Limerick earl wins planning appeal for WWI memorial
An Anglo-Irish peer has emerged victorious in a planning row with his local council over plans for a memorial to honour Limerick people killed during the First World War. Edmund Pery, the 7th Earl of Limerick, has successfully appealed the decision of Limerick City and County Council to refuse planning permission for his project to erect a monument in the city’s People’s Park to commemorate more than 1,350 Limerick men and women, both military and civilians, who lost their lives during the war.
An Bord Pleanála has ruled that the proposed memorial, which consists of a 4.25m-high stone cross plus eight stone tablets containing the names of the victims and three stone benches, would integrate in a satisfactory manner with the existing park. Subject to a number of planning conditions, the board says it would not adversely impact on the existing recreational uses of the park, nor detract from its character and setting.
The planning appeals authority did not accept the recommendation of its own inspector who advised that the project should be rejected after questioning the placing of a “sombre memorial” of excessive scale near a children’s playground. The board said it does not consider that plans for the memorial are inconsistent with the recreational and civic amenity functions of the People’s Park.
The park is owned by the earl and operates under a 500-year lease to the council as a public park. Mr Pery said he wanted the memorial in an environment conducive to reflection in a secure, central, and accessible site for both locals and visitors. He emphasised that the memorial is not a military one but is a monument that recognises all the men and women from Limerick city and county who lost their lives in the First World War. He said many of those from Limerick who died in the war would have left for France from the nearby railway station.
The Eton-educated peer said that one of those was a relative of the 3rd Earl of Limerick, who leased the land for the People’s Park in 1875. His grandson died during the war in 1918, aged 23. The victim’s mother founded the Shamrock League, which assisted Irish soldiers coming back from the war.
The council refused planning permission on the basis that it was not satisfied that Mr Pery has sufficient legal interest in the land to carry out the development as well as fears that it would also set a precedent to allow other similar types of development. Its parks department also expressed concern that the memorial would endanger existing trees in the park.
Council planners said they took into account the proximity of a First World War memorial in Pery Square less than 60m away.
Those who opposed the plan were Independent councillor John Gilligan and the Limerick City Residents Action Group, which claims the large cross does not represent current Irish society.
