Celebrating its 25th birthday this year, Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre is on the verge of a £10 million (€12.7m) overhaul designed to make the premises not only very much better but also bigger. One of the oldest such centres in the greater Dublin area, Dun Laoghaire, which opened on Upper George's Street in 1976, has suffered in recent years from the arrival of new competitors such as the Bloomfields Centre. Blackrock's two shopping centres and the planned redevelopment of long-established centres in both Dundrum and Stillorgan also pose a threat to Dun Laoghaire's future profitability.

Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre was formerly owned by the Irish Pension Fund Property Unit Trust until its sale for more than £20 million to a group of private investors in June, 1998. Since then, little has been done to the building which now needs a complete revamp.

Inside the centre, the tiled floors are marked by grubby grouting, the lighting is poor and the walls often show signs of scuffing. While all units are occupied at present, not all of them are necessarily of a calibre suited to such a site at the very heart of the affluent borough. The centre's style of decor is also no longer in vogue, with metal balconies painted a dark green and topped with brass balustrades, while dusty fabric flowers attempt to introduce some element of cheer into the public areas.

All this is likely to change from next January once a refurbishment programme gets underway. Because of these plans, the centre will not be marking its 25th anniversary in the coming months but waiting until the newly-designed premises can be shown.

Work is expected to last almost a year and, according to the centre's manager, Andrew Diggins, will take place predominantly during hours when the building is not open to consumers. Nonetheless, Mr Diggins does expect that there will be "some disruption" to the centre and its traders since the appearance of the entire interior is to be changed.

All finishes will be renewed, with different ceilings, walls and flooring introduced to produce what the centre's manager calls "a modern, bright and clean" premises. Internal circulation is to be reconsidered with the installation of lifts and escalators in different positions to those they occupy at present.

The escalators at the back of the building close to the A-Wear store, for example, are to be taken out and a number of new retail units introduced in this section, creating some 6,000 sq ft of additional shopping space to the existing figure of 135,000 sq ft.

Even more importantly, the basement beneath the lower ground floor currently used only for storage purposes is also to be opened up, creating a fourth floor of shopping in the centre and adding around 15,000 sq ft.

Once work has been concluded on the main block, attention will be focussed instead on the centre's 1992 extension called George's Mall. While this is notably brighter and fresher than the old section, it could also benefit from attention and will, therefore, be upgraded to the same standards.

At the moment, the shopping centre holds 83 units covering almost all the most popular requirements of consumers. While the main ground floor contains some of the most familiar names such as A-Wear, Japan, Morgan, Specsavers and H Samuel, the lower ground is devoted primarily to food with a Tesco outlet, two butchers, a greengrocer and a pharmacy.

The upper level offers a branch of Peter Mark hairdressers, a book shop, a motor accessories outlet and a soft furnishings premises. Andrew Diggins says that while he is happy with the current mix, the aspiration is that post-refurbishment, the centre will attract more menswear and mid-market women's fashion. Most of the retailers have long-term rental agreements with five-year reviews, of which a large number are due to be considered during 2001.

Present levels average £60 (€76.2) per sq ft on the ground floor, £40 (€50.8) on the lower ground and £30 (€38.1) on the upper floor. Mr Diggins expects rents in the new basement floor to be in the region of £15 (€19.5) per sq ft.

Regular visitors to Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre will be happy to learn that the car-parking facilities are also due for reconsideration during the year ahead. At the moment, both the entrance and exit for motorists is much narrower than in other such premises.

Inside the car-park too, circumstances are far from ideal, due to low ceilings and tight turns. While the former is likely to remain unaltered, the latter ought to go if the centre receives planning permission to extend its car-park seawards over the entrance and exit routes which would then become covered.

Mr Diggins estimates that should this work take place, approximately 100 new car-parking spaces will be created for shoppers but, just as importantly, the internal configuration can be given attention to allow easier flow of traffic.