Planning&Development:Permission has just been secured for a large development in Wexford town which will include retail and leisure facilities, a hotel, offices and apartments, writes Jack Fagan
Wexford is to get a major new shopping centre as part of a €350 million waterfront development at Trinity Wharf near the Talbot Hotel.
Deerland Construction has just secured planning permission for the mixed-use scheme which will include not only the retail facilities but also a hotel, offices, leisure facilities and apartments.
The development will include a two-level, 31,000sq m (333,681sq ft) shopping mall with three anchor stores and 50 shop units.
The hotel will have 282 bedrooms as well as conference and leisure facilities. There will also be a six-screen cinema, 266 apartments, and a five-storey office block with 11,233sq m (120,911sq ft) of offices.
One of the highlights of the scheme will be a large food court in the mall overlooking the harbour.
Rising in height generally from six to 13 storeys, the development will occupy a site of 7.1 hectares fronting on to the water. There will also be a new quayside roadway with public amenity space, including a 200-space car-park.
The overall development, due to be completed by 2011, will extend to over 174,000sq m (1.873 million sq ft) of enclosed buildings, including an area of 1,950sq m (20,990sq ft) in the food hall.
The attractive quayside area will have a number of bars and restaurants.
Around 600 construction workers are likely to be engaged on the development while another 2,000 people will be employed when the centre opens for business.
The hotel will range in height up to 13 storeys and will include a swimming pool. The apartment complex will also feature a 13-storey landmark tower and a large rooftop restaurant with panoramic views over Wexford harbour and the surrounding countryside.
With three sides of the scheme fronting on to the harbour, the overall project will provide stunning sea views.
The apartments and the hotel will also be focused on the seafront. Car-parking facilities will also be more than adequate with 1,844 spaces in a three-storey car-park over the two-storey shopping mall.
Other features will include a new quayside walkway and two feature plazas. In the longer term, it is also hoped that a 120-berth marina will be developed to complement the new town quarter.
Several key UK and international traders are known to have Wexford on their target list of Irish towns.
Cormac Kennedy of CB Richard Ellis acknowledges that there is strong interest from big name traders but says it is far too early to speculate as to who might go in at this early stage of the letting programme.
Kilkenny-based Deerland Construction is headed by Derry McPhillips who also has other town centre and retail projects in Waterford, Kilkenny, Mullingar and Dundalk.
Deerland has also developed the largest shopping centre in Mullingar, Harbour Place, which is anchored by Dunnes Stores. The company recently completed the sale to Dunnes Stores of the anchor store in the proposed Ferrybank shopping centre in Waterford. The Irish multiple outbid Tesco for the unit.
The various development projects on Deerland's books exceed 278,700sq m (3 million sq ft) in all.
