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[Article] Multi-million Town Centre dream could be rescued

KevR

http://www.galwaynews.ie/25803-multi-million-town-centre-dream-could-be-rescued

Galway News wrote:

Multi-million Town Centre dream could be rescued

May 15, 2012 - 7:27am Foreign investor could turn city centre site into €200m development

BY ENDA CUNNINGHAM
A foreign ‘white knight’ investor could be set to rescue a €200 million dream by four of Galway’s biggest property developers to transform the entire eastern side of Eyre Square into a smaller version of the Dundrum Town Centre, the Sentinel can reveal.

The 500,000 square foot development on part of the block’that runs along the O’Connell’s Bar side of the Square, would feature a major fashion retailer as anchor, as well as around 60 other retail units.

The ‘Odeon Syndicate’ was formed by four local developers in 2007, who each owned difference parts of the Eyre Square ‘jigsaw’ – they went on a €100m spending spree, snapping up properties on the Square, Prospect Hill, Forster Street and St Patrick’s Avenue.

Since then, ‘Odeon’ assets belonging to Michael Burke (Burkeway Construction) and Tom Considine, as well as Peter Gilhooley and Walter King (of GK Development) have been placed in receivership.

However, the Sentinel has learned that Bank of Scotland (Ireland) is currently looking for an investor to progress the project, which would cost around €100m to build.

Odeon Syndicate member Michael Burke said he could not comment on the negotiations other than: “The members of the syndicate are working closely with the bank to ensure the best possible outcome for the future of the Eyre Square project.”

The plans for the development are for a massive retail, office and residential project on a block which is bounded by Eyre Square East, Prospect Hill, Forster Street and Bóthar Uí Eithir, which has been described as a “mini Dundrum Town Centre”.

Another property industry source said any white knight investor is likely to be British or German, and the project is still viable.

As well as taking around 15 months in the planning (and any subsequent appeal to An Bord Pleanala) process, the project would take around two years to build.

Anyone know any further details about this proposal?

Is it linked to the Ceannt Quarter plans? Or is the Ceannt Quarter a seperate retail/office/residential development?

I don't think Galway needs massive amounts of additional retail space. Certainly not right now, but you'd even have to wonder if we will need a lot more in the next 10-15 years. We might need some more in a few years but not a lot.

Given that it couldn't possible be any closer to our rail/bus (city and coach) hubs, I think it would be perfect for high density office/residential. What are the bets that, at most, it is only 5-6 stories high?!

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Robbo

Has this foreign investor been at the glue or just not seen the retail space around Fairgreen lying idle?

yeehaw

KevR wrote: »

is only 5-6 stories high?!

This is Galway my friend, not Canary Wharf.

snubbleste

Don't be talking down the economy!

squonk

Sounds like something that will ruin the character of the area. How many shops do you need. The corrib center is on the other side.

KevR

Robbo wrote: »

Has this foreign investor been at the glue or just not seen the retail space around Fairgreen lying idle?

That's the thing!

Plus, there are plans to revamp Galway SC to create more space and there are plans for Ceannt Quarter...

Granted, it could easily be the case that none of them go ahead for quite some time (Town Centre development, Galway SC revamp and the Ceannt Quarter development)

KevR

yeehaw wrote: »

This is Galway my friend, not Canary Wharf.

Galway City Centre - next door to a huge public transport hub. Low rise would be foolish in my opinion. I don't think land prices in Galway would come close to justifying a cluster of high rises like Canary Wharf. Medium rise is the way to go.

Sponge Bob

The whole lot of the developers are in NAMA or in the Bank of Scotland runoff book...or both. This was a pie in the sky project in 2006/2007 and as for now.

Bank of Scotland could get perhaps €15m for the lot and the houses in St Patricks Avenue should be refurbished and put back into use as ....houses. The place went to rack and ruin since they bought it.

February 5, 2010 The townhouses have been allowed to fall into disrepair and littering, graffiti and underage drinking is now rife in the largely vacant side street, according to residents.

“It has become a litter-strewn ghetto just yards away from the centrepiece of the city,” said one local. “Derelict houses are covered with graffiti and I no longer feel safe going outside my door at night time. At weekends it is a haven for underage drinking,” he added.
The City Council has now contacted the owners of the properties and warned them that action must be taken to improve the condition of the derelict buildings

nuac

imho centre of Galway has enough retail space for at least generation

dloob

KevR wrote: »

http://www.galwaynews.ie/25803-multi-million-town-centre-dream-could-be-rescued

Anyone know any further details about this proposal?

Is it linked to the Ceannt Quarter plans? Or is the Ceannt Quarter a seperate retail/office/residential development?

I don't think Galway needs massive amounts of additional retail space. Certainly not right now, but you'd even have to wonder if we will need a lot more in the next 10-15 years. We might need some more in a few years but not a lot.

Given that it couldn't possible be any closer to our rail/bus (city and coach) hubs, I think it would be perfect for high density office/residential. What are the bets that, at most, it is only 5-6 stories high?!

It's not linked to Ceannt Quarter.
A bunch of developers bought up most of the properties on the east side of the square a few years ago with the plan to redevelop it all.
It's quite a big area they want to develop, not sure exactly how much of it they were able to buy.
I know they were the syndicate that bought O'Connells in 2006.

Things haven't gone so well for them recently.
Looks like the bank is trying to resurrect the plan, guess they think they'll get more money back this way.

Webbs

KevR wrote: »

Galway City Centre - next door to a huge public transport hub. Low rise would be foolish in my opinion. I don't think land prices in Galway would come close to justifying a cluster of high rises like Canary Wharf. Medium rise is the way to go.

Galway may be officially designated a city but it is only in reality a large historic town. Whilst I am a great believer in high rise buildings in the right environment (love the new Shard development in London), Galway city centre is not the place for a high rise high density development as there already massive issues with access, parking etc.
Galway also relies v heavily on tourism and a high rise development on Eyre square would look so wrong. Though I think a high rise in the docks area could look really good if designed correctly

Sponge Bob

dloob wrote: »

Looks like the bank is trying to resurrect the plan, guess they think they'll get more money back this way.

These geniuses paid €14m for O Connells alone and spent over €100m of Bank of Scotlands money assembling the general site. At one point they were 'expected' to buy Garveys Pub on the corner for €12m as late as July 2008...but didn't as I understand it. The plug had been pulled on the funding by then.

Bank of Scotland was...if anything...WORSE than Anglo Irish at lending for tiger era insanity which is why they own half the hotels in Ireland nowadays ( significantly more than NAMA do. )

BOSI probably want to see if they get a half decent offer for the whole lot as a single site and if not...as is the more likely outcome...they will start to slither out 1 or 2 Patricks Avenue houses per Allsops auction by around October/November time until they are all gone.

Peddling this myth with the Volvo circus coming in town is no surprise.

I presume that inevitably some Galway based auctioneer is involved in pimping this insanity....does anybody have a name??

cfeeneyinterior

There is an awful smell of BS coming from my keyboard!:eek:

Mrs OBumble

There always were a couple of issues with this proposed development:

Some of the buildings in they block are just a kip. But some really do have historic value, eg O'Connels, and some others in Forster St.

Also, I suspect that the Catholic Church owns about a quarter of the block (from visual inspection of google maps satellie view). Now I know that the city-centre is over-done with church-buildings, but I'm kinda picking they won't be keen to lose the land.