Athenry's empty shops

Greaney

Athenry have 5 shops for sale or lease
http://www.daft.ie/galway/commercial-property-for-sale/?ad_type=commercial&advanced=1&s%5Ba_id%5D%5B0%5D=2029&s%5Bpt_id%5D%5B0%5D=1&s%5Bpt_id%5D%5B1%5D=2&s%5Bpt_id%5D%5B2%5D=4&searchSource=commercial

So what's with the other 20 empty shops then? :mad:

Greaney

Greaney wrote: »

Athenry have 5 shops for sale or lease
http://www.daft.ie/galway/commercial-property-for-sale/?ad_type=commercial&advanced=1&s%5Ba_id%5D%5B0%5D=2029&s%5Bpt_id%5D%5B0%5D=1&s%5Bpt_id%5D%5B1%5D=2&s%5Bpt_id%5D%5B2%5D=4&searchSource=commercial

So what's with the other 20 empty shops then? :mad:

Possibly upwards only rent has pushed them out of the range of the current market. Once the market reaches the right level, these will start to be occupied.

Greaney

Possibly, but unlikely. I've known the history of many of the units.


1) Some have never been let
2) A number were owner occupied before this
3) One unit has just been let and has had 5 different businesses in it in the last 7 years. Since I've known the rent of two of them, I know they dropped the rent by a bit between business 3 and 4.
4) One has been empty for nigh on 15 years as it was bought and sold during the boom.
5) The rents are more per square ft. than Galway City, and I've known four enterprises who tried to rent locally and because it was too difficult or expensive they choose the city and/or elsewhere because of it.

So I'm wondering to myself
a) Isn't there a dereliction fine... http://www.galwaycity.ie/derelict-sites Does anyone know if it has been inforced?
b) Does the local Authority or the government have a policy that we may not have quiet grasped.
c) Are there other towns like this?
d) Where do the county council stand on 'rates on vacant properties'. I know the city council introduced them a couple of years ago and I believe it made a difference.
e) Is the practice of introducing new by-laws to tackle this, really really difficult for a local Authority.

dok_golf

20?? Didn't realise there were that many!

Greaney

Well, I've just done a mental count and it's more like 25, but out of the five listed there are two occupied, so basically there are three vacant shops listed. I think there are two others that might have done it cheap and had a phone number stuck in a window. But most have them have been vacant for years, and upward only rent explains why they're vacant, but doesn't explain why they're not available!

6 of them are in the shopping Centre. Now that's not suprising when you check out the 'limit's put on the occupier. Scroll down this page and look at the 'user clause'. Basically, you can't open 14 kinds of businesses!! So That makes the Bridgewater Shopping Centre unattractive.

http://www.daft.ie/galway/commercial-property-for-sale/retail-units-for-sale/unit-10-bridgewater-shopping-centre-athenry-galway-390136/

The other Blackspot is North Gate Street with 7. I've phoned to enquire about three of those when they were listed in the past. I was told they were either not available or sold already. But still they've lay empty for nigh on 5+ years.

dok_golf

Just looked through that link. That's appalling frankly.

Greaney

This is a bit gossipy but....

I'm always chatting to my local county Councillor about vacant properties (chatting/ ranting???) and he's given me an impression that there's talk of rates being introduced on empty properties at county level. Just talk mind. It would have to be voted on, etc. because it would become a bylaw.

The rates would be modest, but it'd be a nudge for property owners to make decisions on their properties. Gosh, it'd be great if it made a real difference

heinze

You also have to consider that the out of town shopping center has a monopoly and considering there is now only 1 local shop remaining open in the town and 1 petrol station not under the shopping center ownership.

There has to be a point where the people of the town act and hold the councilors etc responsible for planning laws , not assisting to regenerate the town center and allowing certain business owners develop and maintain a monopoly on the town shopping whether this is through indirect blocking of planning applications etc

How long can it go on when the town population (circa 5K and growing) requires additional choice and facilities, how many people from Athenry will you meet in LIDL , ADLI, Supervalu etc in Loughrea, Oranmore every weekend? Smaller towns across the country have all these additional options but Athenry doesn't and the town center has declined drastically for decades

pawdee

It must be lonely around there?

heinze

heinze wrote: »

You also have to consider that the out of town shopping center has a monopoly and considering there is now only 1 local shop remaining open in the town and 1 petrol station not under the shopping center ownership.

There has to be a point where the people of the town act and hold the councilors etc responsible for planning laws , not assisting to regenerate the town center and allowing certain business owners develop and maintain a monopoly on the town shopping whether this is through indirect blocking of planning applications etc

How long can it go on when the town population (circa 5K and growing) requires additional choice and facilities, how many people from Athenry will you meet in LIDL , ADLI, Supervalu etc in Loughrea, Oranmore every weekend? Smaller towns across the country have all these additional options but Athenry doesn't and the town center has declined drastically for decades

This, exactly this

Greaney

In fairness, you can blame the local supermarket all you like, indeed, they own some of the empty buildings in the shopping centre but everyone has a role to play.

The building owners responsibility

The buildings have to be in good condition
The building has to have any legal matters resolved and be ready to rent.
The building has to have a reasonable rent that a business can sustain

The business owners

The Business has to be aware of the other businesses in the town to compliment each other. Too many of one thing is not sustainable.
The businesses should work together to strategize the town (a chamber of commerce)
The Business owners should know how their town works, for example, the local authority, the parking rules, the market status and stall holders, The heritage stake holders, the calendar of events etc.
The businesses should have a relationship with the rest of the community

The Residents

The Residents should walk through their town now and then to check and see what's new (get out of the car!)
The Residents should attend public meetings on the future and planning of the town
The residents should give some of their time to at least one community group
The residents should support two or more fundraisers/groups in the town per year.


All three groups should have folk within those groups who are into 'planning' and understand it, and keep their finger on the pulse. A community that plays no active part in their town will always be subject to 'others'. It takes time to bear fruit, but it's worth it.

While you have a certain point, if you go back and look at all the applications for Aldi, Lidl and Tesco around Galway, anytime there is a Joyces nearby, suddenly you will see there voicebox RGData, lodging formal objections

They do it time and again and are quite shameless about it

Stop them doing that, and you will see a more diverse range of shops in Athenry

bluestone

i see burkes hardware closed as well recently although they are doing up the unit as if they have something else in mind. anyone know if something new goin in there?

jmpd22

Deleted User wrote: »

This, exactly this

I completely agree with this. It is shameful that Athenry isn't utilized by encouraging business to set up rather than forcing the small local business to shut down as the support is just not there. Locals are being forced to go to the likes of Oranmore, Loughrea and the City in order to avail of any sort of choice, when the population of the town warrants the choice to available locally. A little bit of investment would go a long way in the town, and as suggested the lack of a town centre does make it suffer, but again with some thought and investment, this could also be rectified. Athenry is only growing in population and I really don't know how much larger it has to get in population before the town gets the attention and investment it requires to service it's inhabitants. With it's great location off the motorway, it should be a go to town for the likes of Oranmore, Loughrea etc., not the other way around!

Greaney

In fairness, who's to make the investment we all think the town needs? The Government? The County Council? The community groups? The Property owners? Really, who? There's currently the largest school in the West of Ireland being built (Dept. of Education), Irish water are investing in the waste water treatment plant near Joyces (well over due). The Council are doing streetscaping and are going to bury the phone cables etc. in the town. The planning permission for a discount supermarket in the co-ops property (Clark Street.) got the go ahead a while back and they just need to move out to Ballydavid when their new premises is built. So there's money being spent, and yet shops are still empty


Meanwhile, this is what's on daft.ie

More here

I honestly think the rents are too expensive. I'd say 30% too much for a sustainable business to last.

Greaney

Greaney wrote: »

In fairness, who's to make the investment we all think the town needs? The Government? The County Council? The community groups? The Property owners? Really, who? There's currently the largest school in the West of Ireland being built (Dept. of Education), Irish water are investing in the waste water treatment plant near Joyces (well over due). The Council are doing streetscaping and are going to bury the phone cables etc. in the town. The planning permission for a discount supermarket in the co-ops property (Clark Street.) got the go ahead a while back and they just need to move out to Ballydavid when their new premises is built. So there's money being spent, and yet shops are still empty


Meanwhile, this is what's on daft.ie

More here

I honestly think the rents are too expensive. I'd say 30% too much for a sustainable business to last.

In fairness, the only one that lists a weekly rate is 200 eur a week. That's nothing. Any business that can't manage that is not really a viable business to start with

Greaney

I'm sure those rents are sustainable in a city, but Athenry doesn't have the footfall and those units have been empty for years and years. Furthermore, some of them have a builders finish, no loos or Electricity so a further €10k-€20k would be needed before you could open shop. I don't know if you've ever traded but I know plenty of traders who are tired of folk thinking they're rolling in it. The only business able to pay big rents are the Bookies, and I don't want to live in a town full of shops like that.

Regarding one of the shops listed there POA (price on application), the asking price is about €750k. You'd have to get almost €2k per week rent to make a decent returns. Nope, I'm sorry, those rents are too expensive for a town like this. I honestly think a in small town Ireland one has to be an owner occupier. A town of landlords has no direction. Small town Ireland doesn't just need folk to invest their money, but to invest their future, their ideas, their ambition.....

aw

bluestone wrote: »

i see burkes hardware closed as well recently although they are doing up the unit as if they have something else in mind. anyone know if something new goin in there?

I believe the mortgage broker upstairs is taking the whole building and will be moving the main customer part downstairs.