Future Limerick Report
Limerick Chamber commissioned the report in 2021 with the goal of acting as a benchmark assessment of the performance of Limerick city versus other Irish cities and, looking at international best practice, to outline measures to support the sustainable future development of the city. The Future Limerick Report made several recommendations, one of which was an early version of the SDP. The report was completed by Indecon Economic Consultants.
The Purpose & Role of the SDP
The goal of the SDP is to showcase and monitor ongoing public and private investment across the Mid-West region. The SDP is an open portal on the Limerick Chamber website featuring projects from around the Mid-West, spread across various sectors; from commercial developments, housing, education and healthcare to public realm and transport. The SDP provides an up-to-date detailed overview of each project down into its elements from preliminary design, tendering, planning and construction while showing the current status of each phase. The SDP also provides estimated start and finishing dates for most phases.
“The main purpose of the SDP is to act as a point of contact for citizens, stakeholders and potential investors alike to showcase what projects are underway and ensure transparency regarding phasing and timelines. This is particularly important to ensure greater accountability around delivery by public organisations, who hold the key to unlocking the tremendous potential across the region via the numerous projects they are charged with delivering”.
– Donal Cantillon, Limerick Chamber President
Data Collection
The data and information collected for the SDP comes from multiple sources including collaboration with key stakeholder and project leaders across the Mid-West. The rationale for the SDP was to focus on the progression of each project. The methodology behind this was to break down each project into its constituent phases to get more clarity around the start and finish date of phases, and whether a project has remained in a phase for a prolonged period of time or if it is progressing as planned. This information is then communicated via the SDP portal for citizens, businesses and potential future investors to see.
The data collected ranges from various sources, including media outlets, articles, project websites, press releases, planning portals, etender documents as well as the information provided by key stakeholders and project leaders. The data on the SDP is periodically updated and updated as new information becomes available.
Cross Project Analysis
For users of the SDP, it is important to note that not all projects are created equally, and the purpose of the SDP is not to compare projects on the portal to each other. This is due to the vast differences between projects i.e. constructing a new mixed use development on a brownfield site will likely have a much longer lead in time than a new cycle lane, and also will involve more phases. The same can be applied for two similar structures being built on different sites – not all required works will be the same, therefore, it isn’t appropriate to compare projects in this regard.
Governance
The Strategic Development Pipeline is governed by an oversight committee within Limerick Chamber. The oversight committee is made up of Board members of Limerick Chamber and Limerick Chamber staff. Ultimately, the oversight committee decides what projects are featured on the website (according to internal criteria) and the status of the overall project.