New York-based Marathon Asset Management has begun construction work on the upgrading and extension of the City Square Shopping Centre in Waterford, which it bought almost two years ago for more than €21 million.
The new owner is expected to spend in excess of €6 million on repositioning several shop units and providing a new two-storey shop with a floor area extending to 1,579sq m (17,000sq ft).
Letting agents Lambert Smith Hampton has already opened discussions with several international fashion brands thought to be interested in the new trading opportunity.
Four shops needed to facilitate the extension have been taken back by the new management.
A considerable number of changes are also to be made to the food court on the first floor to allow four new restaurants and cafés to be added to the existing range of outlets. Other changes will include the relocation of Specsavers and GameStop to larger units and the opening of a new Inglot store.
Located in the heart of Waterford, City Square is laid out over two main retail floors with both Dunnes Stores and Debenhams each trading off two levels alongside 34 retail units and kiosks.
Shoppers have direct access to 450 car parking spaces over two basement levels which were sold more than a year ago to a local business consortium for about €8 million.
Niall Delmar of Lambert Smith Hampton said the changes being made would revitalise City Square and place a renewed focus on fashion and food by the time the work was completed this June.
City Square was developed in 1994 by Sisk and sold a year later to IBI Property Nomineees. When Marathon bought it in May 2015, it was producing an annual rental income of €1.7 million.
