Liffey Valley site for 575 apartments to make over €50m

A residential site of 7.1 acres beside the soon-to-be-redeveloped Liffey Valley shopping centre in west Dublin may also benefit from the proposed Luas West and Metro West transport links, writes Jack Fagan.

The decision to grant full town status to Liffey Valley shopping centre on the M50 in west Dublin will move a stage further shortly with the sale of the main area set aside for a residential development.

Stephen Cassidy of Savills HOK is quoting over €50 million for a site of 2.87 hectares (7.1 acres) which has been earmarked for 575 apartments.

Plans to double the size of the shopping centre - and to provide a good mix of shops, restaurants, bars and social facilities along newly developed streets in the present car-park - are due to be unveiled in the coming weeks when a local area plan is published.

The timetable for more than €1 billion worth of developments at Liffey Valley is not expected to be delayed by the decision of the Mahon Tribunal to reopen its investigation shortly into the controversial rezoning of land at Quarryvale in the early 1990s.

The public figures due to be called before the tribunal include Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, former taoisigh John Bruton and Albert Reynolds, former EU commissioner Padraig Flynn and Labour Party leader Pat Rabbitte.

The owners of Liffey Valley have been involved in lengthy discussions with the planners about the proposed layout of the new town centre for almost two years.

Architects O'Mahony Pike, who have been associated with some of the best-designed apartment schemes in Dublin in recent years, have had responsibility for the Liffey Valley apartments which will be located close to the entrance beside the Clarion Hotel.

The homes will be located in mainly seven-storey over basement blocks running from the hotel to an office block.

The site has around 265 metres of frontage onto the N4 Dublin-Galway road almost directly across the road from the new Hermitage private hospital. The developer will also have the option of providing up to 930sq m (10,010sq ft) of retail space at ground floor level.

A breakdown of the residential scheme shows that it will have 130 three-bedroom apartments, 438 two-bedroom units and 130 one-bedroom homes. There will also be seven large penthouses.

Despite the present slowdown in the new homes market, several developers are likely to pitch for the Liffey Valley site, given the high profile location and the likelihood that it will be served, possibly, by both Metro West and Luas West. Either public transport service would add greatly to the selling price and the appeal of the homes.

The location of the site beside the M50 should also prove a boon when that motorway is upgraded to relieve the present traffic congestion.

Liffey Valley also has a dedicated bus service which leaves the complex every five minutes, according to Savills HOK.

At the asking price of over €50 million, the site will work out at less than €87,000 per unit.

Stephen Cassidy said apartment schemes had proven extremely popular at other town centres and, with Liffey Valley so close to a broad range of facilities, the homes were bound to attract top prices.

Liffey Valley already has around 41,000sq m (441,320sq ft) of shopping and leisure space, including the VUE 12-screen cinema and, when redeveloped, will have at least another 30,000sq m (323,000sq ft), including a large stand-alone supermarket which it does not have at present.