Crown Square Mervue

diverdriver

What is happening with this development? I saw one of the cranes moving the other day and thought it must be operational. But there was nobody in the cab only ghosts of unemployed crane drivers. It was just the wind changing direction.

Nothing has moved there since before Christmas. There was something in the papers about it back in December, I think. Saying they were about to start work again in March. But that never happened.

It's nearly seven months since anything happened there. What's going on?

kayos

diverdriver wrote: »

What's going on?

A recession.....

s_carnage

Think the "official" word on it then was they were stopping because the original anchor tenant had pulled out and they supposedly had a new anchor tenant so that meant a change in plans for the layout of the building which meant a few months planning and getting permission for these proposed changes.

Wompa1

They move the cranes every once in a while to suit the wind direction for safety reasons

Sponge Bob

The cranes swing in the wind , the site is abandoned and will remain so for the next few years .

snubbleste

Sponge Bob wrote: »

The cranes swing in the wind , the site is abandoned and will remain so for the next few years .

Doommonger!
When this topic came up before, I think one of the guys on site replied, maybe he could do so again

galwayrush

Bank will release more money for the next stage when some anchor tenants are secured, nothing until then.

Fozzie Bear

galwayrush wrote: »

Bank will release more money for the next stage when some anchor tenants are secured, nothing until then.

Thats it basically in a nut shell. Developer cannot get finance to complete the project. Same developer is doing a major project in the middle of Oranmore village, opposite the thatch pub. The workers on this site downed tools last week as they had not been paid in four weeks. Just shows the financial problems that developers out there are having.

nerophis

They leave cranes up on derelict sites because it costs money to take them down and nobody wants to use wants them at the moment. It's mad given Ireland even two years ago

KevR

I really hope this project starts up again and gets finished. It looks like it could be really nice.

There would be some jobs during construction and some more in the shops when they open which would be a nice little boost for Galway if it happens.

Mrs OBumble

KevR wrote: »

I really hope this project starts up again and gets finished. It looks like it could be really nice.

Agreed. BUT, let's see City Limits/Living/whatever-on-Prospect Hill get tenanted first. Oh, and a traffic management plan for the Crown site would be interesting to see, too!

KevR

JustMary wrote: »

Agreed. BUT, let's see City Limits/Living/whatever-on-Prospect Hill get tenanted first. Oh, and a traffic management plan for the Crown site would be interesting to see, too!

TK Maxx will be residing in City Point. I would be worried if I owned a clothes shop in town...

big b

KevR wrote: »

TK Maxx will be residing in City Point. I would be worried if I owned a clothes shop in town...

maybe, maybe not.

TK Maxx in Glasgow is one of the best clothes shops I've been in.
TK Maxx in Dublin, one of the worst.

kippy

JustMary wrote: »

Agreed. BUT, let's see City Limits/Living/whatever-on-Prospect Hill get tenanted first. Oh, and a traffic management plan for the Crown site would be interesting to see, too!

There was a crane actually moving there on Monday with someone in it. I think they were just moving a few pieces of another crane that was on the ground around a bit.

In fairness, there are too many ill thought out and poorly conceived places like this in towns and cities across Ireland these days. One only has to go down the road to Wellpark to see the jock that place is in due to the new lights that replaced the monigesha roundabout. Its taking AGES to get in and out of the place, almost at any time now, because of them. Even the Dunnes Stores in Briarhill, what a joke of a traffic system they have there, only a matter of time before theres a bad accident at the exit from it and the old monivea road.....
What type of development was Crown square meant to be anyway? No doubt a shopping center with "luxourous"(SP) appartment living (read, overprices, no garden, cant swing a cat, with no local amenities)

Sorry, this has turned out to be a bit of a rant but as others may know from my other posts on various aspects of Galway Cities planning, I have little time for ill conceived places like this, no matter how many jobs it provides.

snubbleste

The planning application in March 2006 was along the lines of
a €400m development of commercial and residential properties together with civic amenities on the Crown Control site in Galway city. The developers, Stephen Harris, Walter King and Bernard McKeown, plan to include 26,425 sq m of retail space, mainly of the retail warehousing type. The anchor is expected to be a DIY store with a garden centre.
In addition there will also be 11,563 sq m of residential accommodation consisting of 140 residential units. Other buildings will contain 9,378 sq m of office accommodation plus 9,286 sq m of additional accommodation which will consist of a 100 bedroom hotel, a creche and leisure facilities. http://www.independent.ie/unsorted/property/grand-400m-galway-plan-110134.html

snubbleste

I know this thread is a year old but one of the Council's biggest debtors is this site

..the City Council is owed well over €5m in unpaid levies in relation to almost 70 sites around town.
The single biggest debt relates to the abandoned Crown Square development in Mervue – headed up by Padraic Rhatigan of JJ Rhatigan and Walter King of GK Developments – where almost €2.1m is owed.

So there you go it's been abandoned.

civis_liberalis

snubbleste wrote: »

So there you go it's been abandoned.

Was just thinking about the place this morning when I passed it.

It's been left idle for over a year and a half now anyways hasn't it?

sgthighway

snubbleste wrote: »

I know this thread is a year old but one of the Council's biggest debtors is this site


So there you go it's been abandoned.

I wouldn't take that literally. I think its left there with the understanding it would take off when things pick up but realistically the banks will probably end up owning it.

PopeBuckfastXVI

Are the loans still performing?

soundbyte

PopeBuckfastXVI wrote: »

Are the loans still performing?

LOL

forumfiend

PopeBuckfastXVI wrote: »

Are the loans still performing?

no mention yet of the owners being NAMA'd anyway...

HardyEustace

It's a bit of a blessing in disguise. It would have caused traffic chaos. No more than KFC and Briarhill Dunnes, how could any sane and ethical individual granted planning permission for them... </rant and rolly eyes>

Robbo

PopeBuckfastXVI wrote: »

Are the loans still performing?

Spinning plates whilst walking a tightrope, one would imagine.

civis_liberalis

Robbo wrote: »

Spinning plates whilst walking a tightrope, one would imagine.

Above a crocodile pit.

Mrs OBumble

Ahh yes.

I went past this in the bus last Saturday: one of the gates was open and there was a van inside the site. Any idea what's going on? Or maybe it was just security.

galwayrush

HardyEustace wrote: »

It's a bit of a blessing in disguise. It would have caused traffic chaos. No more than KFC and Briarhill Dunnes, how could any sane and ethical individual granted planning permission for them... </rant and rolly eyes>

The permission was fine for those developements until some twits managed to hinder building of the city by-pass.Hopefully common sense will prevail and it will get the green light asap.

Doom

I see cranes in the Crown square site, is it going ahead again?

s_carnage

They never left so nothing happening there.

Head The Wall

A few of them did emigrate, there was one still erected down near Eircom and a few more stacked on the ground last time I was at home. How many are up now?

dinneenp

These are from August-

factual lies

A new crane did arrive on site yesterday. We will have to wait and see though if its to start up again, or if its for removing whats there already?

Ficheall

Rhattigan has taken over all the NUIG building contracts - perhaps they are relocating their equipment? Or perhaps they are starting up again, now that they'll have gotten an extra cash injection..

kieran26

I'd say they're just taking their equipment back. Rhattigans are contractors not developers so they don't finance their own jobs.

Sponge Bob

Rhatigan had 3 white tower cranes in Crown when the site shut down in late 2008, one went to the Bon Secours and another elsewhere. One has been there for 3 years doing nothing. They may require all 3 at the University.

Rhatigan were the developers on the part built site where eircoms Headquarters are near Heuston Station as well as the contractors on some or all of it.

ned14

Sorry for bringing up an old thread, but there's some new activity at this site in the last week. The ramp into the site has been rebuilt and there are workers putting up some new steel fencing today. Anyone know what's going on there?

Mrs OBumble

Local councillor has been complaining that the existing fencing has been falling down. Was in one of the local papers a few weeks ago.

snubbleste

Mother nature tried to reclaim it.

muppetkiller

I heard it's going to be the largest Nandos in the world...(Or maybe I was dreaming )

Storm 10

As stated they are re-building the fence around the site after it was damaged in the storm, no other work going on.

keano89

You can see the site fairly clearly from the road on the Eircom side, some hole in the ground.

JJpedro

Since its going to be empty for a while, why dont we set up free car parking and organise bus rides to town, it would make it a lot easier for people with
cars to get to it as compared going to Ballybrit and less of a journey to town ( its a pity there is no bus lane from there )

civis_liberalis

JJpedro wrote: »

Since its going to be empty for a while, why dont we set up free car parking and organise bus rides to town

You could fit a lot of cars in there all right but you would need a crane to get them back out again.

biko

This is an old thread and since there is no new info on Crown I'm closing it.
If building starts again please PM a mod to reopen or start a fresh thread.

Edit - reopened for further news

what_traffic

200m plan to finish Crown Square lodged at City Hall
By Enda Cunningham - November 16, 2018

https://connachttribune.ie/e200m-pla...-at-city-hall/

ben.schlomo

Phase 2 planning lodged.

https://galwaydaily.com/news/plans-submitted-for-e55-million-crown-square-housing-project/

flazio

The IDA estate would want to keep a closer eye on its parking if those go ahead.

emptybladder

flazio wrote: »

The IDA estate would want to keep a closer eye on its parking if those go ahead.

There’ll be plenty of parking in Crown Square according to this:
https://connachttribune.ie/plan-for-300-apartments-in-phase-2-of-crown-square/

Gadgetman496

An Bord Pleanála has granted approval for 345 build-to-rent apartments at Crown Square in Mervue.

Link:

Paddico

Any updates on this folks?

Not living in Galway would be good to see some photos or see some updates

ben.schlomo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121888446#Comment_121888446

It's getting there. First two buildings are complete, opposite the houses on Monivea Rd, awaiting fit out. Next block, on Joyce Rd (think that's the name) is complete in terms of height externally and has had windows installed. One behind it is at maybe second floor height I'd say.