Athlone is to get the biggest town centre development outside of Dublin and Cork - and already some of the leading international fashion stores are fighting to get in there, according to the project's developers.
An Bord Pleanála yesterday gave the go-ahead for the €150 million development on an eight-acre site in the heart of Athlone.
Athlone Town Centre is promising to transform the town into a shopper's paradise.
The company behind the project - Gallico Developments - have promised 500 jobs in the construction phase, followed by 950 long-term positions.
Yesterday John O'Sullivan of Gallico Developments revealed that "some of the top national and international fashion stores are vying to get space in the centre - we have more stores interested than we have space."
The plans include a 161-room 4-star hotel, 163 residential units, 1151 underground car spaces, covered streets, and a covered public square.
The centre was previously rejected by An Bord Pleanála 18 months ago, and yesterday's news was "a major cause of celebration", said Mr O'Sullivan.
The planning body cited a variety of concerns, including loss of sunlight, impact on the skyline, noise pollution, loss of privacy, destruction of the residential amenity in the area, traffic chaos, impact on the environment, destabilisation of existing properties, and a downturn in property prices.
Mr O'Sullivan, who owns the Hodson Bay hotel in Athlone and the Galway Bay Hotel, was joined at yesterday's briefing by his son and local accountant Jim Keane, who is also part of the Gallico Developments consortium.
