Jesuit church and adjoining house expected to fetch €4m

SEALED bids for a historic Jesuit church and adjoining residence will be opened in a Limerick solicitor’s office today.

The Church of the Sacred Heart and adjoining residence are located in The Crescent.

The landmark property is expected to fetch in excess of e4 million.

The Jesuit School building in The Crescent was sold some years ago and now houses the Limerick Tutorial Centre.

Past pupils of the Jesuits in The Crescent include Richard Harris, Terry Wogan and Des O’Malley.

And a son of the former PD leader, Des O’Malley junior of Sherry Fitzgerald O’Malley is joint selling agent for the property.

Bids closed yesterday and will be considered today at the offices of Dundon Callanan, solicitors whose offices are also at The Crescent.

Auctioneer Des O’Malley said: “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to acquire a prestigious landmark building in the heart of Limerick city. The sale has prompted intense interest from a diverse range of local and national potential purchasers.”

The Jesuits moved their school to Dooradoyle in 1974. Work on the construction of the church building, which is now being sold, began in 1864 and it was dedicated to the Sacred Heart in 1869.

Formal architect for the neo-classical building was Charles Geoghegan, but Limerick engineer William Corbett is credited with much of the design details such as the stucco floor.

The adjoining Jesuit residence is a three-storey Georgian building with a basement.

Many legal and other professional companies have offices at The Crescent which is commercially zoned.

Fr Dermot Murray, who has been given responsibility to oversee the sale of the property said if a sale emerges from today’s bidding process, it is likely the five remaining Jesuit priests will move out towards the end of June.

The order still has residential properties for priests adjacent to Crescent Comprehensive School in Dooradoyle.

The order plans to open a Centre for Spirituality at Dooradoyle to promote prayer.

At present there are five Jesuits based in Dooradoyle.

Fr Murray, who is a former head of Crescent College and well known for his involvement with rugby refereeing, said he hopes to move to Dooradoyle when the sale of the Sacred Heart Church and adjoining property in the Crescent is completed.

A Mass for Richard Harris was celebrated at the Church of the Sacred Heart after his death and was attended by his ex-wife, Elizabeth and their sons.