win such a prestigious prize – especially at a time when architects in Ireland faced such difficult times, with up to 50 per cent estimated to be unemployed due to the recession.

All of the participating design teams had the opportunity to present their ideas to the people of Hamburg during the workshop, and it is intended that their designs will be published in a catalogue for Hafen City towards the end of this year, the organisers said.

© 2010 The Irish Times

Nice to see UL’s Architectural School delivering on an international stage. 😎

“Art and City” workshop link

I’m sorry but I’m lost on that website or stage…

@missarchi wrote:

I’m sorry but I’m lost on that website or stage…

Hmmm . . . . I linked to the English version and its navigation is easy enough by following the drill-down links?

Planning Application 10809 (Clare County Council)

For the upgrading and improvement of an existing pedestrian walkway and the linkage of the route to the existing Cappavilla student village.

The planning application seeks both permission and RETENTION permission as follows:

a) Planning permission for the provision of a board walk section measuring approx. 657 metres

b) Planning permission for the provision of upgrading materials over a section measuring approx. 823 metres

c) Planning permission for permanent RETENTION of a portion of boardwalk measuring approx. 45 metres

d) Planning permission for permanent RETENTION of an upgraded portion of the walkway measuring approx. 585 metres

e) Planning permission for a new route to link the upgraded walkway to Cappavilla student village measuring approx. 205 metres.

The upgraded and improved walkway is located close to the southern boundary of the University’s Clare campus and will be for pedestrian use only.

Garraun, Clonlara, Co. Clare

The existing 45 metre boardwalk for retention should give people a good idea as to how the planned 657 metre section will look like. A simple wooden-plank construction to walk on without any railing. It runs right along the water edge embedded among the river reeds. Obviously a very nice place to stroll, wouldn’t be too surprised if some wild-life issues come up.

ECOFACT are the environmental consultants.

@CologneMike wrote:

Let’s hope all Ed Walsh’s successors will take his “baby” and develop it to its full potential.

28 years as college president. 😡

@CologneMike wrote:

Hmmm . . . . I linked to the English version and its navigation is easy enough by following the drill-down links?

interesting description of SAUL from website

Most architecture schools are located in cities. As SAUL is not in a city, :confused:

Having said that well done to them

Contracts signed on Development of North Bank Sports Pitches and Pavilion Building at UL (Link)

50 construction jobs have been created as a result of the contract signing today for the development of state of the art, all weather sports pitches and a Sports Pavilion Building of the North campus of the University of Limerick. The development, which includes a full sized GAA pitch, two soccer pitches and a rugby pitch, all fully floodlit, is due for completion in September 2011 in time for the 2011/2012 academic year. The Pavilion Building comprises changing rooms, squad rooms, coaching rooms, together with bar, restaurant and conference facilities. The development will cost €9m, which will be funded from a number of sources including income raised from the operation of the facility and from funding generated from campus based commercial activities.

The University of Limerick has a proud tradition of providing excellent sports facilities for its students, staff and the wider community. The University Arena, with Ireland’s first Olympic sized pool, a boathouse with Ireland’s only indoor powered rowing tank, an outdoor all weather athletic facilities and numerous field sports pitches are just some of the facilities available.

Previous Post

Anyone have an update on the UL Medical Building, I was around UL the other week and there doesn’t seem to be any progress since Christmas? As the project stalled?

@lukejr wrote:

Anyone have an update on the UL Medical Building, I was around UL the other week and there doesn’t seem to be any progress since Christmas? As the project stalled?

It has stopped, according to this Limerick Leader article from early April, which means that construction stopped sometime in mid March.

http://www.limerickleader.ie/news/business/work_stops_at_university_of_limerick_medical_school_1_2572676

CONSTRUCTION work has halted at the site of the €16m medical school at the University of Limerick, with fears that it may not open as planned this coming September.

Work on site had been slowing down since Christmas, and came to a complete standstill a fortnight ago.

It remains unclear when the outstanding works will resume, but the university is in discussions with the main contractor.

Looks like the group is being wound up:
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2011/0504/1224296003488.html
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2011/0422/1224295255509.html

The plans for the extension of the library and for the redesign of the central core of the PESS building are up on the county council website.
http://www.lcc.ie/ePlan/InternetEnquiry/rpt_ViewApplicDetails.asp?validFileNum=1&app_num_file=11487
http://www.lcc.ie/ePlan/InternetEnquiry/rpt_ViewApplicDetails.asp?validFileNum=1&app_num_file=101182

The renders of the library look very impressive. and the redesign of the PESS building will be a vast improvement. That lecture hall that is there at the moment is awful. A new sports hall is included in the plans too.

The Irish phobia of building anything above four storeys manifests itself again – and this in a location where there aren’t any houses for a radius of a mile.

UPSTART ~ ED WALSH

Friends, Foes and Founding a University

Ed Walsh, son of a Cork butcher, returned to Ireland in 1970 to blunder into setting up an institute of education when Limerick wanted a university.

Ireland’s academic and religious ‘old boys’ clubs’ attempted to put manners on Ed.

But he found a decaying mansion on a riverside site and gathered talented young people.

Soon officialdom came to dread Ed’s letters and the certainty that if they didn’t reply to his satisfaction, he’d be bounding into their Dublin sanctums in short order.

Limerick’s National Institute of Higher Education opened two years later.

Despite a vicious recession Ed secured funding from the World Bank and European Investment Bank to build what became the University of Limerick.

He made powerful enemies as he challenged official cant, traditional academics and clerical humbug.

Later he won the support of a reclusive Irish-American who secretly pumped millions into the Limerick campus and later throughout Ireland.

With surprising candour Ed describes his academic and political struggles, and his efforts to straddle the divide between warring factions.

O’Mahony’s Bookshop

It seems to have all the ingredients of a good read. I’ll put it on my wish list for Christmas.

Some activity on the medical school site in the past few weeks. Not sure if it’s full steam ahead or if they’re just weather proofing the site after it was abandoned last year. Also the new sports pavillion is nearly complete. They were taking down the timber fence and blocking the construction entrance today. It’s got a very elaborate entrance.

It seems to have all the ingredients of a good read. I’ll put it on my wish list for Christmas.

In actual fact, Walsh seems to be an innovator in form as far as biography is concerned.
Never seen a man’s diary used so fixedly in generating the narrative of an autobiography.
Seldom much reflection on his then actions or motives.

Have it on your wish-list for other people to get for you.
But not a good personal buy.

My wish-list has the founding of a proper independent Arts & Humanities faculty in UL — something Walsh never seemed to see the need for (I wonder why so was that now . . . ) .

@teak wrote:

Never seen a man’s diary used so fixedly in generating the narrative of an autobiography.

Sounds like a “Captain‘s Logbook”. I’ll have to wait until St. Stephen’s day before commenting.

A quick update on the works at the PESS building in UL. Seems to be progressing nicely.

The windows were going in to the Medical School when I passed today. It’s not the nicest building I’ve seen but it will be great to have that side of the campus finished for the time being.
Also a recent issue of An Focal the student paper led with the story of a new student centre being planned for the carpark near the Languages Building. Apparently the stables complex is outdated and a new centre is needed.

Medical School Accommodation

Medical School

They are a year behind schedule due to the original builder going bust.

Photos from Sparky No 1

Here is a nice shot of the Sports Pavilion near the Medical School.

Hope they never have issues with flooding!

Photo from Sparky No 1

Some scaffolding coming down on the medical school recently. I take it back, it is actually nice. Quirky but in a good way.

The medical building should be ready for September, all the windows are now in and a lot of the internal work is being done. Also the new medical student accommodation blocks are nearly done, you can see lamp shades and kitchen presses already installed through the window.

[align=center:2kev737w][attachment=2:2kev737w]DSC01241 – Copy.JPG[/attachment:2kev737w] [attachment=1:2kev737w]DSC01247 – Copy.JPG[/attachment:2kev737w][/align:2kev737w]

I took a snap of the improved PESS building, it is now finished after undergoing a redevelopment this year.

[align=center:2kev737w][attachment=0:2kev737w]DSC01239 – Copy.JPG[/attachment:2kev737w][/align:2kev737w]

Medical School Building – Health Sciences Building

Medical School Residences – Medical School Building

Medical School Residences

Photo updates as seen at Sparky No 1

Campus Map (PDF)

Bernal Building ~ RKD Architects

Planning Application 12813 ~ University of Limerick Campus

A new four storey academic building with plant rooms at roof level with a gross floor area 7652sqm comprising of offices, research laboratory facilities and associated support spaces, write up areas and meeting rooms, a 200 seat lecture theatre with break out area, construction of a new transformer and switch room, new two storey pedestrian link bridge into Material and Surface Science Building and associated site works including minor realignment of existing road and relocation of bus stop.

UL The Bernal Project (pdf)

Plans for €52m science centre at University of Limerick (Limerick Leader)

Bernal Building ~ Willing Foe Design

Initial design studies for a modern purpose built academic research laboratory facility adjoining existing (70s) laboratory building on Limerick University campus. The project consisted of 2 phases of development to house a variety of lab types with different programmatic requirements – access from ground level, double height etc. A mix of academic support services were wrapped about 2 laboratory blocks. A lower ground floor, lit through a series of rooflights and openings in the ground plane provides connections to existing routes through the campus. (link)

Public lecture to examine influence of UL campus (Limerick Leader)

A free public lecture focussing on the University of Limerick and the contribution of its buildings to local and national architecture will be held on Tuesday, March 12 at 8 pm.

The event, at County Hall, will be presented by architect, historic building consultant and architectural historian, Judith Hill and forms part of Limerick County Council’s sixth season of biennial lectures on the Built Heritage of Limerick.

During the lecture, Ms Hill will trace the influences on the UL campus, describe its development and assess its impact.

Tuesday’s lecture is open to the public and admission is free.

Free public lectures are great, however, as the subject of an architectural discussion, does the UL campus not resemble a boneyard of 1990s Credit Unions?

Gunter you should pop that question on Tuesday night. I’m sure some of the following may turn up too.

UL Building by date of completion and architect (1972-2012)

(1972) Physical Education ~ Delany, McVeigh and Pike
(1974) Interdisciplinary Blocks A and B ~ Patrick Whelan and Building Design Partnership
(1978) Schrödinger ~ Pearse McKenna
(1984) Interdisciplinary Blocks C, D and E ~ Patrick Whelan and Building Design Partnership
(1985-7; 1999) Stables Student Centre ~ Patrick Whelan, Kelly, Barry, O’Brien
(1987) Schuman Building ~ Patrick J. Sheahan
(1987-91) Plassey Residences ~ Quinn Savage Smith
(1991) Track Building ~ A and D Wejchert
(1993) Foundation Building Concert Hall ~ Patrick Whelan
(1994-7) Kilmurry Residences ~ Quinn Savage Smith
(1996) Lonsdale ~ A and D Wejchert
(1997) Glucksman Library ~ Murray Ó Laoire
(1998) Horticultural Compound ~ Quinn Savage Smith
(1999) Computer Science ~ Murray Ó Laoire
(1999) Silver Apples Crèche ~ John Thompson and Partners
(2000-1) Arena ~ Project Architects
(2001) Sports Club ~ Project Architects
(2001) Dromore Residences ~ Quinn Savage Smith
(2001) Security Lodge ~ Kelly, Barry, O’Brien, Whelan
(2002) Materials and Surface Science Institute ~ Building Design Partnership
(2004) Vehicular Bridge ~ Murray Ó Laoire
(2004) Thomond Residences ~ Murray Ó Laoire
(2005) Engineering Research ~ Murray Ó Laoire
(2005-8) Languages and Common Room ~ Murray Ó Laoire
(2005) Health Sciences ~ Building Design Partnership
(2006) Cappavilla Residences ~ Project Architects
(2007) Living Bridge ~ Wilkinson Eyre
(2007) Boathouse ~ Conor Dennison Architects
(2008) Irish Chamber Orchestra Hall ~ Project Architects
(2008) Kemmy Business School ~ RKD
(2010) Irish World Academy of Music and Dance ~ DLB Cordier / KOBW
(2010) President’s House ~ Grafton Architects
(2011) Tierney Building ~ RKD
(2012) Pavilion ~ Project Architects
(2012) Graduate Medical School ~ Grafton Architects
(2012) Quigley Residences ~ Grafton Architects

Source Book: The University of Limerick ~ A History by David A. Fleming

Campus Master Plans 1973 – 2010

From the same book mentioned above, are scans of the various campus master plans from 1973 to 2010.

Unfortunately the book was printed in black and white, as a consequence the coloured hightlights of the original plans are therefore lost.

It’s interesting that the latest plan doesn’t plan for the new Bernal building. Does this mean that the plan is only an idea that won’t be followed?
Also the plan for the marina at the western end of the campus sounds cool. I hope the buildings are residences though, getting fro the Schmann building to the Schrodinger building between classes is difficult enough. That extra distance would make it near impossible.

@pigtown wrote:

It’s interesting that the latest plan doesn’t plan for the new Bernal building. Does this mean that the plan is only an idea that won’t be followed?

I suppose it reflects the practical business nature of UL to adapt to the needs of Ireland in a fast changing world.

It connects with the nearby Material and Surface Science Institute building via a two storey pedestrian link bridge.

According to the Leader, incubation units will facilitate the development of high potential start-up companies based on the products and processes developed in the Bernal facility.
@pigtown wrote:

Also the plan for the marina at the western end of the campus sounds cool. I hope the buildings are residences though, . . . .

I wonder why they (Limerick County Council and UL) had not more foresight regarding the location of the sewage-treatment plant.

Its part of the campus now!

So the Bernal building is close to completion. It’s quite a break from the architectural style of the university (in so far as they have one) in that it’s a very imposing building. It’s four or five stories high and was built right up against the student centre and the MSSI building, which hasn’t happened on the campus before. It’s also right up against the road, with just enough space for a footpath.

I’m not sure if I like it to be honest. With all the space they have I think it should have been located somewhere else.