LIMERICK’S FIRST DIRECTLY elected mayor John Moran and a number of Fianna Fáil councillors are at odds over road closures that have been implemented in the city for a month-long programme of city centre events.

The mayor previously accused some Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil councillors in Limerick of doing “all they can” to ensure his “term as mayor cannot be successful”.

Limerick City and County Council’s Summer in the City programme, which began 1 August, involves five road closures to provide access to events and public spaces designed to increase footfall in the city centre.

Fianna Fáil councillors Kieran O’Hanlon, Catherine Slattery and Joe Pond attempted to call a special council meeting to stop road closures days before the programme began.

Councillors O’Hanlon and Slattery told The Journal that they tried to call the meeting after being contacted by businesses concerned about how they would be impacted by the closures.

Around 100 traders protested ahead of the programme, The Irish Examiner reported.

Limerick City and County Council hosted the Spartan obstacle race course expo at the Crescent, in Limerick City as part of Summer in the City. Kieran Ryan-Benson Kieran Ryan-Benson

Speaking to The Journal, Moran said the three councillors tried to stop the closures under Section 140 of the Local Government Act 2001, which he said was not applicable in that situation. He said the meeting was to be held less than five days after notice was given, which is not allowed under Section 140.

Legal counsel sent to Limerick City and County Council, seen by The Journal, advised that if a resolution is passed under Section 140 in this case, it “would not be a lawful resolution that the Executive could act upon”.

Moran said: “Despite the fact that we’ve been doing this public consultation for many weeks beforehand, it was only on the Monday of the last week before the end of the vote, at a time while I was not actually in the country, that we received a motion from three councillors to ask, essentially, to pass a motion to stop all the street closures for Summer in the City,” he said.

He said the notice of the special meeting was placed during a short period he was abroad, a move he said on social media “hijacked” the holiday.

“It was clear that they wanted either to stop the mayor and our plans to do what we wanted to do for Summer in the City, or they wanted to create a debate about it,” he said, speaking to The Journal.

Moran said the events programme, which went ahead as planned, has been well received by many locals, businesses and councillors.

“The people of Limerick have spoken. They’ve all come out. They had a great time,” he added.

Maybe it was karma but this weekend the sun has shone and the people of Limerick responded to the negativity in the best way. The city I love revealed itself! An inclusive safe fun city with people just being positive and enjoying themselves! This is what #SummerintheCity means. pic.twitter.com/nZgqNjjvnQ

— John Moran, Mayor of Limerick (@moranjohna1) August 8, 2026

‘No conspiracy’

However, O’Hanlon said there “was no conspiracy” behind the Fianna Fáil councillors’ actions.

Speaking to The Journal, O’Hanlon said he wants an independent decision on whether the interpretation of Section 140 was valid.

He said he became involved in the motion after being contacted by local traders who were unhappy with the road closures.

Meanwhile, councillor Slattery called on Moran to engage with traders who contacted her with concerns about how closure of an area called The Crescent would impact their businesses.

“All we wanted was the Mayor to compromise with the traders but so far he has refused to do this. Instead, he has taken aim at three councillors stating we tried to sabotage his holiday and Summer in the City which is totally untrue,” she said.

“All this back and forth with statements is ridiculous when the mayor could have compromised but simply would not and still won’t. We were asked for help from the City traders and of course we tried to help them.”

In response, a spokesperson for the mayor said: “The Mayor has received and is reviewing the invitation from Limerick City Centre Trade Association and he intends to arrange a meeting soon”.

Moran was elected as an Independent in 2024 to serve as Limerick’s directly elected mayor in the first vote of its kind in Ireland, giving greater powers to the mayor’s office.

The council is led by a coalition of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil councillors who hold 23 out of its 40 seats.

Speaking today, Moran said: “There’s a perception in Ireland that all the councillors are up against the mayor, nothing could be further from the truth.”

“Very many of the councillors understand what we’re trying to do here in the executive. They like it. They’re working with it, whether it’s in the city or across the county. But you can’t please everybody all the time.”

He said that the people of Limerick voted for him and his programme, which mentioned incorporating more public plazas and two-way traffic.

“Whether they like it or not, 28,000 people voted for that. What they definitely voted for was this idea of a mayor who would be changing the way the city worked,” Moran said.

Councillor Joe Pond has also been contacted for comment.