Nama may fund €20m Scotch Hall extension

NAMA IS TO decide shortly whether to fund a €20 million cinema, restaurant and retail complex to boost business at the six-year-old Scotch Hall shopping centre in Drogheda.

The viability of the €200 million shopping centre is seen as crucial to the business life of the Co Louth town which has been severely hit by the current recession.

Nama has responsibility for the development loans on Scotch Hall which links the existing town centre with the south docks and offers the best hope of a rejuvenation of the rundown docklands area.

Edward Holdings, the Galway-based development company headed by Gerry Barrett, also built a pedestrian bridge across the River Boyne to encourage shoppers to visit the new facility which includes a 108-bedroom hotel and 80 apartments.

Edward Holdings had begun development work on an extension to the shopping centre to accommodate 10 cinemas, a foodcourt and retail facilities before the property market crashed.

Nama is now considering a scaled down extension standing three-storeys high rather than the original four-storey over basement configuration but before deciding whether to allow it proceed, estate agent Douglas Newman Good has been engaged to gauge the level of interest in either renting or purchasing the cinemas which will occupy 2,787sq m (30,000sq ft) at second and third floor levels.

The plan also envisages an extensive food court on the second level and further retail space on the ground floor.

The letting agent is likely to be quoting rents of €161 to €215 per sq m (€15 to €20 per sq ft) for the cinemas.

Informed sources suggest there could be up to half a dozen operators interested in running a new cinema complex in Drogheda at a time when cinema attendances generally are at their highest, in part because of the recession.

Though there is already an Omniplex cinema based in a local shopping precinct, a stylish new eight-screen operation in the town centre alongside Scotch Hall would be expected to capture most of the market because of its convenient location and adjoining multi-storey car park.

Modern cinema facilities have been shown to provide a significant boost to visitor numbers at shopping centres in many towns and cities.

Two of the best examples are The Pavilion in Swords and Dundrum Town Centre – both controlled by developer Joe O’Reilly – where visitor numbers increased by around 25 per cent after new cinemas opened for business.

Before making a commitment to spend €20 million in Drogheda, Nama has also appointed accountants PwC to interview interested cinema operators and make a recommendation on the most suitable applicant.

Two months ago, Nama also agreed to finance a €12 million development of a cinema complex and two fast food outlets at the three-year-old Charlestown shopping centre owned by Michael and Tom Bailey at Finglas in north Dublin.